Ελληνικά
Swedish death metal veterans The Crown are finally making their long-awaited debut live appearance in Greece. In this interview, vocalist Johan Lindstrand opens up about what it means to bring their brutal live show to Greek soil for the first time, the creative process behind Crown of Thorns, and what fans can expect from their upcoming concerts. Dive into the mindset of a band that has perfected the art of balancing heavy melancholy with blistering speed and learn about their plans for the future. Prepare your moshpit shoes as The Crown get ready to make death metal history in Greece.
Hello and welcome to Metal invader! This is your first time visiting Greece for live shows. How do you feel about finally playing here, and what are you expecting from the Greek metal audience?
Hello! Yeah, this will be the first time ever for us over there and we can’t wait. It will definitely be very awesome and in my opinion very long overdue!! I mean, back in the day when we started and also during most of our years as an active band there has been very little talks about even trying to come over to Greece and play.
Not much bands from Sweden did that back in the day so we’re very happy to see this change and that we finally get a chance to do that now. Hopefully some metal heads will appreciate us coming. The shows will be intense so get your moshpit shoes ready and let’s make death metal history together.
“Crown of Thorns” was released in October 2024, but still is hot as hell. What was the inspiration behind this album, both musically and lyrically?
We are still very satisfied with that album. We really did our very best on that one. Marko had a lot of songs in the beginning that we started to work around before we decided on the ones on the final version. Also our bass player did 2 amazing songs so yeah, it came out pretty good.
Musically it’s some sort of hybrid thing between our earliest material to the more modern albums we’ve done. It’s also some sort of closing the circle when it comes to the name of the album Crown Of Thorns. Feels very suithing. Lyrically it deals with all sorts of dark themes. From more personal stuff to more what is going on in the world right now mixed with fantasy so it basically covers the whole spectrum. There is no specific theme on the album. I for example like to write more death metal oriented lyrics compared to Marko who often deals with lyrics more centered around his own life and experiences.
How does “Crown of Thorns” differ from your previous album “Royal Destroyer” in terms of sound and themes?
The biggest difference is that Crown Of Thorns has a very different lineup compared to Royal Destroyer. On RD our previous bass player Magnus wrote half of the songs and also former guitar player Robin wrote a couple of songs so of course it differs out of that perspective but I think that we came closer to the ultimate The Crown sound on this new one cause it feels more alive. We tuned the guitars up again and therefore gained much more energy.
The album maintains a blend of melodic death metal and old-school aggression with thrash influences. How do you approach balancing these elements in your songwriting process?
We have done this for a very long time and we have learned the hard way what works and what doesn’t . The energy on this album comes from building up a sound 10 albums prior to COT on how to find the right songs, the right mood and aggression. I think we succeeded on all points there.
Are there particular songs on the album that you feel especially connected to or proud of?
For me I think that God-King and The Storm That Comes are really good. Very different towards each other but that’s really what The Crown is all about. And that’s a thing you can hear since the earliest days. The mixture of heavy slow melancholy and ultra-speed. You never really know what to expect from an album by The Crown and the listener always need to fasten the seatbelt because we aim for a rollercoaster ride with no given outcome.
How do you translate the intensity of the “Crown of Thorns” album into your live performances?
We have always try to transfer the feeling from an album to the stage. To really get that aggressive output and most of the time it works really well. There’s a lot of sweat pouring down during our shows and you really need to be equipped for it. We all hit the gym quite often. Otherwise we would never be able to do this on a high proffesional level.
For fans attending your Greek shows, what kind of set list experience can they expect? Will there be new songs from “Crown of Thorns” featured prominently?
There will be pretty old school but also from the new one. We have recorded so many songs and it’s a pain in the ass to come up with set lists nowadays but I’m quite sure this one will please the Greek audience.
How important is the live connection with fans to the band, especially when playing in countries for the first time?
It’s really important. I mean, if course we do our very best on stage even if the crowd response is a bit laid back but you cannot underestimate the power of a crazy audience. It can make the band 10 times better so I really hope that we can have a good time and really connected in a strong sense during the shows.
What are the band’s future plans after these shows in Greece?
We will try to play live as much as possible for 2026, Maybe play on places we normally never visits. Greece is such a place and it will be great.
Any upcoming tours or new projects?
I really don’t like the word project but I have recently started a new band and I’m currently writing for that band. Haven’t got a full lineup yet so we will go public with this when the time is right
How do you see the band’s evolution going forward, and what can fans expect next from The Crown?
After the Greek shows we will only focus on 2026 and we will try to make next year the most memorable ever. That is our goal.
The closing is yours.
Thank you very much for the interview. We are really looking forward to play in your country. It will be a blast. Make sure to spread the word that the Swedish Death Metal machine is heading your way.
