On December 30, 2004, Varathron released «Crowsreign» through Black Lotus Records. It was their third album and it came after the band’s move to Ioannina and a new line-up, with Achilleas and Haris joining the fold. It is their most controversial record, with a sound that leans towards a dirtier and more experimental black metal.
“`Country: Greece
Style: Black Metal
For fans of: Rotting Christ, Necromantia, Samael
The album has eleven tracks, from «Evil Gets an Upgrade» and «There is No God» to «The King of Asine» and «Spirit of the Tomb». The sound has a heavier and more direct production than the previous albums, with Necroabyssious’s voice still recognisable and the tracks moving between slow, dark moments and faster passages.
«Crowsreign» arrived at a period of change for the band, with new members and a new home. Its reissue later came with new cover art, drawn by Juan Castellano.
The years that followed were also the years of the return: in 2005 Varathron took to the stage again after fifteen years, in Athens, together with Rotting Christ and Primordial.
The album was released at a time when the Greek scene had changed a lot since the early 1990s, and its sound shows it: dirtier and more experimental, with fewer straight melodies and more weight on the drums and bass. The band are not trying here to resemble their own past.
Our take
«Crowsreign» is not Varathron’s easiest album, but it is one of the most interesting. It shows a band that does not repeat itself and that looks for new paths within the genre, even when the result divides people.
See also
Varathron – The Crimson Temple · Athanatos – Tales From The Womb Of Elsewhere.
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