Album Review

Senser – How To Do Battle

• 16th Oct 2009

Having already released the impressive first single “Resistance Now” from this their fourth studio album, Senser make it clear that they are back and on strong form.

Just as politically and socially active in mind as they were at the start of their career, the full original line up are all here bringing all of the elements together that made “Stacked Up” such a hit 15 years ago. In fact the power of this album is so strong that you’d barely realise much of a difference in the styles sometimes.

There are of course plenty of changes to compliment the work. Lead singer Heitham Al-Sayed may still have the talent for rap and rhyme that he has displayed so well over the years but there are some very strong moments of what we might call “Ordinary” singing here, not to mention some astonishing moments where he stretches his vocals out to that of what you’d expect in a metal band. It’s so impressive you wonder why he hadn’t utilised it way back when. They are sadly only fleeting moments though like towards the end of the albums first single “Resistance Now” but also “2 3 Clear.”

The album opens with a stage warming 30 second ambiance setter. This leads right into “Resistance Now” which is business as usual but without ever being dull or uninteresting. A solid heavy Senser number which is followed a more mellow Senser number.
But if you like things heavy and very retro Senser then look no further than the brilliant “2 3 Clear.” If they are looking to release a second single and want to target their core audience this could well be the one they pick.

The album continues hitting all the marks through to its finish. For fans there isn’t really any heavy criticism. Those expecting a Senser album will be overjoyed with the results as they are not sloppy with welcome returns to what is familiar as well as a few new tricks up their sleeve. We can only hope they hang around long enough to do another album sooner and play a little bit more often for us to see them, cause sometimes the only thing better than a Senser album is watching them perform live.