Blazon Rite - Dulce Bellum Inexpertis

Eternal's Kelsonic Studios in Australia. The writing sessions for the self-titled were largely helmed by Miranda and Davis, with Miranda providing the riffs and Davis cementing the arrangements. While all three songs from Through Divine Rite made the jump to the self-titled album ("Trampled into the Earth," "Through Divine Rite" and "Flametongue"), the remainder of the songs were created through trial-and-error. Davis, admittedly, is a stickler for arrangements and will often create multiple versions of the same song, while Pinion added her flavor by supplying song ideas and vocal lines written on the piano. This unorthodox way of writing paid off in the end: Stygian Crown emerged with a batch of songs that each bears their own identity but are unmistakably crushing and epic. Pinion shouldered the lyric writing load, detailing myths from different cultures, namely "Devour the Dead," which is about the Egyptian goddess Ammit, while "Two Coins for the Ferryman" recalls Charon, the boatman who took the dead across the river Styx. Her vocals - one of the defining traits of Stygian Crown - work majestically between the band's boulder-sized riffs and powerful bottom-end, resonating on album opener "Up from the Depths" and "When Old Gods Die." A sterling, heaving album capable of moving heaven and earth, Stygian Crown's self-titled debut is a masterclass in songwriting and unbridled heaviness. Doomination awaits!