ENTHEOS Announces Empty On The Inside, Shares “Golden Crown”
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Photo Credit: SAV BAGSHAW
Alternative metal band ENTHEOS will release its new studio album, Empty On The Inside, Oct. 23 through Metal Blade Records. The band has introduced the record with first single “Golden Crown,” a track several years in the making that pulls heavily from the rock and metal of the 1990s.
Vocalist Chaney Crabb said the song went through repeated revisions before ENTHEOS arrived at its final form. One crucial piece, however, dates all the way back to 2020: its chorus.
“The chorus of the song was originally written in 2020, long before we began working on this album, and it was so strong that we knew we had to include it on the album,” Crabb said.
Once the rest of “Golden Crown” came together, the band quickly recognized it as the natural first introduction to the new record.
ENTHEOS deliberately approached the song as a heavier interpretation of ’90s rock songwriting, combining ominous synthesizers, a large melodic chorus and the technical aggression associated with the band’s previous work before driving into an explosive breakdown.
The lyrical subject is considerably darker. Crabb describes “Golden Crown” as an examination of a destructive attachment that becomes so deeply entwined with a person’s identity that separating from it means confronting the possibility of losing part of oneself.
The song’s central image — wearing someone “like a golden crown” — represents something simultaneously cherished and destructive: a burden that damages the person carrying it while becoming part of how that person understands themselves.
That mixture of heaviness and increased melodic focus runs throughout Empty On The Inside. ENTHEOS describes the album as its most ambitious and collaborative work, bringing Crabb and multi-instrumentalist Navene Koperweis together with guitarists Scott Carstairs of FALLUJAH and Michael Stancel of ALLEGAEON.
Rather than pursuing the ultra-polished production common to contemporary progressive and technical metal, the band set out to preserve more of the musicians’ individual performances and personality.
“From the start, our goal was to capture the raw, visceral energy that made ’90s rock and metal so impactful and timeless,” ENTHEOS said, emphasizing authentic performances over hyper-polished modern production.
The approach allows the band’s technical musicianship to remain intact while placing greater weight on concise songwriting, hooks and melody. The result represents an evolution rather than a retreat from ENTHEOS’ progressive foundation, with the musicians attempting to combine the immediacy of older heavy music with their established modern sound.
Empty On The Inside was produced by Mark Lewis, whose credits include THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, FALLUJAH and WHITECHAPEL. Justin Sturtz mastered the album at Sterling Sound, while Zac Shiffer, whose work includes NINE INCH NAILS, BEHEMOTH and SOUNDGARDEN, created the artwork.
Empty On The Inside Track Listing
- “Hell Is A Part Of Me”
- “Empty On The Inside”
- “Hollow”
- “Call My Name”
- “Golden Crown”
- “Undone”
- “Tomblight” feat. Michael Lessard
- “Pale Faith”
- “Never Let Me Go”
- “The Earth Will Move”
The album will be available digitally and on CD, along with several vinyl variants including Bloodlust Red, grey with black splatter, neon green and yellow marble, green and blue marble, white with red splatter, neon pink with black dust and a fluorescent pink band-exclusive edition.
ENTHEOS consists of Chaney Crabb on vocals, Navene Koperweis on drums, guitar and synth, Michael Stancel on guitar and synth, and Scott Carstairs on guitar.
Empty On The Inside arrives Oct. 23 through Metal Blade Records. “Golden Crown” is available now.