Review by Maciek on April 10, 2013.

I found it quite interesting when reading the band's description on Encyclopaedia Metallum saying that actually nobody knows who's in the band and how many people are there in the band. So I thought "I have to listen to it". And here it is - a real 3-track masterpiece in Death/Black metal style.

The production is very good, you can hear all instruments very clearly and everything sounds great. There are great harmonies, the riffs are amazing and being quite heavy album it's very melodic. And the melodies are very catchy, all 3 tracks present what is best in both genres. The EP starts with quite fast title track, the drumming reminds me a little of Emperor's 'Empty'. But the style here is more similar to what maybe At The Gates did on "Slaughter Of The Soul". And again the chorus is slightly slower with amazing melody lines of guitars. At some point I was even wondering that maybe that was done by Dan Swano, so melodic it is (but the guy is from Sweden, not Finland, so that's not an option). But I would also compare it to some more melodic stuff done by Edge Of Sanity and Pan.Thy.Monium, too, definitely.
Second track again starts fast, with fast paced one-string riffs. Lots of band really now come to mind, both Death and Black Metal. It would be too long list to mention them all here. Another great chorus with great melody lines and a little bit of melodic vocals. If the band was ever to perform live, they have to have 3 guitarists plus bass. Otherwise it won't sound as good as the studio release.
The third track reminded me of some Lake Of Tears tracks, maybe the riffing at some point is similar, but it's overall slow, heavy track with a tint of progressive elements. And again Pan.Thy.Monium rings in my head. Some little bits of keyboards in the background, nearly unnoticeable. Generally a really epic production, it's one of those EP's where every single second of music is perfect and I cannot stop listening to it. And cannot wait for the full-length release.

In the meantime I'm on the hunt for lyrics, because the vocals are so distorted, that apart from hearing the title in the chorus I'm not able to get a single word... Anyway - listen to it for free on SoundCloud, then buy it!

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 10
Atmosphere: 10
Production: 10
Originality: 9
Overall: 10

Rating: 9.8 out of 10

Review by Adam M on May 8, 2015.

I must admit that this was my first exposure to Royal Thunder. Having heard similar bands like The Devil’s Blood, Graveyard, Witch Mountain and Dwellers, I have been exposed to this style, however. There are shades of doom, stoner and ethereal post-music to be found in this band’s sound as well.

A female vocalist occupies this rock-influenced style of a band again and in this case steals the show on Crooked Doors. Mlny Parsons is equal measures powerful, evocative and dynamic. This style of the band is complemented wonderfully by this lady’s vocal performance. Otherwise, the music crafted by Royal Thunder is exciting, catchy and well-written. Royal Thunder shows a penchant for emotion and attention to subtlety in their music. Sometimes one does wish that the band would reach a little bit further into more unknown musical elements as the album does come off slightly standard sounding. Despite the restrictive feeling of the album, there is an overabundance of emotional moments that completely compensate for this. This all emanates from the very beginning with the track Time Machine that is absolutely one of the most emphatic and enjoyable songs you’ll hear all year. While not quite up to that quality, many of the other tracks on this album excite and entice as well.

The passionate energy created by this band is what makes Crooked Doors such an eminently enjoyable release. Of course, every exciting riff is enhanced by the dynamic range of the vocals. Thus, despite not being the most original album you’ll hear this year, it is one of the more fun listens. It brings a similar level of quality as Graveyard’s Hisingen Blues album that was a high point for this sort of style in recent years. All heavy metal fans looking for an album that’s highly influenced by the seventies era of rock would be well served looking in Crooked Doors.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10