Hinder: The Reign

It's easy to sneer at Hinder and twelve years after their debut, plenty do; accusations of being cheesy Nickelback-lite scene chasers never all that far away. In fairness most of those aspersions are pretty much nailed on and inescapable and yet success was immediate and pretty universal for this band. Time has seen the platinum sales of the Extreme Behaviour debut tail away into the realms of respectable amounts of units shifted. Although, in this day and age, countless bands would bite your arm off for that 'downturn'. I can't say Hinder have ever really played a huge part in my listening schedule over the years and having spent more time with The Reign than I have any of their previous albums, the simple conclusion I've come to is, what's not to like?? Yes, my daughters may be as, if not more likely to listen to this stuff than I am, but if I didn't admit to having a music collection that contains – amongst many other things – a vast swathe of big chorused, dumb, fun, heavy rock, then I'd be a liar. Hinder and their ilk may well have added a more contemporary twist to the recipe, a country edge added to "Too Late" to make a neat, modern ballad, while the (slightly) more forceful "Drink You Away" (which on the review download cuts out midway through – although by then you've pretty much sussed what's going on) repeats the trick. With "Play To Win" trying its hardest to be Shinedown (strings in the background as staccato vocals alternate with big 'who-ooo-oooahs!' and some quieter breakdowns) and "Another Way Out" romping along on rumbling drums and stop start guitars, if you're waiting for any surprises, then you won't find them here. But is it catchy, memorable, hook laden and excellently produced, courtesy of singer Marshal Dutton and drummer Cody Hanson? It sure as hell is and with choruses so big they'll have no problem filling cavernous arenas, the only folk sneering, are those who knew they would before the music started.

Talking of Dutton, now onto his third album with the band, he really has found his (in a good way) comfort zone, a confident but never overly flashy display (that would certainly graduate from the Joe Elliott (Def Leppard) school of vocal intonations) perfect for the pound of Hanson's drums and a collection of six mile wide riffs. Don't get me wrong, The Reign is calculated stuff. Just the requisite amount of ballads, the blunt sex reference song as we start "Making It Hard" (yes, you'll cringe (some of the lyrics are also, in fairness, intelligent and honest too)) and just enough swearing and middle finger references to make the young 'uns believe that this is edgy and belligerent, when it's actually as tame and obediently loyal as a guide dog for the blind… But why shouldn't they have their fun? We did when we were that age and, truth be told, with Hinder in this form, those willing to, still could.

Big, dumb and full of choruses? That'll do for me!

Track Listing
1. The Reign
2. Burn It Down
3. King Of The Letdown
4. Remember Me
5. Too Late
6. Another Way Out
7. Making It Hard
8. Drink You Away
9. Play To Win
10. Long Gone
11. Loser's Salute

Added: August 14th 2017
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Hinder online
Hits: 2120
Language: english

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