Architects - Hollow Crown (2009)Release ID: 3212
Hollow Crown is often considered Architects' best album in the 2000s era, but I don't think so. The best in their 2000s era is still their debut Nightmares and they would only achieve total glory in the mid-2010s. There are still some decent tunes to enjoy in this 2009 album...
It should be noted that there's more than one band with a similar name; Architect, an American band that was also active in the late 2000s and had a similar sound, and The Architects, an American ska-rock band. Oh, and there's an At the Gates song called "The Architects". I'm not sure if that's where the British metalcore band Architects (no "the") got their name. Anyway, Hollow Crown takes on more fierce angle than Ruin with more natural evolution.
"Early Grave" clearly shows the band taking no sh*t. There's some mathcore influence there while not highly technical, still hammering through riffing brutality. There's more of the screaming anger courtesy of vocalist Sam Carter, occasionally mixed with clean singing without becoming post-hardcore. "Dethroned" continues tearing down the walls with some alt-ish motives that would later be adopted by Bad Omens. "Numbers Count for Nothing" is more chromatic, especially towards the end. A similar ending occurs in "Follow the Water", though the rest of the song has more of the furious formula that started out in Ruin.
"In Elegance" has more melodic moments, and I can almost get the ambient heaviness from later modern melodeath bands like Gyze. Then we have the brutal scorcher "We're All Alone". The more hardcore "Borrowed Time" sounds a bit emo-ish. "Every Last Breath" takes some cues from Attila (without the rapping) and Underoath.
"One of These Days" is so diversely packed with a lot to expect from bands like All Shall Perish, Black Veil Brides, Every Time I Die, and Trivium. "Dead March" deviates from the usual D-flat/7-string A-flat, tuned up a half-step to A. "Left With a Last Minute" is just straight-up Norma Jean. The title finale sounds too much like a clean My Chemical Romance ballad. Why the f*** choose that as a title track? Their bonus re-recording of "To the Death" makes up for that and should've been the true ending.
Hollow Crown is a decent follow-up to Ruin, though another step down. Of course, many of the songs are still worth listening to. Nonetheless, i suggest that any newcomers start with their mid-2010s material, so you can have a better experience with the band that doesn't feel as hollow as this album....
Favorites: "Early Grave", "Dethroned", "Follow the Water", "In Elegance", "We're All Alone", "One of These Days"
