25 November 2023
Crom is the one-man project of German musician Walter Grosse. Walter played guitar/bass in the first album of the German black metal band Dark Fortress (Tales from Eternal Dusk-2001), and then left the band to focus on the Crom project, which he started in 2000. The group has released 2 albums and 1 EP so far. The ‘Vengeance’ we will be talking about is the first album released in 2008.
As you know from comics and movies, Crom is the name of the god worshipped by Conan the Barbarian. In my research on the internet, it is also the name of a god in pre-Christian Ireland (Crom Cruach). In fact, there are many other groups with this name.
Walter follows in footsteps of Quorthon’s Bathory, one of the originators of the one-man band concept. He only gets help from Matthias Landes wo sits on the drum stool. Here is a blend of heavy/power metal with the viking style of Bathory’s second period. He managed to prepare this mixture, which invites many clichés as well, beautifully.
Quorthon’s music and vocals are full of soul, but his voice isn’t actually that good. But while listening to Bathory, you won’t think for a moment that his voice is bad, because when you look at it as a whole, there is a great chemistry. In this respect, Walter has an advantage because his voice is quite good. That’s why he was able to include more variations vocal-wise. Sometimes he resembles classic heavy metal vocalists.
The album, which contains a total of 10 songs, occasionally contains acoustic passages. 2 songs (Crom, A Life Unbearable) are completely acoustic. The album’s lyrics are fantastic, befitting the genre and the band name, and cover themes such as wars, pain, honor and revenge.
The album is not a show of strength in the musical sense, but there is an extremely clean and successful musical performance. As mentioned before, it is a style that is prone to clichés, but W. managed to overcome this with good compositions and make an album that is enjoyable to listen to from start to finish without getting boring. The album, which is successful in terms of production, will be the right address for those looking for albums that can create an avatar effect.
If we expand on the “avatar effect” a little; The best thing about such albums is that they take the listener from their current time and place to other worlds and times. You feel like you are diving into an adventure, putting yourself in the shoes of a warrior who is trying to protect the honor of his ancestors, who has sworn to avenge the old ones, can fight for his lost loved ones when necessary, and willingly follow them. Of course, there are many great albums that do this well, but this album by Crom at least puts the band one step ahead of its contemporaries.
As for the standout tracks of the album, the second track of the Vengeance duology: Vengeance Part II – … and the Effect comes to mind first. This is definitely one of the gems in the album. A very emotional song, with a sad side, but it also tells you not to give up. Fire, the closing song of the album, is a good one, too. A well done track with beautiful music and exquisite melodic vocals. Apart from these, I was also hooked on one of the acoustic tracks, A Life Unbearable.
In the end, it is not a revolutionary album, but it is a quality, enjoyable album made by a soulful musician who has absorbed the oldies very well and knows what to do. It’s a good first album that I would recommend to those who love melodic and rebellious music.
8/10