Label: Rockshots Records
Date: November 22nd, 2024
Sometimes being a nerd pays off. Before I heard this album, its title, “Nova Atlantis”, attracted my attention. Why? For all of you who are not familiar with literature, New Atlantis is a utopian book by Francis Bacon published in the XVII century. In this book, published a year after Bacon’s death, he identifies Atlantis with America. The first time, Atlantis was mentioned by Plato. The story of Atlantis inspired and still inspires many writers, musicians, and the film industry. Some might call it a myth, some see it as truth, within many versions of the story of Atlantis, let’s hear which version KingCrown offers.
Before we go into the core of “Nova Atlantis”, let’s mention that KingCrown comes from the beautiful Nice. The band was formed in 2015 as Öblivïon. Since 2018, they are performing as KingCrown. “Nova Atlantis” is their third album, which was released on November 22nd via Rockshots Records. Album contains eleven songs, and only from their titles you can conclude that the band seriously decided to focus on myths and legends, all together combined with history. Brothers Amore and their bandmates obviously are thinking seriously about conquering the metal world, because, from what you hear, you can easily conclude that you are dealing with high class musicians. What I like, when it comes to the music they are playing, is the fact that they are not exaggerating with keyboards and they did not fall in the trap of being a copy paste band, although some compare them with Gamma Ray and Helloween. Maybe we can say they are influenced by mentioned bands, but being a copy is just nonsense. Joe Amore is without any doubt a world class singer. He sings naturally, without any effort. When it comes to vocals, if you think the French don’t speak English, no worries, you will not even hear a French accent.
The first song that stands out is “Real of Fantasy”. It was chosen to be the first single and represents the album in the best light. A bit groovy at the beginning it transforms to a very melodic earworm, and somehow reminds me of Firewind. From the singing over drumming to amazing guitar work, this is the perfect song. Of course lyrics have a great role in overall experience.
The next single “Nova Atlantis” delivers a mystic note. In this song, KingCrown successfully plays with tempo. It would be stupid if I would write for each song the same epithets: melodic, catchy, hymnic, epic, energetic… But it is true. The video for the song follows the story smoothly. Atlantis is hidden somewhere in the sea, no one knows where, but KingCrown in the video looks like they are seriously made the decision to find it. The last frame of their video is pointed on the sea where possibly Atlantis should be hidden.
And, the third single, “Utopia Metropolis”, was released at the right time, to mark and celebrate the album release. Metropolis, futuristic city, a society where money is king…
Officially, “The Magic Stone” opened the album. Here, the band focuses on alchemy. The secret that still remains… And yes, this is what the lyrics are about. KingCorwn is focused on mysteries and through the lyrics they are trying to offer their vision, their interpretation and the answers to questions that cover the chosen topic. This is an up tempo song with the great guitar work and choir parts that are very effective. Chorus is hymnic but the end of the song will leave you in silence. It looks like the part of the song is simply cut off, a surprisingly and unexpectedly quick ending, but as already written, very effective.
“Guardian Angels” is maybe the most energetic song and definitely proves that choruses are the trademark of the band, always melodic and singalong. “Letter to Myself” is inspired by the 80’s that it instantly brings me back to my childhood and wokes up the great memories of a careless period of discovering metal. “Judgement Day” again plays with tempo and brings Bob Saliba to the microphone. The song actually begins as a ballad, but the energy easily transforms to hurricane. Guitar solo is astonishing, the choir parts again stand out, and if you listen to the song carefully, you will not be wrong if you would say this one would perfectly fit Avantasia. Here comes the idea of collaboration, why not?
“A Long Way to Valhalla” delivers gentle violin sound and Dave Coverdale influenced vocal interpretation, although, if I may say, Amore sings better. This is basically a ballad, so the next one, “Souls of Travelers”, has to bring back the energy, but to tell the truth, somehow the first part of the album was more exciting. “When Stars Align Again” is a powerful song where drums and guitars are playing a great role in tempo change. And the album finishes with the “Endless Journey”. Again, a very melodic, mid tempo song with occasional bursts of energy.
Overall, the guitars are the main weapon on this album, although the choruses and vocal melodies are nor far behind. The band is not afraid to use choirs or to experiment with non typical instruments for metal to enrich the sound. When it comes to metal, I always have problems with keyboards which many bands often misuse, or to find a better word, they cross the border of good taste. With KingCrown, thanks to heaven, that is not the case.
With this album, KingCrown set the bar higher. “Nova Atlantis” is a colorful album with a great balance of metal subgenres; it is faster, more energetic, more serious and the quality of lyrics is higher than on previous albums. Progress is obvious. Roughly speaking, the album is divided into two parts: first one is pumped with energy and second one with emotions. Definitely, Amore’s vocals will not leave you indifferent. World class singer as already mentioned. Very effective and detailed cover art (Oleg Sherbakov) goes hand in hand with the thematic of an album.
