Machine Head's 'Of Kingdom and Crown' - Album Review

The American groove/thrash metal act Machine Head are a band that I have always had a bit of an on and off relationship with. They are a band that I tend to listen to quite intensely for a month or so, before putting their CDs away and not reaching for them again for a couple of years. Every so often their aggressive, yet relatively melodic, approach to modern metal scratches a certain itch - but such an itch only erupts once in a blue moon, so my knowledge of the band's work is certainly not extensive. Until recently, my last real Machine Head blitz came in 2014 - when the band released their eighth studio album Bloodstone & Diamonds (which I reviewed here). This is probably not a view that would be echoed by most Machine Head fans, but Bloodstone & Diamonds may well be my favourite of the band's albums. Despite its length, it holds my interest throughout - and the material within perfectly manages to straddle the line between aggressive and melodic. I think the thing that stops me listening to Machine Head more than I do is the fact that there is a certain over-the-top macho edge to their sound that often rubs me up the wrong me. This is certainly not unique to Machine Head, and is something that generally infects the 'modern' American metal scene. A lot of metal could be described as macho, but there is something particularly chest-beating about bands like Machine Head - and frontman and sole original member Robb Flynn is often quick to tell the world at large that he does not give a fuck about what it thinks through the medium of song. This is all well and good, but it does get tiring after a while - which is largely why I only reach for Machine Head's albums periodically. Bloodstone & Diamonds felt a bit less full on in that regard, and when I recently revisited the band's discography in the run up to seeing them live on tour with Amon Amarth it still stood out as being a career high. The other album that stood out, interestingly, was their newest, and tenth, album Of Kingdom and Crown. Of Kingdom and Crown is the band's first album in four years, and follows 2018's Catharsis - which is generally seen as a low point in the band's catalogue. In truth, I only heard it for the first time this year, having avoided it due to the dreadful reviews it attracted on release, but it did not sound particularly out of character for Machine Head - but for me Of Kingdom and Crown is significantly better. A concept album inspired by, but not based on, the anime series Attack on Titan, the album's 13 songs have a real flow to them - and there is plenty of songwriting variety. Since the release of Catharsis, too, there has been quite a lot of change in the Machine Head camp. The 2018 release proved to be the band's last with guitarist Phil Demmel and drummer Dave McClain. Guitarist Wacław 'Vogg' Kiełtyka (Decapitated; Lux Occulta; Sceptic) and drummer Matt Alston (Sanctorum; Guardians of Andromeda; Eastern Front; Devilment) joined the band in 2019, and have been touring with Machine Head since. Vogg makes his debut in the studio with the band here, co-writing two songs, but for whatever reason Alston was not involved in the album's recording - with Navene Koperweis (Animosity; Fleshwrought; Animals as Leaders; Job for a Cowboy) instead handling the drums throughout.

Whilst this album is pretty consistent throughout, its first half is particularly strong. It opens with its longest song, the 10 minute-plus Slaughter the Martyr - which gets underway slowly. Machine Head have written a few epic-length songs in the past, but this might by my favourite in this style so far - as it is made up of a number of a memorable sections that all come together to serve the whole. The opening clean guitar melodies are slow and ominous, whilst Flynn's vocals are surprisingly melodic and tuneful. This opening section lasts for quite a while, too, and it really helps to build tension. The guitars create a haunting bed for the vocals, and Flynn delivers one of his strongest truly clean vocal performances ever - with bassist Jared MacEachern, contributing to his third Machine Head album, adding high-pitched harmonies where appropriate. When the song explodes with a heavy riff, then, it hits harder than it otherwise would have. The good work of its intro realised, the song then moves along at a faster pace - typical of Machine Head's core sound, with groove-based riffing and lots of fast double bass drumming. The verses steam along at a decent pace, then, whilst the choruses go for a more anthemic approach - with big vocal hooks that are again fleshed out by MacEachern's harmonies. This contrast between the groove-based verses and the fists-in-the-air chorus is one that makes the song as good as it is - and it is hard not to get swept along with the chorus, hooks and all. A more stomping bridge section then introduces itself following a couple of repetitions of the verse/chorus arrangement - which then gives way to the album's first solo section. Flynn kicks it off, with slower melodies and some effects-heavy leads - with Vogg then taking over to shred. A final reprise of the chorus then leads the song towards a slow-burning close - which includes a gradual fade out as a more melodic vocal-led section plays. For me the track is one of the album's real highlights, and it showcases Flynn's more progressive songwriting style. The songs here aregenerally really good, though, and Choke on the Ashes of Your Hate soon steamrollers in - dialling back on the progressive side of things and instead going for the throat. This song is more typical in style for Machine Head, from the jackhammer opening riff to the verses that move at a breakneck pace - despite the odd more groove-based moment thrown in. There is a strong thrash vibe throughout the song, and the main riff is very much out of the 1980s Bay Area movement - whilst Koperweis' fast and precise drumming (including the odd blast beat during the chorus) ensures that the overt heaviness is retained. Despite the aforementioned blast beat, which is utilised only briefly, the choruses do see the pace slowed somewhat - although they are generally quite short, with the song generally keeping things moving quickly. A bridge section sees the heaviness upped even further, with Flynn employing a much more extreme vocal style, before another great solo section sees both him and Vogg shred. The song is less hooky than the opening cut, but the chorus and the overall pace ensures that it remains a vital part of the album.

