Black metal is to thank for bringing the mystique back to music. This duo from Portugal cloaks themselves in black shrouds, we can assume they are not playing in, but instead of blast beats Lord Sin hits you with some creepy dirges on their sophomore album Confessions (Larvae Records). The graveyard stomp of the riffs allows darkness to possess their sound organically, rather than having to pull out all the Halloween decorations to convince the listener. Halfway into the first song, it’s easy to hear where they fall in the middle ground between doom and black metal. For a duo, they are cranking out a great deal of sound and care about writing songs, rather than just bashing out riffs.  

“The Presence” feels like Satyricon jamming with Cathedral. It indulges in a more traditional metal mood. “Living Sin” trods a darker road, more suited for the throaty vocal delivery. The snarl can slither around this riff. This song throbs more than it chugs. The guitar parts make more sense, against the dense wall of fuzz coming at you. The more deliberate stomping shift of the guitar works well dynamically. “Negligent” is more like death doom in the melancholy manner it trudges on. Ten minutes might be on the more excessive side, but it does chug along with a more forceful purpose. As the song progresses they ebb down a little to build into a more layered melody thanks to the layer of synths. 

“Guilt” is another tune that leans more into the doom side of what they do, which truth be told feels like who they are as a band. Less black metal than say Mortuary Drape, but they occupy similar sonic space at times. The vocals do go from spoken parts to the same kind of scowling that has dominated this album. hey create enough of a narrative to serve the song, but if you need vocal dynamics this might not be the band for you. 

“Regret” is a more sludge-driven dirge, working off of sounds they have already proved to be effective previously in the album. The slowed tempo is the main focus of the song, though the guitar melodies that crop up midway in are pretty cool. If the heavily orchestrated Peaceville Records-style of death doom is too dramatic for you, then Lord Sin’s stripped-down approach might be more to your liking. The dark nature of the band’s sound would also appeal to fans of early black metal in the mood for something creepier than Venom. If you miss the simpler times when metal was big and powerful, but not overproduced this might also be for you. 

Buy the album here:
https://lordsinofficial.bandcamp.com/album/confessions-2

7 / 10
WIL CIFER
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