One can call "Break The Rules" a late breakthrough for many reasons: It marks the first time that Mad Sin recorded with a line-up of four people. And this album signalized that the band was also open for trying out other genres and scenes. The intro and the first track "Deep Black Zone" pretty much state where this record will go: Heavy drums and high paced metal-inspired riffs create a sound that is also drawing from other subcultures. While the psychobilly scene back then was known for isolating itself from others, Mad Sin tried something new: With cover versions of the Ramones ("She's The One") and The Misfits ("All Hell Breaks Lose") they showed solidarity with the punk rock scene. Even the neo-psychobilly-classic "Fight Back" by Blue Cats got drenched in a psychotic cure and is hardly recognizable only Köfte DeVille's vocals seem reminiscent of it. With this album Köfte decided to fully perform as a frontman, leave out the standing drums, and include a whole drumset. The new line up is heavily celebrated in "Break The Rules". But the record also contains surprises: The Guns'n'Roses-esque ballade "Dirty Lies" breaks with the record's hard sound - it's one of the band's many genre-experiments, that they would try out again and again in the following years.
In the early 1990s, psychobilly started to drift into a new direction: Metal elements melted into the genre, which made it interesting to a broader audience and scene. Mad Sin definitely played a major role in this development - and so did their album "A Ticket Into Underworld" retrospectively: It might be one of their roughest long players, lacking almost entirely the classic rockabilly rhythms. If their previous album "Break the Rules" was the testing ground for this new sound, "A Ticket Into Underworld" went full force: a gloomy dark atmosphere characterizes most of the songs, heavy riffs and Mad Sin typical bass lines carry Köfte DeVilles hiccup vocals, metal growls and screams - and this sets the basic tone of the record. The song "Mad Filthy Undead" is a whirlwind of an opener with sharp guitar riffs. The slap-bass on "Hell-A-Vision Shock" cuts energetically into the song and in "Real Wild Child" Mad Sin pay tribute to Iggy Pop. With "Meattrain at Midnight" and "Psychotic Night" the album carries two Mad Sin classics, that up until today are a solid part of their live shows.
Both records will be released as double album on CD via Concrete Jungle Records June 9th, 2017. 2 albums for the price of one regular CD!
CD 1
01. Intro
02. Deep Black Zone
03. Where Will It Go (Dub-Version)
04. No More
05. Fight Back
06. Sick World
07. All Hell Breaks Loose
08. Run To Live
09. Dirty Lies
10. Killer
11. No Mercy
12. Born Bad
13. She's The One
14. Time Warp
15. Steal Machine
16. Where Will It Go
CD 2
01. Mad Filthy Undead
02. Meattrain At Midnight
03. Hell-A-Vision Shock
04. Overpower
05. What's Behind?
06. Road To Ruin
07. Psychotic Night
08. Real Wild Child
09. Prison Of Pain
10. Shabby Daddy
11. Out Of The Dark
12. Morbid Times