Become the Firestorm is similar in vibe, with more blast beats during the song's opening that then resurface quite regularly throughout the verses. There is less of a thrash feel here, though, with the song instead sounding more influenced by extreme metal. There are perhaps shades of the modern deathcore scene throughout some of the riffing and Koperweis' drumming, but there are still enough old-school groove and thrash elements to stop the song from sounding too out of character for Machine Head. The chorus is very much classic Machine Head, though, and is one that went down well live when I saw the band last month. It is sung in a call-and-response style between MacEachern and Flynn - with the former singing the first line in his higher-pitched tone, before Flynn responds in his usual aggressive manner to create a new pit anthem. Keeping with the deathcore themes, there is a bit of a breakdown before the solo section, which sees a strong injection of groove - before a harmony guitar lead introduces the solo proper, which then gets more chaotic as both Flynn and Vogg let rip. As the album is a concept album, there are a handful of linking pieces here, and Overdose is the first of such. These pieces are generally just background noise or the odd bit of spoken word - and Overdose generally acts as an intro for the moody My Hands Are Empty. My Hands Are Empty was co-written by the band's former guitarist Logan Mader, whom Flynn has reconnected with over the past few years, and it slows the pace down somewhat - opening with some distant wordless vocal melodies and plenty of atmospherics. In some ways, despite the difference of instrumentation, the effect is similar to the opening of Slaughter the Martyr - but when a gritty mid-paced riff kicks in the song becomes a mechanical rocker with some percussive drumming and various knotty riffs. Sections of the verses are more straight ahead, but on the whole the song feels a bit different from the norm. The chorus revisits the wordless hooks from the intro, albeit with a strong bass and drum backing - which Flynn then sings over. Given how relentless the last couple of songs were, though, the more dynamic My Hands Are Empty is welcome, and even Flynn's approach to his guitar solo is somewhat out of the ordinary. Unhallowed maintains the more atmospheric side of the previous song, but pushes it further. Again, the intro of Slaughter the Martyr is again somewhat referenced here - with much of the song sitting in a more melodic camp, despite the presence of a big riff early on. It is one of the two songs here co-written by Vogg, and it certainly sounds a bit different for the norm for the band. There are sections that are classic Machine Head, with mid-paced headbanging riffs and groovy drumming, but there is a real focus on ringing clean guitar hooks and gentle vocal harmonies. These sections are really quite cinematic, and remind me a little of Anathema at times - which is certainly not a comparison that I was expecting to make! It all hangs together, though, and in my opinion it really highlights what a good singer Flynn can be. His cleaner vocals on this album are excellent, and would love to see more of this from him going forward.

