Speaking in a track-by-track commentary of That's the Spirit for Spotify, frontman Oliver Sykes explained that "Throne" was one of the first songs the band wrote for the album to be considered for release as a single, claiming that "it felt like our comeback song". Keyboardist Jordan Fish described the track as "one of the most simple and straightforward songs" on That's the Spirit, noting its natural progression from elements introduced on 2013's Sempiternal, including "an up-tempo rhythm and really strong melodies". Describing the track as "fast, short simple", Sykes has suggested that the line "So you can throw me to the wolves/Tomorrow I will come back leader of the whole pack" summarises the themes of the song, which include the proposition that "it's the people that break you that also make you". Writing for Billboard magazine, Jon Wiederhorn also highlighted this line as summarising the song's theme of "overcoming adversity". The song, influenced by nu metal, possesses "punch and warbled vocoder" and has been described as synth-rock and hard rock.
Promotion and release
"Throne" was premiered on BBC Radio 1 on 23 July 2015 as presenter Annie Mac's "Hottest Record", before it was released as a single the following day alongside the song's music video. Shortly before the release of the album, "Throne", "Happy Song" and "Drown" were performed at Maida Vale Studios for Radio 1's Live Lounge show. In October, "Throne" and "Happy Song" were used as official theme songs for the professional wrestling show.
Music video
The music video for "Throne" was released alongside the single on 24 July 2015, after being teased with a short trailer two days before. Directed by Sykes and Plastic Kid, it has been compared stylistically to the TV seriesGame of Thrones by numerous music writers. Gigwise's Andrew Trendell outlined that the video "shows scenes of medieval drama and feudal strife", while... TeamRock's Chillingworth described the video as "ludicrous" and "bonkers", complaining that "it doesn't make a terrible lot of sense". In December, the band also released a video of their live performance of the song at Webster Hall in New York City earlier in the year.
Critical reception
As with previous singles "Drown" and "Happy Song", some critics highlighted "Throne" as evidence of the band's change in direction from their earlier material. Writing for TeamRock, Alec Chillingworth noted that the song "split opinion all over the shop", proposing that it would be seen "as a stroke of genius by some and an abhorrent shit-stain by others" due to its electronic-influenced sound. Tom Bryant of Alternative Press described the track as "reminiscent of Linkin Park", specifically proposing that it is "a dubstep update on Meteora with Sykes in defiant Chester Bennington mode". David Renshaw for the NME also made the comparison to Linkin Park on both "Throne" and "Avalanche", which he proposed was thanks in part to the songs' "singalong choruses and driving, expansive production". Other critics were generally positive about "Throne". Billboard writer Jon Wiederhorn described the song as "Upbeat, melodic and loud without being aggressive", proposing that it "succinctly captures the essence of the entire album". AllMusic's James Christopher Monger selected it as one of the highlights of That's the Spirit, dubbing it "as snarky as apoplectic". Similarly, DIY magazine's Sarah Jamieson claimed that "Throne... hits tremendous new highs" for the band, while Exclaim! writer Bradley Zorgdrager also praised it as a high point of the album. Rock Sound's Andy Biddulph described "Throne" as "epic, thunderous and skyscraping in equal measure".
Commercial performance
"Throne" entered the UK Singles Chart at number 51 on 31 July 2015, whilst also topping the UK Rock & Metal Singles Chart. It remained at the top of the chart for 12 consecutive weeks, before Fall Out Boy's single "Irresistible" took its place. The song returned to the UK Singles Chart on 3 September and remained in the top 100 for another seven weeks, while it once again topped the rock chart on 6 November. In the United States, the track became the band's first release to top the BillboardMainstream Rock chart, while it also reached number 12 on the Hot Rock Songs chart and number 37 on the Alternative Songs chart. The track later registered on the year-end Mainstream Rock chart at number 34 and the year-end Hot Rock Songs chart at number 54. Elsewhere, it peaked at number 58 on the Australian Singles Chart. and at number 29 on the Belgian Ultratip chart in the Flanders region.
