I honestly think that the new version of "Abnegation" is so strong, I think it should have been the single in lieu of "The Mirror's Truth", which I find boring past the cool lead at the beginning. I'm shocked to say it, but I think the new "Abnegation" is now one of my favorite In Flames songs. I hope they play it live.
After repeat listens, I'm starting to find a few faults in the new album. I think the riffs tend to be very positive and happy sounding, almost overwhelmingly so -- IF used to have a much darker tone to some of the melodies, almost a hauntingly dark but melodic and powerful sound. I can't explain it, but these riffs on the album are too happy and cheerful for In Flames in general. Even the last album was properly darker. This one seems very positive -- maybe that's the "sense of purpose" or something, whatever.
Okay this next complaint is a bit weird, but bare with me on this. I think In Flames are overcompensating too much in technicality. The past couple albums are probably their most technically complicated, in terms of fast one-note runs, cram-as-many-notes-as-possible into a riff sort of thing, no shit. I went back and listened to their first several albums, and while it is complex at times, it was more complex in the actual arrangements of the songs than complexity in the individual riffs. I find IF's newer arrangements to be very generic and samey. At first, you hear these ultra-dense twin-lead guitar riffs they're doing now and you think "Wow, IF are back to their roots!" but you soon realize that it's just complex riffs that are looped over and over into deceptively bland song structures. I think this is what happened with Come Clarity, and while they improved on this new album, they're still suffering from it. IF was always about brilliant arrangements more than technical prowess, and now it's prowess over songwriting, although one could argue that they're writing more typical, concise metal song structures instead of the more progressive stuff they used to do, which some may prefer. I don't know.
Bottom line -- listening to the old stuff, it really wasn't THAT technical! Then we got STYE, and we thought they were underplaying, and now I guess they're overcompensating a bit by going TOO technical, while sacrificing interesting song structure. Listen to a song like "Zombie Inc.", where the main riff is just a one note palm-mute, and it sounds rad. Then listen to "Drenched In Fear" -- it's a complex riff, but I don't think it has as much power as a simpler one might have in its place. Oh sure, there's exceptions, of course. I just think, on the whole, this is what's going on.
Aside from all that, the new album does rock. Great improvement over Come Clarity. I think what it just boils down to is that I'm sick of the In Flames sound to a degree. Everyone has copied it to death. I'd even venture to say that In Flames even copied their own sound and are trying to somewhat relive past glories while still experimenting and trying new things like ambient stuff, keyboard bits, clean vocals... I don't know, I'm on a HUGE ramble here... IF is still one of my favorite bands... I think I'm just burnt out on In Flames. (GASP!) I hope they put out something very different for the next album. I'm just not all that excited to hear anything beyond this at the moment.
