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Sinner Get Ready
Sinner Get Ready
from Wikipedia

Sinner Get Ready
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 6, 2021 (2021-08-06)
StudioMachines with Magnets (Pawtucket)
Genre
Length55:53
LabelSargent House
Producer
Kristin Hayter chronology
Agnus Dei
(2021)
Sinner Get Ready
(2021)
Saved!
(2023)
Lingua Ignota chronology
Agnus Dei
(2021)
Sinner Get Ready
(2021)
The End: Live at Islington Assembly Hall
(2023)
Singles from Sinner Get Ready
  1. "Pennsylvania Furnace"
    Released: June 17, 2021
  2. "Perpetual Flame of Centralia"
    Released: July 15, 2021

Sinner Get Ready (stylized in all caps) is the fourth studio album by American musician Kristin Hayter, and her last under her alias Lingua Ignota. Created in collaboration with producer and engineer Seth Manchester,[2] it is the follow-up to Hayter's 2019 album Caligula. It was released on Sargent House on August 6, 2021,[3][4] and was met with widespread acclaim from music critics.[5]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.0/10[6]
Metacritic83/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
Beats Per Minute88%[7]
Exclaim!9/10[8]
The GuardianStarStarStarStar[9]
Kerrang!StarStarStarStar[1]
Loud and Quiet9/10[10]
Metal HammerStarStarStarStarHalf star[11]
MojoStarStarStarStarHalf star[12]
Pitchfork8.0/10[13]
PopMatters8/10[14]
Slant MagazineStarStarStarStar[15]

Sinner Get Ready received widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the release received an average score of 83, based on ten reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[5] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave the album a 8.0 out of 10 score, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.[6]

Music critic and YouTuber Anthony Fantano gave the album a rare perfect score.[16]

Accolades

[edit]
Sinner Get Ready on year-end lists
Publication List Rank Ref.
Beats Per Minute Top 50 Albums of 2021
3
Crack The Top 50 Albums of the Year
30
Decibel Top 40 Albums of 2021
14
Exclaim! 50 Best Albums of 2021
32
Junkee The Best Albums of 2021
N/A
Kerrang! The 50 best albums of 2021
23
Our Culture The 50 Best Albums of 2021
16
Paste The 50 Best Albums of 2021
23
Pitchfork The 50 Best Albums of 2021
41
PopMatters The 75 Best Albums of 2021
23
Rough Trade UK Albums of the Year 2021
50
Slant Magazine The 50 Best Albums of 2021
39

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleLength
1."The Order of Spiritual Virgins"9:10
2."I Who Bend the Tall Grasses"6:28
3."Many Hands"5:15
4."Pennsylvania Furnace"5:46
5."Repent Now Confess Now"5:48
6."The Sacred Linament of Judgement"5:22
7."Perpetual Flame of Centralia"5:34
8."Man Is Like a Spring Flower"7:16
9."The Solitary Brethren of Ephrata"5:11
Total length:55:53

Notes

  • All tracks are stylized in all caps. For example, "The Order of Spiritual Virgins" is stylized as "THE ORDER OF SPIRITUAL VIRGINS".
  • "The Sacred Linament of Judgment" features audio from televangelist Jimmy Swaggart's "I have sinned" speech.[13]

Personnel

[edit]

Musicians

Technical

Artwork

  • Kristin Hayter – album photography (shooting, editing)
  • Alexis Marshall – album photography assistance
  • Ashley Rose Couture – mask
  • Chimere Noire – layout design

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for Sinner Get Ready
Chart (2021) Peak
position
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[29] 11
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[30] 12
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[31] 36
US Top Current Albums (Billboard)[32] 21

