The good old dirty south; America’s very own backyard of double standards: zealous Christianity on the surface, and a vibrant, sometimes violent but always debauched underbelly. From this underworld came bands like OBITUARY, MASSACRE, DEICIDE, etc. But while those bands were from the south, none of them announced their geographic origins. American bands as a whole never really hopped on the geography bandwagon – typically Norwegian Black Metal bands promoted their origins that way. True, there’s nothing specific about SOUTHWICKED. They could come from any number of southern cities. But they’re an American Death Metal band and I think, obviously, they have the south in mind when they write. If you like OBITUARY, you’ll dig this release. Allen West lets his guitar sing and it sounds great. But, good as this is, one could easily call it a forgotten OBITUARY album. Songs like the title track, ‘Death’s Crown’ and ‘Craving For Blood’ will induce the headbanging response, yet they will also leave you thinking about “The End Complete” and “Cause Of Death” and how West’s solos on this album sound so much like his older work. In addition to the inescapable OBITUARY element, some signs of SIX FEET UNDER appear, such as ‘Killing Spree’, which sounds like a left over song from the “Haunted” sessions. However, OBITUARY’s presence dominates nearly every aspect of this album. Just listen to ‘Graveyard Of Bones’ and you’ll see what I mean. So, if you’re a fan of Allen West, OBITUARY, and early SIX FEET UNDER, you’ll most certainly enjoy this. I know I did. www.facebook.com/southwicked, www.officialabyssrecords.com