It pains me to tell you that I'm pretty unimpressed with the newest CoC offering. Pepper Keenan is a treasure, who will hopefully one days take his rightful place in the Heavy Metal Hall of History. Thank overflowing heaven his time away from Corrosion of Conformity is over. His distinct blues-drenched guitar riffs and leads have created some immortal tunes for Down and various incarnations of CoC over the decades, and his soulful one-of-a-kind voice has enriched every song he's ever been a part of. That voice and guitar sound are both present on No Cross No Crown, but what’s absent are the classic songs.

Nothing here would ever find its way onto a CoC Greatest Hits compilation album. You also won’t find any tunes here to offend your Metal sensibilities or cause you to doubt this band’s sound; there’s just nothing to brag about.
Among the best tracks on “No Cross No Crown” are “A Quest to Believe (A Call to the Void)” and “Nothing Left to Say” (the two longest songs), the pretty, finger-picked instrumental, “Matre’s Diem,” and the best of the bunch: “E.L.M.” The title track also has some potential, and so does “Son and Daughter,” especially during the Jimmy Page-esque outro.
“No Cross No Crown” might be a decent debut outing for an up-and-coming Fuzz newcomer, but it’s a letdown for a band as storied as Corrosion of Conformity. Not bad, not great; for their hardcore fans only.