The
Sinners
This article originally appeared in NFH #18 in
the winter of 1990.
The Sinners are
another of those Swedish bands responsible for helping to develop the impression of Sweden
as a mid 1980s hotbed of basic rock and roll bands. They sport a look that pays homage to
50s rock and roll styles, but despite the presence of a couple of Elvis Presley covers
("Suspicious Minds" and "Burning Love") in their set over the years,
they have a sound that's thoroughly 80s garage band. Their line up started out with Henki
Born and Michael Sellers on guitar, Micke Widell on drums, David Sellers on bass, and Sven
Kohler as lead singer. The records all display the sort of infectious power pop that leans
heavily on catchy guitar riffs and makes great use of Kohler's distinctively nasal vocals;
he's one of those singers who can be picked out of thousands once you've heard him once.
From Lund in the
extreme south of the country, the band started playing in the winter of 1982-83,
practicing in an air-raid shelter when they were all around 20, except for Michael, who
was only 17. The various members of the band cite influences like the Rolling Stones
(nearly unanimous), Del Fuegos, Dr. Feelgood, Ramones, Beatles, Elvis Presley, AC/DC, the
Clash, the Saints, the Flying Burrito Brothers, and Elvis Costello. If this sounds like it
makes an interesting brew, read on! Their first live gig was a support for Wilmer X in
September of 1983. It took nearly a year to get out their first record, the single
"Open Up Your Door". Released on their own Teenage Kicks label, the A side of
this was a cover of a song by 60s punks Richard and The Young Lions. But it's the flip
side that shows real promise..."Echoes From Your Heart" is a classic piece of
power pop with rough guitars and great vocal harmonies. After the single was released
Micke was replaced by Rikard Swardh on drums, and this lineup lasted until this year.
"Open Up Your
Door" was the first in a sequence of three great singles (4 if you count the
"Teenage Letter" flexi disc) which have been compiled onto the essential mini-lp
The Original Sin, which was released in October of 1986 by Swamp Records in France
and is still available from many mailorder places and in import shops. Perhaps the best
track of these is "Hotshot", which has a great guitar intro bit and a tune
that's catchy as they come. This single (their third), like many of their subsequent
records, was produced by Wilmer X drummer Sticky Bomb, who managed a bigger sound than on
the earlier stuff. The Original Sin also includes two tracks that were part of the
British compilation Raw Cuts - The Swedish Beat.
The Swamp Records
deal arose from their first tour outside of Sweden in which they played 6 shows as well as
a TV and radio gig in one week. The gigs went well enough to encourage the band to return
to France for a second tour in January 1987, a tour that also included gigs in Spain and
West Germany. Upon their return they began to record their first full lp, despite lack of
a record deal. Interest in the band was growing, though, and by the time they finished it
they found themselves signed to Amigo, probably the best Swedish independent label. Their
first record for Amigo was the September 1987 single "You Ain't
Different"/"High Risk Investment", which rates as probably their second
best single; a great pop song with lots of meaty guitar and plenty of rough edges to give
it a lively, energetic feel. The single acted as the lead in to the lp, which was entitled
From The Heart Down. The approach on this lp was a lot more varied than on the
singles; there are some slow songs and there's a lot of gang-backing vocals by Pange
Oberg, Stefan Bjork and Tomas Gabrielson, the latter two being the bass player and
producer for Wilmer X. There's also a lot of horns and piano, and the net effect of all
this distracts at times from the quality of the songs underneath. Not that there aren't
some tracks that display the basic stripped down rock that the Sinners do so well;
certainly "Walk On By" is the sort of crunching guitar pop that I'd travel good
distances to hear, with a riff that drives you to the ground, and stuff like "You
Ain't Different", "Sin City" and "Good And Evil" are also top
drawer rockers. Only "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight" suffers irreparable damage from
smothering in backing vocals that make it sound like Queen's "Bohemian Rapsody",
a real shame because it seems like a pretty good song is hidden underneath all that.
Overall the impression is of a very good record that could've been great if the band had
held back on the temptation to add stuff in the studio that they don't do in their live
show.
In January of 1988
the lp was licensed for release in Spain, and the band did a two week tour there to
support it. Rikard was unable to make the trip, so Wilmer X drummer Sticky Bomb filled in
for him. After a spring tour in Sweden Rikard left for good and was replaced in April by
Kiddie Mancini, who had played in the Swedish band Torsson. With Mancini in place they
headed right into the studio where they recorded their most recent single, "When She
Lies", with Amigo house producer 4-Eyed Thomas. It's been their biggest success to
date with a fair amount of radio play in Sweden, although for the Sinners it's probably
just an average cut. They plan to release a new single soon (it may be out as you read
this) with "Happy Hour" on the A side and an obscure Beatles cover "Hey
Bulldog" on the flip. A live tape the band sent me has both these tracks on it, and
it sounds like it'll be a single to stand up with the rest of them, with a good soaring
chorus and a chugging verse bit on the A side. So be watching...you'll only find 'em in
the import bins, but these guys are worth looking for.
