Review by Felix on May 10, 2022.

It is not easy to define the point of time from when Exciter started to deliver exclusively simply structured songs. I think it was a creeping process. Whichever way you look at it, the special chemistry within the band is gone forever. This would not be too serious if the group would limit itself on live shows to celebrate their classics in the best possible way. But Exciter released this album. They cannot expect to have a bonus due to the band´s name or its history. Every new output should be measured by the usual standards. In turn this means that I listen to their tenth studio album ("New Testament" not included) with mixed feelings.

Very generally, I feel comfortable with a simple songwriting, but Exciter overdo it. The first four songs follow the same pattern without the tiniest distinction. Is this still simple or is it already stupid? You decide. Here are the facts. The songs are based on unclear riffs. Without being thrashy, they just make noise. I would not go as far as to call these riffs bad, but they are really nothing extraordinary. The up-tempo rhythms always sound the same, tempo changes are not included. It would have been too much effort, I guess. I have no desire to blame them for the usual verse-chorus-verse-chorus scheme, but every chorus is formed by just one line (the song title) and it seems to be a pleasure to repeat excessively this line. Thankfully, the fact that they always accord to the same approach also has its good points. Each and every chorus energizes you because of its power and dynamic, although the vocals sound somewhat limited and thin. However, the result is that the band delivers four fairly strong songs which are unimaginatively arranged. It is fun to sing along to the choruses, but it also does tend to get a little bit tedious. "Power and Damnation", track number five, marks the temporary peak of creativity. It follows the same pattern, but it offers mid-tempo. Unbelievable.

The remaining songs do not surprise the listener with something unexpected. With the exception of "Skull Breaker", they are just weaker than the tunes at the beginning. When I speak of "Skull Breaker", I do not mean the untitled useless guitar solo which is hidden at the end. Quite the reverse, it leaves me confused due to its senselessness. But far worse than this detail is the production of this album. If one did not know better, one might think this is the first demo of semi-professional lads. Congratulations, if you are able to identify the complete drum parts. More details could be addressed, for example the suboptimal guitar sound, but this does not make sense. The truth is that you are not having fun with this output, if you are not a die-hard Exciter fan. But if you have a soft spot for these Canadians, you get an album with some pretty decent pieces - just listen to the first three songs, and once you have gotten used to the fact that Exciter offer a ridiculous sound in a certain regularity, you might even think that this full-length constitutes a wonderful highlight. But that would be foolish.

Rating: 6.8 out of 10

Review by Allan on July 1, 2003.

I’m always a bit skeptical when the front cover of a band’s album has the mug of the big ugly front man on it. Kind of like how in the band photos the other members are mysteriously enigmatic. Such can be said about Sinner and their latest album “There Will Be Execution.” To top it off, the band is named after the lead singer. By the time I made my way to the album title I was pretty sure that the cheese-factor would be fairly high. More or less, I was right.

Sinner plays a melodic metal not to far from Arch Enemy, without the death metal influence. They’re mostly a thrash-influenced outfit, actually. So, what did Sinner bring along for their voyage into the world of metal this time? Well, first a tight rhythm section that, performance-wise, offers little to complain about. Then there are the melodic guitar hooks. If guitarists Wolter or Naumann did those horrible pinch harmonics any more often, I might be inclined to set them up there with Zakk Wylde for the lame musician award. Also we’ve got plenty of typical 80’s style metal soloing, but I digress. Again, they’re a strong duo performance wise. Vocally, Mat Sinner is about as cheesy as they come. He’s no James LaBrie, though. Instead, more of a poor man’s rendition of Warrel Dane. Of course, what would “There Will Be Execution” be without such thought provoking song titles as ‘Higher Level of Violence,’ ‘Die on Command,’ and ‘Liberty of Death’?

As an overall band, Sinner isn’t that bad. Besides the self-indulgent playing – in which the ‘musicians’ treat their playing as more of a sport than an art – things are pretty well constructed. The riffs are half decent and for those times when you’re in a shredtastic, carefree mood this type of music does the trick. However, Sinner is about the last band I’d go for if I wanted to hear this type of music. It’s simply done much better by other bands. Everything on “There Will Be Execution” is just kind of unimaginative.

Bottom Line: The problem with Sinner isn’t that they’re a bad band. The problem is that it can be done better, and it has been by many bands.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 5
Atmosphere: 5
Production: 7
Originality: 4
Overall: 5

Rating: 5.2 out of 10