Review Summary: Fantastic Debut. Fantastic band.
Crown The Empire was one of those unsigned bands that released an EP on their own and quickly became known around the scene community. They had breakdowns, chugs and of course some electronics but something about this band stuck out. Either the catchy cleans, the breakdowns sounding decent or how the synth and chugs fit the songs pretty well. The band had quickly been picked up by rise-records and instead of bringing out generic rise-core, The Fallout became one of the best debut full lengths that came of Rise.
Album opener Oh, Catastrophe has nothing to offer for the first half, just consisting of Andrew Velasquez(Clean vocalist) appearing to be talking about the fallout actually happening. While whiny and weak, the cracking voice and the backing piano leaves kind of an eerie feel that climaxs into a slower melody with a few insane laughs in the background. The feel for the first song gives an eerie concept and follows through into the first actual song of the album. The Fallout is very well executed in feelings like this, Andy giving off a very emotional voice, and David(unclean vocalist) giving off a powerful strained growl that fills each song with life and keeping a good flow. Andrew's unique clean vocals carry most of the melodic portions of the album, such as Memories of A Broken Heart and The One You Feed. Lyrically, the album is very well written, while a few songs could be improved upon, the broken hearted lyrics of "Makeshift Chemistry" don't disappoint and can leave memorable moments locked in your head. Memories of A Broken Heart has possibly the best lyrics on the album, and while not having the best instruments the ballad styled song fits Andy's voice perfectly.
The guitar through the entirety of the album is filled with chugs and power chords, but actually sustain a powerful sound. The breakdowns the band relies on are at times very creative and keep the listener occupied, and at times give that "mosh into somebody" feel. The power-chords in the choruses are very catchy and follow the right pattern to sounding tight, keeping the song flowing quite nicely. The guitar's highlight in this album being in album closer Johnny's Revenge where the fun themed instrumentation flawlessly creates a creative, catchy and energetic song with vocals to back everything else.
Overall, the instruments and vocalists effortlessly work together to deliver a powerful and passionate debut album from a band that has much talent and time left to leave their mark on the industry. With powerful breakdowns, powerful vocals and powerful execution, Crown The Empire created a name from themselves within a few monthes, and released a fantastic debut.
