With only 7 songs it almost looks as if it is a EP, but with a total playing time of 45:36 the good calculators know what the average time per song is. Sinister's latest album 'Afterburner' was issued under the flag of Nuclear Blast, now they have switched to Massacre Records. I remember them playing in clubs nearby back in the 90's. The brutal death metal live needs a good sound, if not it sounds like a wall of noise.
Fortunately on a CD you don't have that kind of problems and we hear the Dutch as we are used to. Growling death metal grunts, fast drumming and heavy riffs. First song "Republic of the Grave" has more variety in it than usually. Sinister sometimes plays a little slower and even has some melody in it. The song is not constantly in Suffocation speed.
"Summit of Sacrifice" follows and has also a lot of variety and contains some speaking and whispering parts. "Fortified Bravery" is a fast song as we are used from them. Again I have the idea that the music is a little less brutal than on former albums, less death, more metal. They put in more variety, more tempo changes and better playing skills and song writing instead. On earlier albums I sometimes got bored after a few songs, that is not the case with the new one. With "The Kill to Come" they have even written one of their best songs, a brutal one that reminds a bit of Necrophobic.
With this album the Sinister fans will be satisfied, enough brutality and speed, but I think they can also win some new fans; playing with more variety and keeping the songs more interesting. I hope for them that they will protrude in all the death metal releases instead of drowning in it.
