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Stygian Crown are a relatively new band that plays epic doom on their 2020 self-titled debut album and also mixes in a fair amount of Middle Eastern melodies that enhance the feeling of being somewhere else while you are listening. The vocals are strong and clear and deliver lyrics creating mysterious and arcane images with a fair amount of emotion and character. The guitar work is excellent, combining crushing riffs with soaring leads reminiscent of the work Jimmy Page and Ritchie Blackmore executed on "Kashmir" and "Stargazer", respectively. Stygian Crown avoids the ponderously slow tempos some doom bands get hung up, instead focusing on mid-paced songwriting that keeps the blood pumping through ancient hearts. Speaking of the songwriting, I found a lot of Stygian Crown to be solid but somewhat generic with tracks like "When Old Gods Die" and "The Hall of Two Truths" fine while they are on but leaving behind little to recall them by. On the other hand, Stygian Crown show what might be wrought with their songwriting pens in the future on "Through Divine Rite" and the album highlight, "Two Coins for the Ferryman." The first features an excellent guitar solo while the second has a melody and vocals lines that are mesmerizing.

Stygian Crown is a debut and not perfect, but the signs of potential greatness are there. This is a band discerning doom fans should be watching very closely.