Following the second interlude piece Assimilate, which features a rousing monologue, Kill Thy Enemies kicks in - which is very much typical Machine Head fare. It opens with some stand-alone Koperweis drumming, which creates a percussive, mid-paced vibe - before a big Flynn riff joins in that sets the tone for the rest of the track. Whilst Machine Head are probably best-known for their faster moments, they have also done plenty of mid-paced tracks over the years. This is the latest true slab of groove metal in their catalogue, and the riffing has that perfect headbanging groove throughout that will certainly make it a popular live track. The chorus is very easy to latch onto, too, as it has some simple vocal hooks that can be shouted along with by a large crowd. There is little of the atmospheric side of the band here, although a short bridge section sees Flynn singing in a cleaner manner - before Vogg launches into a precise, melodic solo that builds in speed as Flynn joins in. No Gods, No Masters is perhaps slightly less typical for Machine Head, at least at first, but it soon becomes another strong faster-paced thrash anthem with a gang vocal-led chorus. The song's opening returns to the band's more atmospheric side, with MacEachern's pulsing bass leading the way whilst Flynn sings clean - but these sections are fairly short-lived, with much of the track bring pure thrash. Flynn's harsher delivery has rarely sounded stronger, and the chorus returns to the epic style featured throughout Slaughter the Martyr with some soaring wordless vocal hooks and the aforementioned gang vocal refrains. There are no solos here, with a breakdown-type section instead rearing its head late on with some groovy riffing that differ from the thrashy approach featured elsewhere. Bloodshot is very much typical for Machine Head, though, and is one of my favourite songs of the album's still strong second half. I mentioned earlier that the opening few songs are the best here, which is the case, but there is not a significant drop off in quality. Bloodshot feels a bit stronger than much of the rest towards the back end of the album, though, which is largely due to its great chorus and some simple riffing that really sticks in the brain. It is the second Vogg co-write here, and if Unhallowed was something a bit different for the band then Bloodshot shows that he can help put together Machine Head's version of meat and potatoes. It is a great mix of thrash and groove, with faster sections sitting side-by-side with in-your-face shouting anthems - whilst some of the snaking riffs have a real Lamb of God feel at times, particularly during the bridge before Vogg's explosive solo.

The penultimate proper song here is Rotten, which is another song that is very typical of Machine Head's core sound. Like Kill Thy Enemies, much of the song is a mid-paced groove-fest. The riffing of Flynn and Vogg throughout is fat and full of attitude, whilst MacEachern's bass is high in the mix to add to the overall groove-based approach. The chorus does up the pace, though, going for a thrashier feel with some fast double bass drumming. This breaks up the grooves, but it works well in my opinion - and allows Flynn to sing in a more urgent manner, which suits the overall approach of the chorus. A bridge section takes a different route, though, as it opens with a very sludgy riff and some really harsh vocals from Flynn - before it is all turned on its head and the more atmospheric side of the album is again showcased. This is all capped off by more shredding from Flynn and Vogg - with the two guitarists perfectly showcasing their talents. Following the final interlude piece, Terminus, which is very downbeat, the album comes to a close with Arrows in Words from the Sky. The song builds from the depressing Terminus, and opens in a similar manner to Slaughter the Martyr with some slow-burning clean guitar melodies that create a strong atmosphere - which Flynn sings over with some strange effects on his voice. After a minute or so the song starts to build, and a groove-based riff kicks in, but it never really leaves its more melodic base. As such, the song is one that really stands out for me - and is another big highlight of the album's second half. The riffing throughout is very Machine Head in nature, but there is something that is overall just more melodic about the piece - and the chorus actually has some really beautiful melodies and some excellent melancholic vocals from Flynn. Flynn's solo is similarly-restrained, too, and the melodies that he plays throughout are similar in tone to those used throughout the song's chorus - which follows the solo in a more stripped-down arrangement, before a final reprise of it brings the album to a plaintive and unusually reflective end. There is nothing of the band's usual bravado here as the album closes on this melancholic note, and in my opinion it is all the better for it. It is the perfect way to end the album, and listening to the song again whilst writing this it struck me that this album could end up being my favourite Machine Head release. There is so much diversity here, from typical pit anthems to reflective, melancholic songs that show a different side to Flynn. Vogg seems to have fit right in, and I am looking forward to see how he grows as a member of the band going forward - but it would certainly be good to see Alston on board next time, as I am not really sure why he did not contribute here. Either way, though, I want to hear more Machine Head in this vein next time - as there really is a lot to love about this more diverse approach.

The album was released on 26th August 2022 via Nuclear Blast Records. Below is the band's promotional video for Choke on the Ashes of Your Hate.