References

[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia
from Grokipedia
Sinner Get Ready (stylized in ) is the fourth and final studio by American experimental musician, composer, and performance artist , released under her alias . Issued on August 6, 2021, by , the album explores themes of religious devotion, betrayal, judgment, and consequence through an abrasive and unsettling lens inspired by the god-fearing Christian culture of rural Pennsylvania. Produced by Hayter alongside engineer Seth Manchester at Machines with Magnets in , the record incorporates traditional Appalachian folk instruments such as , , and to evoke a haunting, neoclassical darkwave sound blended with death industrial elements. It features contributions from multi-instrumentalist Ryan Seaton and banjoist J Mamana, with Hayter's operatic vocals drawing on her classical training to deliver sermons, hymns, and cries of anguish that confront , redemption, and eternal damnation. The album's nine tracks, including the single "Pennsylvania Furnace," build a of spiritual torment set in derelict landscapes, often sampling rural church and televangelist rhetoric. Upon release, Sinner Get Ready garnered widespread critical acclaim for its emotional intensity, innovative fusion of genres, and unflinching examination of faith's paradoxes, earning placements on numerous year-end lists and high ratings from outlets like and The Needle Drop. Hayter retired the moniker following the album's supporting tour in early 2023, transitioning to new projects under her own name and as Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter.

Background

Artistic context

Sinner Get Ready represents a pivotal evolution in Kristin Hayter's career as , marking her fourth studio album and the final release under the alias before its retirement. Following her earlier works, including All Bitches Die (2017), an extension of her MFA thesis exploring violence against abusers, and Caligula (2019), which blended industrial noise, , and operatic elements to achieve international acclaim, Hayter sought to break from established expectations. This project allowed her to prioritize authenticity, moving away from the dense, aggressive soundscapes of her prior albums—characterized by and electronic intensity—toward a more restrained, acoustic approach that contrasts sharply with their visceral aggression. Hayter's relocation to rural Pennsylvania around 2020, amid the , profoundly shaped the album's conceptual foundation. Originally from , she had previously moved to before settling in the Appalachian region near State College, immersing herself in the area's landscapes of isolation and decay. This shift to a remote environment, including proximity to sites like Three Mile Island, provided a stark backdrop that informed her exploration of regional identity and history. The album draws heavily from Appalachian religious traditions, including fire-and-brimstone preaching, folk hymns, and 18th- and 19th-century Mennonite and texts, as well as earlier Catholic influences like the 19th-century book The Heart of Man. These elements, combined with Hayter's personal experiences of trauma—such as navigating a partner's —and her complex relationship with spirituality, served as the impetus for the sonic and thematic pivot to acoustic, regional sounds subverted for haunting effect. Instruments like the and mountain dulcimer, typically associated with folk traditions, are contorted to evoke pain rather than comfort. In June 2021, Hayter announced Sinner Get Ready, emphasizing its focus on spiritual and religious themes rooted in Pennsylvania's history of fervent , including tent revivals and . This declaration positioned the album as a reckoning with rural American faith, distinct from her prior deconstructions of power and abuse.

Development

Following the release of her album , , performing as , decided in late or early to pivot toward Appalachian folk elements, seeking a more stripped-down and hymn-like aesthetic that contrasted with the previous work's industrial intensity. This shift was motivated by a desire to capture personal experiences amid broader cultural and spiritual explorations, marking a deliberate move away from electronic and noise-driven compositions. The development phase unfolded primarily throughout , coinciding with global lockdowns that influenced the introspective nature of the project. Hayter conducted extensive research into Pennsylvania's religious history to ground the album in authentic regional traditions, drawing from 18th- and 19th-century texts related to Mennonite and communities as well as broader Protestant revivalism. She drew inspiration from abandoned sites like Centralia, a town evacuated due to an underground mine fire since 1962, immersing herself in landscapes of decay and isolation that echoed the album's themes. She incorporated elements from televangelist sermons to ensure historical and cultural accuracy in her portrayals of faith and fervor. For production support, Hayter planned a with Seth Manchester, selected for his expertise in atmospheric and analog recordings from prior projects with artists like and The Body. Initial songwriting sessions prioritized vocal delivery and emotional immediacy, minimizing electronics in favor of raw, unadorned performances. Demos during this period incorporated traditional instruments such as and to evoke the stark rural isolation of central . Hayter's relocation from to , facilitated this deep engagement with the region's environment and history.

