Lingua Ignota — SINNER GET READY — Album Review
Alternative | Classical | Operatic
Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music
I know that I may be guilty of throwing around the word “unique” a lot, but there truly is no other artist quite like the project of classically trained singer and multi-instrumentalist Kristin Hayter, known as Lingua Ignota. I was first made aware of the artist through her sophomore album CALIGULA, which worked to burn patriarchy and its religious roots to ashes, and introduced me to her harrowing operatic style.
CALIGULA was indeed an album that had me in awe of its difference. However, it also stood as a hard stylistic pill to swallow, for that very reason. I knew that it would take more time than normal to accustom my mind to such a unique sound, and after a few years to process just that, I feel that Lingua Ignota’s third effort, SINNER GET READY, will be somewhat easier for me to review.
Along with this, Lingua Ignota carries through a more melodic vocal performance throughout on SINNER GET READY, which helped the album serve as a more swallowable experience, but no less haunting. In fact, I really felt the raw emotion flowing from Hayter’s vocal performances more than ever before.
Much like the previous album, SINNER GET READY targets the negative effects of religion. And once again, Lingua Ignota delivers a harrowing, frightening, demented, and devastating musical experience, albeit etched more tightly into the details.
The various samples, taken from televangelist sermons and placed on this album, really do well to drive the narrative and purpose of this album forward. But that’s not everything. I also loved the versatility of instrumentation used. It gave each track on this thing its own kind of haunting soundscape while keeping the overall experience tightly abysmal.
This album doesn’t just ask for the listener’s attention; it demands it. While blurring the line between holiness, and the complete opposite, I was completely drawn to this album, with either perception. It is clear that SINNER GET READY isn’t an album that was made to be enjoyed. Instead, it was made to burn itself into the listener’s memory.
And while all of the positive criticism applies to the vast majority of what the album has to offer, there are, however, a few singles that do feel too close to being a typical classical piece, and thus lack that uniquely terrifying Lingua Ignota feel.
Speaking of said feel, the most remarkable takeaway from this album is the kind of musical horror it portrays. Indeed, it is absolutely harrowing at its best points. However, it’s a kind of refined horror, one that is awe-inspiringly complex, much like the darker side of religious beliefs.
In a nutshell, I feel that the best way to describe an album like SINNER GET READY, is that it is basically Hereditary in musical form; horrifying, and intricately so.
If you're in need of an album that will shake you to your core, SINNER GET READY carries that lasting effect in barrel-loads.
Favourite Tracks: I WHO BEND THE TALL GRASSES | MANY HANDS | THE SACRED LINAMENT OF JUDGEMENT
Least Favourite Track: PENNSYLVANIA FURNACE
Sargent House
Enjoyment: 7/10 | Memorability: 10/10 | Atmosphere: 10/10
Uniqueness: 9/10 | Satisfaction: 8/10 | Narrative: 9/10
