CRAWLER – Knight Of The Word
- by Matt Coe
- Posted on 20-10-2011
Italian traditional metal here on this debut album from the quintet Crawler. With lead vocals in the vein of Michael Kiske meets Bruce Dickinson (not as soaring in the higher regions) and some paint melting guitar hero lead work, songs like “Crawler”, the tricky timing filled “Masters Of The Night”, and epic 8:37 “The King Will Come” have a lot in common with Iron Maiden, early Liege Lord and others of that 80’s ilk. The title track gains a much more professional sound, thanks to the expertise of Beau Hill which makes this an obvious highlight out of the 11 songs.
Try as I might, I just couldn’t understand the flow of the parts in terms of distinct, exciting arrangements. It’s like taking the reject ideas from their mentors and attempting to pass it off as their own original style. Attick Demons are a better fit for your current Iron Maiden similarity fix- Crawler need to go back to the drawing board.