Now sensitive for that kind of music, he took first his father's records. He quickly became excited for Scorpions' “Blackout”, Black Sabbath's “Dehumanizer”, and in the end he found the record which determined his future musical direction from that point on: Judas Priest's “Painkiller”. In 2006, Flo described in an interview the importance of that record for him like this: “When I am once again deeply disappointed by a new monthly release I put on Painkiller – the world was still okay back in 1990.”
After clearly defining the musical direction – technical drumming, demanding guitar-work with doubled leads and a powerful high lead-singing – it was a fateful meeting which once again should determine the direction of the still young guitarist from Hessen/Germany: At a festival in 1996 the pupil earned some money helping set up the PA and stage. At this summer-festival Flo joined the sound check of a band which ten years later should play an important role: SEVENTH AVENUE.
“I had listened to these guys, the bands frontman was exactly a greenhorn like me and there it dawned to me: This guy must sing with you, that’s the kind of voice you have looked out for.” From that moment on playing guitar and music in general became the absolute priority for the pupil who tried very early to join some bands: “In one of my first bands I played together with a drummer who was about 20 years older than me and he gave me a tape of the first Malmsteen record. I listened to this record several times – but wasn’t able at that point to really grasp the dimension of the album. Only years later, after maturing as a musician a little bit I understood what was really recorded there in 1981.” Being able to play guitar on such a level was a kind of healing experience for the at this time still intensely practicing guitarist: “I want to say that I was able to play fast very early but it was also clear to me that I would never climb the heights of a YNGWIE or PAUL GILBERT.” But this did not mean for Flo to give away the music – exactly the opposite happened. Now he saw music in its whole variety and horizon and understood that apart from his effort for more instrumental capacity he should never loose sight of music as “the whole”. He mastered now the tension to think about the musical aspects of a producer while playing guitar for hours.
Beginning 2000 he made the first steps in producing and gained experience in recording and music arrangement. Together with ANDREAS IANCU whom he got to know through another common friend the later NEOSHINE-material came to the surface. Andreas with his classical training and solistic capacity was the right partner for the more rhythm-oriented guitar player Flo. “Andreas showed me a lot of music-theory which you will never find in a teaching book. Till today I gain a lot from that.” Many songs of the debut came out that time, like “Arise”, “Neoshine” or “Ride On”. That it will take another eight years for this first record to be finished was mainly because of the more professional focus and the higher level of the protagonist. The character of “never being really satisfied” is mostly known among musicians. The decisive “next step” should be planned very carefully. But first it needs to be said what happened after most of the songs where composed.
With the name NEOSHINE the first attempts began in 2005: MARTIN BRENDLER sang the first Demo “WITH A NEOSHINE” which brought mainly positive reactions. The a bit limited voice did not give real life to the songs and in a lot of reviews it was referred to as being close to the early eighties. This was surely expected by Flo – but wasn’t the aim in any case. He wanted to sound more fresh and unused. That’s why he looked for the singer whom he searched and found already ten years ago. “It became clear to me very early that I wanted Herbie to be the main singer. But you cannot send some kind of bad quality tape to such a singer and tell him that he just needs to scream a bit over it.” Flo mentioned in that regard.
So it should take till the end of 2005 until Flo recorded his first real demo together with his friend MARTIN PILZ in his studio which for Flo should have the quality now to let HERBIE LANGHANS really listen to it: “Now everything was finished and then I struggeled with myself several times to finally send an Email to HERBIE with the question of singing. I worked for that now for some years and was happy when he reacted really cool on it.” After sending him the CD and the lyrics it did not take more then two weeks and Herbie had recorded the vocal parts of the songs. “When the CD arrived I was happy like a little child and wasn’t disappointed: With his vocals I was the first time absolutely satisfied with the material.”
At the same time an interesting rumor came up in the Wiesbaden scene: BLIND GUARDIAN have a new drummer. At first sight not really interesting if this new guy would not have been someone like Frederik Ehmke. This Frederik of whom Flo had for years his phone-number and address in his diary? "End of the nineties my former guitar teacher gave me Frederiks number and said to me that I really have to talk to him. But I was far too much busy with my guitar-stuff and far away from the material which someone could have practiced with a band. When my friend then called me and gave me the news that a guy from my place became the new man with Guardian it dawned to me the first time that it should have been much better to have called him a bit earlier...". But happy enough this circumstance should not be a hindrance to connect with Ferderik beginning of 2006. The contact was made by his brother so after a practice-session and a bit of thinking the drummer decided to record the CD with NEOSHINE. “I was very happy about the yes of Fred. After testing some Death- and Thrash-Metal-Drummer for the Neoshine-material I was never really happy with these recordings but with Fred we found a real power-metal-drummer who is gifted for that beyond any doubt and who brought even his own ideas into the material.”
But now we still lacked the bass-man. He was found quickly: ALEXANDER SCHULZ. Here in the local scene he wasn’t a no-name and Flo did already hear a lot about his base-play. And like always it was one more time a real incident which led to the first meeting of these two musicians: "One night I was totally drunk leaving a taxi and felt to Alex’s feet. When I recognized who he was we found out that we lived door to door in the same road as neighbours for years.” Twenty minutes later and after listening to three songs Neoshine had a new bass-player.
Now the right record-studio needed to be found. After a tip of a friend the decision was made very fast: The BAZEMENT STUDIO of MARKUS TESKE (SYMPHONY X, VANDEN PLAS). Flo’s comment: “That was really damned funny that while looking for it you find exactly the right studio next to your home in which already a lot of first-class records where made, which I have for years already at home. Finally Markus was a very cool guy who put music over business and extremely helped us in a lot of areas till today and that made the whole stuff simply perfect for us.”
