A COLLEGE lecturer has given the seven deadly sins a new twist by putting them to music to show how they relate to modern life.

The Seven Deadly Sins, by Stephen Reid, a film and music lecturer at Burnley College, is a concept album in which he translates the ancient sins in to modern problems with sloth becoming drug abuse and envy becoming terrorism.

Each sin has a track, with instrumentals by Mr Reid, and is accompanied by a narrative.

Mr Reid, of Copy Cottages, in Cliviger, said the purpose of the album, which has a classical feel, was not to push religious viewpoints but to explore the sins in modern society.

On the gluttony track Mr Reid used the talents of a rapper called Imran, who he teaches at the college.

He said: "Imran was a fantastic rapper and he has done a couple of tracks on the album.

"With the gluttony track he raps about what happens behind closed doors and domestic violence. When women at the women's refuge heard it they said it sent shivers down their spine it was so true."

The inspiration behind that track was his wife's work in the women's refuge, said the father-of-two, who has a degree in music from the University of Central Lancashire.

The album, released on Saturday, also includes short films, which were made with students and showcased at a festival in Edinburgh.

The album, which Mr Reid is hoping will be released in the US and Canada, was recorded over three years and compiled in his home studio.

He said: "It would be nice to get critical acclaim but I am not doing it for that reason. I am doing it as an artist and it is an album of philosphy.

"Although there has been a lot done on the sins this is different. It's more like a film and it was almost like writing a novel.

"In modern society the sins can be found within domestic violence, bullying terrorism and this album is an exploration of them. They are more prevalent than they used to be."