From Bandcamp, “Formed in 2020, the enigmatic duo known as LORD SIN is back with their highly anticipated new album “Confessions.” The duo, shrouded in mystery, opts to keep their identities hidden, letting the music speak for itself. The creation of “Confessions” is an embodiment of their improvisational process, where the initial raw recordings of guitar and drums were captured in one take, followed by the addition of bass, guitar, vocals, and keyboards. The result is an album that maintains the energetic spirit of their debut while offering a more polished yet still organic listening experience.”

“Specters” is the first song. It’s a slow-moving song, with scratchy harsh vocals and an elementary riff at first. Some of the guitar harmonies and that meaty slab of bass are nice, but they are drowned out by the dull drone of the riff. “The Prescence” has a little more kick behind it with a slightly faster pace and some keyboards, but it really fails to take flight, and it sounds too much like the previous song. “Living Sin” is another slow mover with a overly simple riff, and this formula isn’t winning the band many points for originality. There is also a brief breakdown where things slow to what seems close to absolute zero.

“Negligence” is a 10-minute opus, taking in some early BLACK SABBATH influences. However, considering this sound was presented 50 years ago, much of the newer music being created today doesn’t nod back that far. This is becoming a painful listening experience for me. “Guilt” begins with some keys and spoken words, and you can hear a little phasing issues in the opening. The vocals are trying to sound wicked, and they are, but the music isn’t keeping up the mask. The lengthy “Regret” closes the album, and it’s a 12-minute beast. It reminds me of what a wooly mammoth might experience in the dinosaur age, lumbering over a frozen landscape, but he fades away by the end.

The songs are unnecessarily long in my opinion, and the entire listening experience is just, well, dull. The best part of the music is probably the thick bass notes, but the scratchy harsh vocals trying to sound mean, and elementary riffs, aren’t doing the album any favors. There isn’t much excitement here.