Sinner-Touch of Sin 2

AFM Records
2013

Germany's Sinner, which features Primal Fear member Mat Sinner on vocals and bass, has been around for a very long time now. Since forming way back in 1980 the group has released well over a dozen full-length albums, tons of singles, a split recording, a live album and more then their fair share of compilations. With "Touch of Sin 2" (the title is of course a reference to Sinner's 1985 album, "Touch of Sin") the group has decided to go back into their past catalog and re-record some of their older material. These 11 re-recorded tracks are reportedly from albums that are not readily available anymore. That means these tracks are a way for fans of old and new to hear some of Sinner's classic material without having to fork over piles of cash for rare or (flat-out) out of print releases. Sinner has given these older cuts a new lease on life and they all sound remarkably fresh. If you didn't know any better it would be easy enough to think that these were new and original (and damn enjoyable) slabs of modern heavy rock/ hard rock. So there's nothing really here to knock Sinner for. If you're an older fan though and you're saying "Why should I pick this album up when I already own all of their older albums?", which would be understandable in my eyes as I often view these types of re-recorded albums as being more about making money then anything else, then there is still a good reason to pick up "Touch of Sin 2". In addition to the 11 re-worked numbers Sinner's new album features three brand new tracks. In order they are "Don't Believe a Word", "Blood on the Sand" and "Heat Of The City". The first one, "Don't Believe a Word", is a real catchy heavy rocker that (somewhat) recalls the better parts of the old hair metal scene. It's more straight-forward rock then glitter and glam, but for comparisons sake it reminded me quite a bit of that same kind of mid-late eighties melodic metal. Meanwhile "Blood on the Sand" is strictly a metal number with more grit and a gung-ho attitude then was expected. The same could be said for the hard-driving "Heat Of The City". As it closes off this collection of re-worked classics and new numbers it does it with on foot on the pedal and one hand throwing up the devil horns! With some rather tasty licks it's one of those tracks that reminds you of heavy metal's heyday when traditional heavy metal was king. Of the three new numbers it's a close call between "Heat Of The City" and "Blood on the Sand" as to which one rocked harder, but I'm leaning towards the former because of it's snazzy guitar solo! This collection, which was mixed by Achim Köhler (Primal Fear, Brainstorm), sounds great from track number one until track number 14. We're talking about a crisp and clean sound that helps highlight the radio friendly nature of some of these cuts while also giving this album a fantastic glow (if that makes sense). It's worth mentioning that "Touch of Sin 2" also features guest appearances by the likes of David Readman (Voodoo Circle, Pink Cream 69), Erik Martensson (W.E.T.), Diego Valdez (Helker) and Tom Naumann (ex-Primal Fear). All told "Touch of Sin 2" finds Germany's Sinner standing tall and proud. They have come a long way since releasing their first album, "Wild n' Evil", back in 1982 and a package like this should satisfy both old and new fans.
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Sinner-One bullet left

AFM
2011

Sinner are one of those bands has rather quietly been releasing consistently good classic style metal for almost thirty years. They don't tend to get quite as much notice as someone like Running Wild or Grave Digger, but there is no denying their steady contributions over the years. Despite his commitments with Primal Fear and other projects band leader Mat Sinner still keeps this act going in fine fashion. Despite recent line-up changes this band has remained focused and the quality of their music is still high. Just seconds into the blazing opener "The one you left behind" it's obvious that we are in for a solid attack of metal. The title track,
"Suicide Mission" and "Mind over matter" are just a few of the tightly crafted head bangers on this album. "Mend to be broken" and "Give and take" show their ability to blend melodies in with their heavy edged approach. "Haunted" and the closer "Rolling away" are both slow tracks, but both have enough of a steady flow to keep them going. Really there are no fillers on this album. My only real complaint would be ending with a slow track wouldn't be my first choice as I would normally prefer that a band end with a more powerful song. Nothing new, but I am glad for bands like Sinner that never fail to deliver.

Sinner-Crash and burn

Candlelight
2009


Much like fellow German acts Running Wild and Grave Digger, Sinner are a long running band who have pushed on largely by one man. In this case it is Mat Sinner who is also a member of the Judas Priest inspired act Primal Fear. Sinner have definitely had a revolving door policy going for years. A number of guitarists and drummers have been in this band during the twenty-five plus years that they have been in existence. This album will not make you love Sinner if you were not already a fan. It doesn't try to tread in any new waters that's for sure. In fact much of the material is based on 80's sounds. There is some NWOBHM influences for sure with Saxon being the first act that pops into my mind. There are some similarities to early 80's Accept and later era Thin Lizzy as well. The material is fairly familiar, but the presentation is key and they approach the songs with plenty of fire and fury. So the results are old style metal with enough confidence and sharp edges to make it worth while. Mat Sinner probably has not gotten all of the acknowledgements that he deserves. He certainly has earned it though. His contributions are many and he has been at it for years. As German metal goes he has contributed almost as much as people like Udo, Doro, and Kai Hansen. This is yet another entry for him to be proud of.