### Crusader: Rise of the templars

#### 24/11/11 || sly

Here is what the band has to say of itself:

“From the burning embers of horror punk band Gravedirt, a new monster has been forged in molten steel. Crusader comes screaming to life with the spirit of metal, more specifically NWOBHM. We wanted to play heavier, harder and faster than we had in any of our other bands. Think of a Crusader tank driving over a minefield littered with the skulls of the enemy dead. We’re taking it back to the roots: drinking beers, throwing the horns, and playing metal.”

And here is what I say about it:

While doubtlessly influenced by Motörhead and Paul Di’Anno-era Iron Maiden, Crusader’s sound is also somewhat reminiscent of L.A. Guns and Mötley Crüe. This could all be very good or very bad. Unfortunately for Crusader, they seem to be leaning towards the bad.

Their music goes from sounding punk-ish to Motörhead-ish to almost a sort of Finnish emo-metal. The singer can’t seem to make up his mind on a style, which translates into the band having a different sound with every song. This gives Crusader a flippant, tongue-in-cheek quality which I doubt is what they were trying to convey. The strongest member seems to be the bassist, with his Frank Bello-like playing. But the rest of them seem pretty meh.

If you want to give it a listen but don’t want to go through the hassle of sorting through the hundreds of “Crusaders” in this world, here is their Facesuck band page.

4.5/10 If Natalie Merchant looked good naked, it could be a redeeming quality. But she doesn’t. I won’t tell you how I know, I just do.