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CROWN OF THORNS
"Faith" (Wicked Cool Records;
2009)
Reviewed by R. Scott Bolton
With a band name like Crown of Thorns you might expect to hear some black metal or death metal. Instead, "Faith" is more of a classic hard rock band in the vein of Foreigner, maybe or -- with the ballads -- Journey. Okay, Crown of Thorns is a little heavier than that, but you get the idea.
Crown of Thorns was formed in the 1990s by Jean Beauvoir (former Plasmatics bassist and co-writer of songs for KISS, The Ramones, The Pretenders, Van Halen, Bon Jovi, Bruce Springsteen and The Who -- I listed all of those for a reason) and today includes Tony Thompson (of Chic and The Power Station), Micki Free (of Shalamar) and top session bassist Michael Paige. There's a reason Beauvoir was recruited by all those superstars (and many more) and that's because he's a hell of a songwriter, not to mention a terrific performer. "Faith" is a solid hard rock album from beginning to end and virtually any fan of the aforementioned bands will find something here to their liking.
Plus, the band covers Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild" (my favorite song of all time) and, unlike others, they don't embarrass themselves by doing so.
For more information, check out http://www.jeanbeauvoir.com.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright © 2009 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights reserved.