Recording and production

Studio sessions

The recording of Sinner Get Ready took place at Machines with Magnets studio in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, over several weeks in early 2021. Producer Seth Manchester, selected during the album's development phase, collaborated closely with Kristin Hayter to emphasize a raw, organic sound. Their daily routine involved capturing live takes with minimal overdubs to preserve the emotional intensity of Hayter's performances, supplemented by field recordings of natural sounds sourced from rural Pennsylvania landscapes. The sessions presented challenges in integrating Hayter's commanding vocals with the acoustic , achieved without relying on digital enhancements to maintain authenticity. During this period in early 2021, Hayter performed most of the herself, drawing on traditional Appalachian tools she had collected.

Production techniques

The production of Sinner Get Ready emphasized analog techniques to impart a sense of warmth and organic decay to the album's folk-infused sound, including tape manipulation that created warbled and decayed textures in the . Hayter and Seth Manchester recorded much of the material in rural Pennsylvania environments, leveraging the natural room acoustics of desolate spaces to capture an eerie, immersive quality that enhanced the album's atmospheric depth. Specifically, vocals and organ elements were tracked in a tiny adjacent to Hayter's home, utilizing the space's inherent reverb to evoke chapel-like resonance and a divine, droning presence. Traditional Appalachian instruments, such as the bowed , mountain , and , were integrated by Hayter, who performed them herself alongside , to ground the tracks in folk traditions while contorting their tones for a painful, subversive edge. These acoustic elements were layered with subtle influences drawn from Hayter's earlier industrial and experimental work, incorporating atonal vocal inflections and dissonant samples to maintain a " " without overwhelming the sparse arrangements. Seth Manchester mixed the at Machines With Magnets in . In , editing remained minimal to retain the live, unpolished feel, with mastering handled by to ensure sonic cohesion over the 's 55:53 runtime.

Composition

Musical style

Sinner Get Ready blends elements of neoclassical darkwave, death industrial, and Appalachian folk, representing a marked shift from the aggressive intensity of Lingua Ignota's previous album toward more austere, hymn-like structures. This evolution trades the corrosive distortion and industrial harshness of for a sparser, more deliberate sonic palette rooted in rural traditions. The album's key instrumentation draws heavily from acoustic sources evoking rural Americana, including , , fiddle-like strings such as and , with scraped strings, and percussion like animal-skin , bells, and . Sparse and woodwinds, such as penny whistle and organ, add subtle tension without overwhelming the organic texture. Structurally, the tracks—averaging around six minutes across the album's nine songs—build from minimalist beginnings to crescendos, often incorporating ambling ballads, dirges, and surges of or percussive clatter. Vocal techniques vary from intimate whispers and multi-tracked call-and-response to operatic wails and layered that stretch over droning foundations. Influences from traditional shape-note singing and bluegrass traditions infuse the music with a haunting, ritualistic atmosphere, achieved through and folk-inspired arrangements that distinguish the album's unique sound. The production techniques further enhance these acoustic qualities, fostering an immersive and isolated auditory experience.

Themes and lyrics

Sinner Get Ready explores themes of sin, redemption, and divine judgment, deeply rooted in the evangelical traditions of rural Pennsylvania, where Hayter relocated during the album's creation. Drawing from the region's history of fire-and-brimstone preaching and strict fundamentalist Christianity, including influences from Pennsylvania Dutch and Amish communities, the lyrics confront the harsh ethos of spiritual subjugation and moral reckoning. Hayter incorporates personal trauma from experiences of abuse, channeling these into a broader meditation on retribution and survival within oppressive religious frameworks. The lyrics are structured as sermons and confessions, employing archaic language and direct biblical references to evoke an vengeance. Fire imagery recurs as a symbol of hellish torment, paralleling the perpetual mine fire in , which has burned since the 1960s and serves as a metaphor for unending divine punishment. For instance, in "Perpetual Flame of Centralia," Hayter sings, "I am covered in the blood of Jesus… / Mine is the venom of the snake of Eden," blending sacrificial redemption with serpentine temptation from Genesis. Similarly, "Repent Now Confess Now" invokes evangelical urgency with lines like "No wound as sharp as the ," portraying as a visceral, inescapable force. Hayter's approach delves into gender dynamics, power imbalances, and , positioning her voice as a conduit for female rage against patriarchal religious structures. The subverts traditional by depicting a vengeful that mirrors human oppressors, as in "Many Hands," where lyrics describe a god inflicting intimate violence: "Upon your pale pale body I will put many hands / And rough, rough fingers for every hole you have." This reframes spiritual devotion as both ecstatic release and confrontation with systemic , emphasizing women's historical silencing in evangelical contexts. Unique lyrical elements include poetic repetition and call-and-response patterns that mimic folk hymns and revivalist chants, fostering a hypnotic, cumulative emotional arc toward tentative without a linear . These techniques draw from Pennsylvania's hymnody traditions, amplifying the confessional intimacy and building tension through layered, multitracked vocals that shift between and .

