Artist: Sinner
Label: AFM Records
Release: 2008
Length: 41:17
Rating: 3.5/5
Mat Sinner is a hugely important name in German heavy metal. The guy is practically its godfather, and as someone who has stubbornly stuck it out on the scene for decades, he’s a real living legend in that respect: an elder, a sage and a guru to young bands and, of course, his closest collaborators.
Put simply, “Crash And Burn” is an album the band’s fans will file straight into their collection, while if the name Sinner means nothing to you, you’ll skip it without any trouble. The reason is simple: the odds of Sinner changing their style are about as high as the odds of Motorhead becoming Madonna’s backing band.
Mat Sinner hinted at a return to traditional methods already with “Mask Of Sanity”, and the new Sinner once again sound stripped down, raw and alive, but direct and snarling, with a nice dose of rock. It’s covered over by elements (especially the use of double bass drum pedals) that make it easy to file “Crash And Burn” under the typical old-school, hard-boiled form of the German approach to heavy metal. The first three tracks sound sharper and heavier than on the previous album, so the first part of “Crash And Burn” leans toward the vibe of “There Will Be Execution” (2004). Heart Of Darkness is a fun mash-up of the pirate melodies of old-school Running Wild with the harmonized twin-guitar accents of Thin Lizzy. The track stands out for its excellent, dramatic yet highly melodic chorus. The mid-tempo pace, dressed in a raw riff blanket, along with Mat’s manly, nasal, instantly recognizable vocals, even replaces in mild doses the grandeur of a mini suite (Question of Honour) from the band’s best days, around the “Nature Of Evil” album.
After the album kicks off metal and unbridled, offering a bunch of tracks coexisting in a highly dynamic, dark metal dialogue, it goes on to pick up more points in the field of relaxed rock riffing. Revolution is typically seasoned with a classic rock n’ roll accent, followed by Unbreakable, and the two are united by the fruitless realization that they’re the album’s less inspired moments. Fist To Face, with its ominous wail of a simple Motorhead riff and cranked-up torpedoing of the double bass drum pedals, quickly puts things back in their “standard” Sinner place. Besides the sublime, rock-minded Little Head (a cover of Marvelous 3 from “Ready, Sex, Go”), Fist To Face is the fastest and shortest track on the album, with the fever of (at the very least) The Finalizer riff on full display. Sinner have always known how to capitalize on their great talent and their wide receptiveness to the realm of heavy metal in calmer songs. Until It Hurts is the right title for the latter.
Well, when it comes to Sinner, it’s impossible to avoid the Thin Lizzy debate. Connection, which follows, doesn’t hide this “new” mini-Lizzy borrowing from the “Boys Are Back In Town mold”, from head to toe, from the twin guitar harmonies to the way the verses are taken into the chorus and pre-chorus. Unbelievable. It seems to have become a rule that at least one track on every Sinner album reminds you of Thin Lizzy. And if not that, Sinner take on at least one cover of a Thin Lizzy classic (e.g. The Sun Goes Down, Baby Please Don’t Go).
Besides Mat Sinner, ideas for “Crash And Burn” came of course from his loyal Primal Fear buddy Henny Wolter, Igor Gianola of U.D.O. and newly minted “Primal Fear guy” Magnus Karlsson. Sinner stripped the album completely of keyboards. You also won’t find any longer dual lead guitar duels or triple harmonies, which, with their famous picking, once gave the songs a special stamp. “Crash And Burn” takes Sinner back to the “pre-Judgement Day” era too. Now and then you miss Tom Naumann in the band, who on past Sinner albums knew how to lay down a seriously witty guitar riff or solo. The main goal was obviously to write a relaxed, confident, no-frills album devoted to the sheer directness of a rock/metal riff. It’s an album that is dead easy to get into and that you’ll chew through right away. Nothing revolutionary in terms of musical progress for Sinner, but at the same time a nice gift for the band’s loyal fans.
Lineup
Mat Sinner – vocals, bass
Henny Wolter – guitar
Christof Leimn – guitar
Klaus Sperling – drums
Production
Mat Sinner
Track List
01. Crash & Burn
02. Break The Silence
03. The Dog
04. Heart Of Darkness
05. Revolution
06. Unbreakable
07. Fist To Face
08. Until It Hurts
09. Little Head
10. Connection
11. Like A Rock
