Attacker might just be the only US power metal band that is better now than they were in the eighties. Their peers often suffer from the “best since” syndrome. Even the ones that are actually making good albums; every good album Vicious Rumors makes might be their best since ‘Welcome To The Ball’. As much as I love ‘The Second Coming’, I really do think that anything Attacker is doing these days is at least as good. In fact, their most recent studio album ‘Sins Of The World’ might just be my favorite Attacker album to date.

Original members have come and gone after the band reformed in 2001, with only drummer Mike Sabatini remains, although Pat Marinelli still plays about half of the guitar solos on ‘Sins Of The World’. A certain type of fans would think this is problematic, but it is the songwriting of Mike Benetatos, who joined the band when they reformed, that makes ‘Sins Of The World’ such a great album. His riffs are exactly what made US power metal such an exciting genre in the eighties. They are borderline thrash metal, but with a classy sense of melodicism that puts the resulting sound closer to traditional heavy metal.

Whether or not fans of classic heavy metal will enjoy ‘Sins Of The World’, however, will largely depend on whether or not you can handle the vocals of Bobby Lucas. Those who know him from bands like Seven Witches and Overlorde will know that he can be extremely over the top, especially when he goes into high-pitched screaming mode, but I personally think it fits the music on ‘Sins Of The World’ perfectly. The smoother tone of the late John Leone is slightly more pleasant to my ears, but Lucas definitely leaves original singer Bob Mitchell in the dust. Lucas’ lyrics also have the perfect ring to them for Benetatos’ compositions.

Picking highlights from ‘Sins Of The World’ is not an easy task, as the music is of a consistently high level. Kicking off the album with ‘Sins Of Man’ was a wise decision though. The song is slightly faster and more aggressive than the rest of the album and the somewhat Middle-Eastern progression in the main riff is simply excellent. ‘World Destroyer’ shows both Lucas and the musicians from their most dynamic side, resulting in one of the more interesting compositions on the record. Closer ‘Where The Serpent Lies’ is a bit slower and darker than the rest of the album, creating a somewhat more epic feel, while ‘Carcosa’ has a couple of really nifty transitions.

Even production-wise, Attacker chose a rather old school approach without leaning on nostalgia too much. The instruments on the album have a very natural sound, sometimes even sounding like they were recorded during their rehearsals, which gives ‘Sins Of The World’ a very lively feel. Maybe that is what sets ‘Sins Of The World’ apart from what so many of Attacker’s peers are doing these days. There is an energy to their music that many bands cannot even begin to display. Paired with some of the band’s best songwriting to date, there is no reason why fans of old school heavy metals would not enjoy ‘Sins Of The World’.

Recommended tracks: ‘Sins Of Man’, ‘Carcosa’, ‘World Destroyer’