Review by Daniel for Sinner - Danger Zone (1984)

Stuttgart four-piece heavy metallers Sinner first formed way back in 1980 but despite their long career I’m sure that many of you will be shocked to discover that they’ve released a massive eighteen studio albums to date with their third & most highly regarded album “Danger Zone” being the topic of today’s review. Sinner are probably most well known for the inclusion of bass-playing front man Matt Sinner who also plays bass for another more renowned German heavy metal band in Primal Fear. How he’s managed to balance his duties in these two active bands for a full twenty years is absolutely beyond me but he’s pulled it off somehow.

I’ve never given them a spin personally but from what I’ve read online Sinner’s first two records, 1982’s “Wild ‘n’ Evil” & 1983’s “Fast Decision”, didn’t exactly set the world on fire with the band opting for a sound that featured a lot more hard rock than the pure metal one we hear on “Danger Zone”. Each successive release saw Sinner taking a noticeable jump up in intensity though which sees their third effort sporting a fast meat-&-potatoes heavy metal sound with the occasional nod to speed metal & European power metal. You won’t find anything you haven’t heard before but you’ll likely find it hard not to smile & bang your head along the way.

The production job is really very good for the time with a strong focus on loud guitars & drums making for a more than energetic listen. The rhythm section keeps things pretty simple & up-beat with very little in the way of experimentation. They really are playing a predominantly supporting role for the guitars & vocals & I don’t think that’s such a bad thing because there are enough hooks to keep me well interested here. Judas Priest were clearly the biggest influence on Sinner’s sound (I guess the band name should have given it away) & they do tip-toe along the plagiarism line pretty closely throughout most of this material but it doesn’t affect my enjoyment much because I genuinely love classic Priest. Matt Sinner doesn’t try to be Rob Halford though which is a definite positive because he’d fail dismally. He offers a much more gruff delivery that’s has more in common with Venom’s Cronos or Running Wild’s Rock ‘n’ Rolf but he adds just enough melody to make some of the anthemic chorus hooks dig their talons in. 

The few tracks that don’t grab me tend to be the ones where the band heads in a slightly more melodic direction with cheesier power metal choruses & melodies whereas the best tracks have more of a NWOBHM feel to them. There are a truck load of great metal riffs here & just as many exciting guitar solos & for that reason I find Sinner much more appealing than some of the other Priest devotees out there. There’s a real charm to some of these songs that enables them to overcome the generic nature of the songwriting. They’re all full of energy & enthusiasm which unsurprisingly reminds me of the NWOBHM movement that was unquestionably their primary source of inspiration. I think most fans of early 80’s Judas Priest, Anvil, Running Wild & Battleaxe will find plenty to enjoy here & I’d even go so far as to say that I prefer it to some of 1984's more popular German heavy metal records from bands like Stormwitch, Warlock, Running Wild & Grave Digger.