The next demo, “Demo-EP III” now with the full set-up was recorded very fast and with that four-track EP the band reached the third place in 2007 at the talent-competition of the “HEAVY”-magazine. Flo’s reaction: “Latest after the good result at this competition I was convinced that it could be successful to publish the album. But because it became more and more difficult to get a record-deal as a newcomer I came to the conclusion to record the album by myself and then offer the finished product”. During that phase the change of names from NEOSHINE to SINBREED happened because there were some legal name-conflict with an American enterprise.
Designed with a cover-Artwork of FELIPE MACHADO FRANCO (ICED EARTH, AXEL RUDI PELL) and with the pre-release of three songs of the album the first label-search began in January 2009. The next release will be the full-length release of the debut-cd.
rebt.
Current band members taken from Ulterium Records
Frederik Ehmke – Drums
Herbie Langhans – Vocals
Alexander Schulz – Bass
Flo Laurin – Guitars, Keys
Homepage: www.sinbreed.com.
To be continued…
Reborn
Sinbreed Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Watched my life passing by
Had faith in words
That once been said in vain
A kingdom of the heavens
Forgiveness of my sins
Such noble words
Been written in our past
Breaking out of my cage
My ears are deaf
To the pied pipers call
Find a new way to go
I break my agreement
And live on my own
Reborn in rage and ego
My chance has come at last
I'm burning down the bridges
To overrule my blinded past
Don't need no lord no master
I dump my crown of thorns
Never again I'll follow
Never again
I'm reborn
You see a world of darkness
Tell me to grow it out
By following
A bunch of hypocrites
But I see a light around me
And this is not divine
It's the power of the people
Who decide to live
Breaking out of my cage
My ears are deaf
To the pied pipers call
Find a new way to go
I break my agreement
And live on my own
Reborn in rage and ego
My chance has come at last
I'm burning down the bridges
To overrule my blinded past
Don't need no lord no master
I dump my crown of thorns
Never again I'll follow
Never again
I'm reborn
Breaking out of my cage
My ears are deaf
To the pied pipers tune
Find a new way to go
I break my agreement
And live on my own
Reborn in rage and ego
My chance has come at last
I'm burning down the bridges
To overrule my blinded past
Don't need no lord no master
I dump my crown of thorns
Never again I'll follow
Never again
I'm reborn
The lyrics to Sinbreed's song "Reborn" express a sense of awakening and liberation, as the singer breaks free from their previous life and decides to pursue their own path. The opening lines describe a sense of inertia and a loss of agency, as the singer feels helpless while their life passes by. They had previously placed their faith in noble-sounding words, but came to realize that these words had lost their power, leaving them feeling trapped in their own life.
However, the singer finds the strength to break out of their "cage" and chart a new course. The pied piper, a figure often associated with leading the masses unquestioningly, is ignored in favor of the singer's own internal guidance. They leave behind their "crown of thorns," a biblical allusion, and embrace a sense of ego and power. The line "I'm burning down the bridges to overrule my blinded past" expresses a desire to leave behind everything that has held them back, and to start anew. Ultimately, the singer declares that they will "never again" follow anyone else, as they are now "reborn" and in charge of their own destiny.
Overall, "Reborn" is a powerful anthem of self-discovery and self-empowerment, meant to inspire listeners to take control of their own lives and reject anything that might hold them back.
Line by Line Meaning
Too long I watched in silence
I remained quiet for too long, while my life passed me by.
Watched my life passing by
I saw my life slipping away and missed out on opportunities.
Had faith in words
I believed in promises that were never kept.
That once been said in vain
Those promises turned out to be meaningless and empty.
A kingdom of the heavens
The idea of reaching the afterlife and eternal peace.
Forgiveness of my sins
Being pardoned for my wrongdoings.
Such noble words
These concepts were once seen as pious and virtuous.
Been written in our past
These ideas have been recorded in history for generations to come.
Breaking out of my cage
Finally, I'm able to free myself from the restraints I've been trapped in.
My ears are deaf
I refuse to listen to those who try to lead me astray.
To the pied pipers call
Those who want to lure me with falsehoods.
Find a new way to go
I am seeking a different, independent path.
I break my agreement
I release myself from past commitments.
And live on my own
From now on, I will make choices that are wholly mine.
Reborn in rage and ego
I'm taking control of my life and expressing a new, brash and daring attitude.
My chance has come at last
This is my opportunity to turn a new page.
I'm burning down the bridges
I am leaving behind the events of my past and embracing a fresh start.
To overrule my blinded past
I am now standing up against the things that held me back before.
Don't need no lord no master
I shall not serve any other person, and I am on equal footing with everyone else.
I dump my crown of thorns
I let go of the pain and stress of my past and shed my burdens.
Never again I'll follow
I am done blindly obeying others and following their lead.
You see a world of darkness
You observe a bleak view of the world and believe it to be true.
Tell me to grow it out
You advise me to accept this dismal fate and learn to live with it.
By following
By believing what others say and following their proposals as truth.
A bunch of hypocrites
People who say something, but act contradictory to it.
But I see a light around me
I perceive brightness and hope where others see only despair.
And this is not divine
This is not linked to religion or the supernatural, but exists in the natural world.
It's the power of the people
It's the influence and abilities of the collective group.
Who decide to live
Who choose not to be defeated and to keep going despite challenges.
My chance has come at last
This is my chance to take control of my own destiny.
I'm reborn
I am completely rejuvenated and taking life head-on with new energy.
Breaking out of my cage
I am freeing myself from my suppressed condition.
My ears are deaf
I am no longer influenced by what others say.
To the pied pipers tune
To the deceptive voice of those who want to trick me.
I break my agreement
I am ending any and all previous promises I've made that have limited my freedom.
Never again
This will not be the case anymore.
Contributed by Liam I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.