Mad Sin - 20 Years in Sin Sin

  by Alex Halls

published: 19 / 3 / 2008

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Review

From busking for a living and playing Berlin’s shady venues, to being once signed to Polydor Records, '20 Years in Sin Sin' is an accurate reflection of Mad Sin’s progression through two decades. Specialising in psychobilly, a style of essentially countrified rock ‘n’ roll with a psychotic, punk-influenced edge, Mad Sin ultimately convey a morbid sense of humour and amusement, not short of entertainment at its finest. It is not surprising that the psychotic element is a strong trait of German alternative bands, even if Mad Sin are careful not to focus too intensely on this. Now a six-piece, with two of the three original members left, it’s rare for bands to last this long but Mad Sin appear to have stood the test of time. Spanning the two decades of Mad Sin’s musical career, '20 Years' is sinister without question, but thoroughly accessible. The studio album boasts 14 tracks and, along with a live CD, adorned by a further 16 tracks, there’s more than enough for the Mad Sin fan to warrant adding this to their collection. It’s not all about pushing out previous releases however. Alongside some rare B-sides and a cover of 'I Shot the Sheriff' are six brand new studio tracks that effectively sum up the band’s continued existence. Whilst the album demonstrates what bands need to last: a passion for both life and music, there’s a sense of monotony that slowly builds, making it best listened to in small doses, or even as background music. It can all be too much to listen to in one go, unless you’re a true fan. '20 Years' starts off inspired but soon loses its way, much down to the fact that Mad Sin are one of those bands that captivate ‘live’, yet fail to convert that success on studio releases. At least the second disc goes some way to conveying the rawer sound and is firmly backed up by the two track multimedia video content, which sees guitarist Le Sap play out on double bass. The psychotic edge is deep-rooted in the band’s nature, without the need for them to be extravagant with it. But there’s a certain lack of zest in many of the songs on this record. Switching rapidly to the live CD appears to make a welcome difference. Whilst the following commentary could be mistaken for some form of meiosis, the honesty and grit that went into and still goes into Mad Sin’s music shouldn’t be dismissed.

Track Listing:-

1 Sindicate Deluxe
2 Rusty Nails
3 Pigfarm
4 50 Miles To Nowhere
5 Lullaby
6 F.T.W. I Said One Day...
7 Ich Kann Nicht Schlafen
8 Dirty City
9 Psyclops Carnival
10 Ride This Torpedo
11 Crack In The Box
12 Secret Plan
13 Viva Le Rock
14 Intro
15 Scarred Ol' Heart
16 1000 Eyes
17 Outta My Head
18 Speak No Evil
19 Nothing's Allright
20 Sell Your Soul
21 Communication Breakdown
22 Dead Moon
23 Fuel For Brains
24 Sin Is The Law
25 All This And More
26 I Shot The Sheriff
27 To Walk The Night
28 Meat Train At Midnight
29 Psychotic Night