Over on my YouTube channel a recurring question for the past 18 months or so has been, “Which release are you really looking forward to hearing?”
My answer has been “The debut full-length from Crowsblood”.
Formed in 2023 and hailing from West Yorkshire in the UK, Crowsblood boasts members with musical experience garnered in bands such as Green Sabre, Godthrymm, Oakenthrone & Solstice. 2024 saw the release of the two track demo ‘The Murder of Crows’ which certainly grabbed my interest, hence the anticipation to hear what the boys did next.
Available from Macho Records on vinyl and cassette, with Cavernous Records taking care of the CD version, ‘Bridge to Golgotha’ is Death Metal with a Blackened edge. Obviously that’s quite a sweeping genre so I would say it’s akin to Akercocke combined with Belphegor, with the occasional dalliance into the realms of Doom whilst still being unique enough to deserve your attention.
This release is a major step-up from the demo, understandably, and although early to say, I’m pretty confident it will rate highly in my “Album of the Year” list.
If you want your Metal to contain killer riffs, drums that carry along each song without being overly used, a thick heavy bass, with harsh barked vocals that display levels of anger and emotion, then I highly recommend you give this a listen. The production is full meaning each instrument sits nicely in the mix and you can appreciate the musicianship on display. The songwriting craft and creation here is top notch.
As I mentioned earlier this album was one I’ve been looking forward to hearing and I can honestly say it does not disappoint on any level.
