Openly reflecting upon a relationship built around abuse, the brand new Jonny Bottos track Crown Of Thorns passionately reignites the intensity and pace of progression metal, feeling authentic yet skilful in both its ferocity and clear sense of purpose.
Rhythmically enthralling and with a supreme balancing between distorted weight and melodic fluidity, Crown Of Thorns introduces the Johnny Bottos sound in a manner that naturally connects. The soundscape delivers fast-fingered guitar work and an impeccably mighty drumline, while the voice and lyrics, both from featured artist Marko Duplisak, bring the emotional rasp, the soulful meandering, and the poetic depth.
This balance works beautifully, making this an infectious metal anthem somewhat akin to the mainstream days of Metallica, but also with its own clear sense of freshness and character; which should resound well throughout the Johnny Bottos catalogue as it continues to grow.
Featuring insane musicianship, not least of all during the instrumental breakdown between vocal moments, Crown Of Thorns is a hard-rock masterpiece in many ways – an immersive realm that’s focused on a topic and a set of ideas but is far from designed to simply showcase an individual talent. The voice is humbly mixed, the completed release an artistic ode to the sentiments at hand, and as such, the entire arrangement works its magic for any and all classic metal fans when listened to at volume.
There’s even a catchy to anthemic hook resolve woven into an otherwise complex and compelling set-up – a moment that again gifts the track something for fans to cling to and recall; alongside that longstanding riff.
Creating art out of trauma is a painful but ultimately therapeutic process, and if that art or music can in turn provide the same kind of solace and understanding for other victims of abuse, then its all the more rewarding. Johnny Bottos tells his story in a unique and empowering way, with the pure poetry, sheer weight, and musical precision of Crown Of Thorns.
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