Release and promotion

Singles and announcement

The album Sinner Get Ready was announced on June 17, 2021, by , coinciding with the reveal of its cover art featuring artist positioned in a rural Pennsylvania landscape. The , "Pennsylvania Furnace", was released the same day, accompanied by a self-directed that portrays Hayter performing religious rituals amid abandoned industrial and sites. On July 15, 2021, the second single "Perpetual Flame of Centralia" followed, with its lyrics and visuals invoking the perpetual underground fire consuming the of , as a for eternal and spiritual torment. Sinner Get Ready, stylized in all capital letters, was released in full on August 6, 2021, available in digital, CD, and vinyl formats via .

Marketing efforts

The marketing campaign for Sinner Get Ready began building anticipation with the album's announcement on June 17, 2021, accompanied by the release of the "Pennsylvania Furnace," whose self-produced video depicted stark rural landscapes infused with religious undertones, drawing immediate attention to the record's thematic focus on spiritual devotion and betrayal. Pre-orders became available on shortly thereafter, allowing fans early access to streams and emphasizing the album's through its and promotional imagery sourced from 's religious history. To support the album, scheduled a North American tour originally set for fall 2021, including dates such as October 4 at The Sinclair in , though many shows were ultimately rescheduled to spring 2022 due to logistical challenges; performances highlighted live interpretations of the album's hymn-like tracks, accompanied by visual projections evoking Pennsylvania's abandoned religious sites and natural desolation. Merchandise efforts centered on limited-edition formats to enhance collector appeal, including transparent red vinyl pressed by and subsequent color variants announced in July 2021 through partners like Hello Merch and Evil Greed for global shipping; bundles combined these with CDs, digital downloads, and Hayter-designed artwork prints, while additional items like album-themed T-shirts and flags were offered via the official store. Hayter participated in several media interviews timed to single releases and the album launch, such as a Stereogum feature on August 4, 2021, where she explored the record's spiritual inquiries rooted in rural Pennsylvania's evangelical traditions, and a Sargent House-published discussion on August 5 detailing the shift to Appalachian instrumentation as a means of confronting faith and isolation.

Reception

Critical response

Sinner Get Ready received widespread critical acclaim upon its release. On , the album holds a score of 83 out of 100, based on 12 critic reviews, earning the distinction of "universal acclaim." Similarly, AnyDecentMusic? assigned it an average rating of 8.0 out of 10 from 10 reviews. Critics frequently praised Kristin Hayter's and the album's atmospheric immersion, which drew listeners into a haunting, ecclesiastical world. highlighted Hayter's multi-tracked vocals that "ebb and rise like a ," describing the record as "an intense and frightening religious inquiry" through its blend of Appalachian folk instruments, organ drones, and televangelist samples. lauded her voice as her "most devastating tool," reaching new depths in layered harmonies and raw recordings that amplified the album's emotional weight. Some reviewers noted the album's unrelenting brutality as potentially challenging for casual listeners, emphasizing its visceral intensity and bleak subject matter. Spectrum Pulse characterized it as a "deeply unsettling listen" filled with guttural screams and triggering themes of and , suggesting it demands emotional investment and may not offer easy . Kerrang! acknowledged its "venomous rage" and stentorian style, rooted in avant-garde and old-time , which could overwhelm but ultimately captivates through sheer potency. The critical consensus positioned Sinner Get Ready among the standout releases of , with reviewers commending Hayter's innovative shift toward folk elements as a bold from her prior industrial noise work. Kerrang! called it a "uniquely difficult" yet "captivating record," far from background listening, that merges modern classical and traditional hymns into something profoundly moving. This transformation was seen as enhancing the album's exploration of devotion and trauma, solidifying Hayter's reputation for unflinching artistic depth.

