Scarlet Sins

So no one is talking about Scarlet Sins anymore? That band was featured in a few videos and sites about female metal musicians, but now they broke up and no one seems to remember them. So I guess I need to review their only album.

Some introduction: Scarlet Sins were a Canadian metal band, labelled as heavy/groove metal on this site, and as heavy/progressive by Metaladies. During their short career, they grabbed the attention of the audience by being a very mature-sounding band, made of young but instrumentally talented female musicians. The name Scarlet Sins came from a biblical quote, that they actually used in one of their songs: "Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow".

Now, on to the review. I'd describe Scarlet Sins's sound as dark and angst-filled, but with lots of attitude and catchy melodies. The riffs are very heavy, slow and filled with subdued but still perceptible rage. The bass is deep. The vocalists has a deep, quiet but emotional voice.

What I like best about their music is that it's just the right combination of heaviness and melody and catchiness. The songs are easy on the ears, they have catchy hooks and nice melodies, but they also rock hard, with some crushing, dark riffs. They excel both at love songs and fuck-the-authority songs.

Most of the lyrics are about rebelling against something, whether it's society's restrictive rules or an abusive relationship. Others could be considered self-empowerment anthems, but they're more convincing than a lot of these types of songs that are written to be relatable ro everyone, and therefore are not really about anything. Consider "Above Ground" and its ear-wormy "I no longer hide behind walls no more, no longer say words I don't mean no more" hook. But some of the songs are both about rejecting a toxic influence and empowering yourself, such as my favorite track, "Own Truth".

This one, with its super-heavy intro and awesome solo and bass lines, is about rejecting a fanatically religious and repressive society. It replies to such a society that "I'm not a sinner, only a dreamer", "This is my life, so let me live it", and attacks the older generations's tendency to try turning their children into copies of themselves in their younger years, even though their kids are not made for that kind of life ("You had your time so let me have mine"). It's one of the most convincing rebellion anthems, and it's very quotable.

Scarlet Sins' lyrics are simple, too obvious some would say, but they make their point very clearly.