Rating: - dissapointing
It seems that this is were things started to go wrong for the band (or right in terms of watering down their sound and appealing to tasteless Ozzfest fans)
After three classic albums (Jester Race, Whoracle, Colony) it seems like In Flames have had enough of being edgy and aggressive and prefer instead to sound sterile and uninspired. For one, the its extremly over produced and hollow sounding. Secondly, Anders vocals changed dramatically. Gone are the harsh throaty roars and screams ... Read More
Rating: - Clayman
From the crackling intro of Bullet Ride to the final note of Another Day in Quicksand this is an excellent album. The musicianship is sharp and concise which is especially remarkable considering that melodic death metal is amongst the most physically demanding genres on its musicians. Best songs are probably: the incredibly pounding Brush the Dust Away with its amazing double bass; the title track, Clayman; the slower and subtler Satellites and Astronauts; the relentless ... Read More
Rating: - absobloodlylutely AMAZING
In Flames are one of those bands who do something truly unique. In this case, it's producing heavy metal music which has amazing, memorable choruses+riffs, extremely melodic lead guitar, interesting song structures, whilst still using a very 'metal' metal voice. The singer's voice is switches from strangled black-metal-ish screaming to deathly bellows and quite a lot in between. His clean vocals aren't so great but there's only a few very brief moments where they surface in this album (unfortunately one ... Read More
Rating: - brings a tear to my eye
Like another reviewer the 1st times I listened to it I may have been tempted to slide it next to st.anger, however DON'T. Yes the first albums were amazing and yes this is different. But it's still an item of true beauty. Melodic death can either be really bad or really good and there is only one place i'd even think of putting this album. Swim has a god-like riff. (It kicks in at about 1.34, then again at 2.08) All the songs are wonderful, amazingly beautiful and well written. They, as with all in flames, ... Read More
Rating: - Unbelievable metal
First of all, it you're a die-hard fan of the early albums by In Flames, give this a couple of listens before labelling them sell outs and putting the C.D. in the compactor next to your copy of St. Anger. As far as I am concerned, melodic death metal has never, ever sounded as good as it does here. Stand-out tracks would have to be 'Bullet Ride', 'Clayman' and 'Swim', though choosing only three amazing songs from this album is close to impossible. If you're a newcomer to the melodic death scene, this would ... Read More
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