Accolades

Sinner Get Ready received widespread acclaim upon release, earning high placements in several year-end album lists and user rankings that underscored its impact in experimental and circles. The album ranked third on Beats Per Minute's Top 50 Albums of , praised for Kristin Hayter's ability to evoke profound emotional depth through folk-infused intensity. It also secured the number two spot on The Needle Drop's Top 50 Albums of , highlighting its innovative blend of neoclassical darkwave and Appalachian influences as a standout achievement. In user-driven polls, the album performed exceptionally well, achieving third place among 2021 releases on Album of the Year with an average user score of 86 out of 100 based on over 5,000 ratings. This strong consensus reflected its resonance with listeners, particularly for Hayter's raw exploration of religious trauma and redemption. Additionally, Sinner Get Ready placed third on Metal Injection's highest-rated albums of 2021, recognizing its brutal yet transformative qualities within the metal and extreme music landscape.

Commercial performance

Chart positions

Sinner Get Ready achieved modest chart placements upon its release on , 2021, reflecting its niche appeal within independent and alternative music circles. The album debuted on several specialized charts in the United States and , with particular strength on independent and emerging artist rankings. The following table summarizes the album's peak positions on select charts:
Chart (2021)Peak position
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)12
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)36
UK Independent Albums (OCC)11
The album remained on independent charts for several weeks following its release, including two weeks on the UK Independent Albums chart. Its chart success was supported by strong streaming activity on platforms like , bolstered by critical buzz surrounding the release.

Sales figures

In its debut week, Sinner Get Ready sales in the United States were driven mainly by vinyl and digital downloads through the independent label Sargent House. It earned no major certifications owing to its specialized audience and non-mainstream format. On streaming services, Sinner Get Ready garnered millions of plays across Spotify and Bandcamp by the end of 2022, highlighted by the single "Pennsylvania Furnace," which exceeded 1 million streams on Spotify alone. Post-release, the album sustained consistent catalog performance, bolstered by a 2022 vinyl reissue that included new color variants to meet ongoing demand.

Credits

Track listing

Sinner Get Ready consists of nine tracks with a total running time of 55:53. All tracks were written by . The album was produced by Hayter and Seth Manchester, with no featured artists.
No.TitleDuration
1."The Order of Spiritual Virgins"9:10
2."I Who Bend the Tall Grasses"6:28
3."Many Hands"5:15
4."Pennsylvania Furnace"5:47
5."Repent Now Confess Now"5:48
6."The Sacred Linament of Judgment"5:22
7."Perpetual Flame of Centralia"5:35
8."Man Is Like a Spring Flower"7:17
9."The Solitary Brethren of Ephrata"5:11

Personnel

Musicians
Kristin Hayter performed vocals and played the primary instruments on Sinner Get Ready, including piano, bowed banjo, cello, organ, bowed psaltery, mountain dulcimer, and bells across the album's tracks.
Seth Manchester contributed additional instrumentation, including oscillators, prepared piano, extended banjo, guitar, percussion, and shruti box.
Ryan Seaton provided clarinets, saxophones, synthesizers (such as Doepfer), melodica, woodwinds, drums, percussion, and backing vocals on several tracks.
J. Mamana played banjo on "Man Is Like a Spring Flower".
Production personnel
The album was produced by Kristin Hayter and Seth Manchester, who also served as the primary recording engineer and mixer at Machines With Magnets studio in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
Chris Gehringer mastered the album at Sterling Sound.
Artwork and design
handled the album's photography, shooting and editing images in the Scotia Barrens region of .
Additional credits include image editing assistance by , layout by Chimère Noire, and masks by Ashley Rose Couture.
The overall artwork and design were created by the team in collaboration with Hayter.

References

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