Crown the Lost
" Reverence Dies Within "
Self Released - 2006
Reviewed by: Jesse Desha
Date Reviewed - 02/10/2007

Track Listing:
01. Devoid Of All Praise
02. Prelude To Fall
03. Your Faith Is Not Mine
04. Without End
05. No Reprieve
06. A Way Out Of Madness
07. Swear To The Peerless
08. Reverence Dies Within
09. This Dead Hour

Rated:
8/10

Total Play Time:
43:09

Bands Webpage

Tech-thrash… hmm, I like that term and while that doesn’t encapsulate the total sound of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania’s Crown the Lost, it’s a good start. Wow, what a surprise this album has been. Having never heard the band members’ previous work in Sinning is Our Savior and the fact that this debut album entitled, “Reverence Dies Within” was independently financed and released, I was already having doubts before I put the cd in. Needless to say that those doubts were gone rather quickly only a minute or so into the opening track. In fact, I was completely engrossed in the music and was just letting it soak in before I could type out any words.

First of all, putting a five minute instrumental as the first track was a great idea. Not just a typical short intro, but a full-blown instrumental song with its own melodies and structure that really shows off the amazing musical ability that Crown the Lost possesses. Next, we’re introduced to the singer Chris Renaldi and I’ll be honest, I was a little put off initially with the straightforward, clean and classic singing style. I’m really just not the biggest fan of these vocals, but as the album went on, I warmed up to them. Mainly because Renaldi doesn’t try to get too pretentious or sing insanely high. He just sings naturally and it comes out very powerful and elegant.

Musically, Crown the Lost display their quite remarkable and proficient technical talents on “Reverence Dies Within.” This is one seriously rifftastic album with enough highly impressive leads and solos to satisfy any fan of the genre. Just outstanding guitar work. The drumming is also superb and ultra precise and every aspect of their sound benefits immensely from an absolutely stellar production job. I’m frankly baffled that a band this skilled and talented are label-less and had to release this album on their own.

Overall, “Reverence Dies Within” is a fast, aggressive, melodically technical and elegant take on thrash that honestly sounds like no other band I’ve heard before in the genre. Highly recommended.