Don't Like the new In Flames? Check out these CD's...

[metal71]

Everybody's bitching about the new In Flames. Someone even went so far as to compare them to Slipknot. That's a bit much. It's not THAT bad! Either way, if you like old In Flames better, check out these two killer albums:

Soilwork - Natural Born Chaos

Dimension Zero - Features In Flames guitarist Jesper Stromblad, along with former IF guitarist Glenn Ljungstrom and Marduk vocalist Jocke Gothberg.... Very heavy, a lot like the classic At The Gates album 'Slaughter Of The Soul'....

Two very good metal albums, Soilwork being a little more melodic/prog than Dimension Zero, which is more of a Gothenberg-style Swedish death.....

Later

 

[ShaneBarnes1982]

Originally posted by metal71
Soilwork - Natural Born Chaos

This is what people are comparing R2R too, if you dont like R2R, then you wont like this, it's that simple I think. Although i've not heard either album yet, so maybe I shouldnt make these assumptions just yet. Im eagerly awaiting my copy of R2R though...stupid slow mail

 

[metal71]

With all due respect to the last poster, how can you say two albums are going to sound alike, only to admit you haven't heard either? I happen to own all three, and I can tell you with no uncertainty the two albums listed above from Soilwork and Dimension Zero sound NOTHING like the new In Flames, though I think all all very good for different reasons.

Anyone else familiar with these albums please respond -- do you think the new Soilwork sounds like the new In Flames??

Post your thoughts.....

 

[woosta]

Are you kidding me??? In Flames like Slipknot?? I hope this isn't going to be the standard comparison now for anything that could possibly break the North American market.

Is the new In Flames nu-metal? No, not at all. It's more like a return to the Whoracle stage with a slight nod to "Colony". It does NOT have the commercialness of "Clayman" this time. I find it funny that people complain about "Selling out" when they do "Clayman" as it's too commercial. Now, they do something different and it's "Slipknot". Baloney. LISTEN to the cd folks.

That being said, Soilwork's "Natural Born Chaos" just may be the cd of the year in my book. It's got the Devin Townsend production so it reminds of the Gothenberg meets Strapping Young Lad meets any Devin project sound. Big commercialness to the cd and it's a killer! It doesn't necessarily sound like the new In Flames except for being one of the big 3 Gothenberg bands' releases and the vocals at times are comparable. That's it.

 

[Demonspell]

I don't think Soilwork and the new In Flames sound anything alike...

 

[alexofbodom]

I thought that what metal71 was saying is that "If you don't like R2R then check out Soilwork and Dimension Zero" He did not say that Natural Born Chaos sounds like R2R.

 

[ShaneBarnes1982]

Originally posted by metal71
With all due respect to the last poster, how can you say two albums are going to sound alike, only to admit you haven't heard either? I happen to own all three, and I can tell you with no uncertainty the two albums listed above from Soilwork and Dimension Zero sound NOTHING like the new In Flames, though I think all all very good for different reasons.

I was merely stating what i've heard from many people, I said I shouldnt make the assumptions that they sound alike without hearing either, maybe they don't sound anything alike, but maybe they do, I'll be the judge of that when I hear them both.

 

[JayKeeley]

Originally posted by woosta

That being said, Soilwork's "Natural Born Chaos" just may be the cd of the year in my book.

I STILL don't have R2R yet - what is up with the mail? Even priority mail is taking forever these days...

In any case, I agree with woosta - NBC could be contender for album of the year...

 

[Demonspell]

Here's a mini-review of Reroute To Remain.

This is a confusing album, full of contradictions and a sense of misdirection. If this is a sellout, it seems like an odd way to appeal to the masses. I assume that Jesper's goal was to balance outside influences with the melodic death sound, and they have acheived wildly inconsistent results, sometimes within the same song. The lyrics hint at the album's search for changes, and doubt over the success of these experiments and to what reception fans will greet them with.
Warning: If you haven't bought the album, this contains a mild amount of spoilers.

The good:
Drifter - along with the next song mentioned, closest thing to classic IF.
Dark Signs - best clean vocals on the album.
Trigger - Good mix of new and old here.
Egonomic - A short, manic burst of energy. The chorus says "We're getting weaker", which unfortunately foreshadows many of the remaining tracks.
Cloud Connected - of the two synth-heavy tracks, the one that works.
Dawn Of A New Day - of the two acoustic-heavy tracks, the one that works.

The bad:
Minus - The chorus is awful.
Dismiss The Cynics - This is a good example of the creative confusion I think they're suffering from.

The ugly (when RTR is bad, it's really bad):
title track - Verses reek of nu-metal, and the chorus is annoying
Transparent - see above. Riffs sound like Korn.
Freefall - the bad synth track.
Metaphor - WTF? This sounds like Staind doing a country song.

The undecided:
System - see Cynics, the verses seem panicky although this has a catchier chorus.
Black And White - One of the better riffs on the album, although again the arrangement doesn't seem to make sense.

 

[tenebre]

i love the new in flames as well as teh other albums you mentioed

 

[Daybreaker]

I think the new Soilwork is faster and the clean choruses really are more energetic and intense prolly cos they started using em on "A Predators Portrait" and expanded em on Chaos. I like the new In Flames alot I think its fuckng bad ass but I have to admit theres no "Embody the Invisible" "Jotun" "Episode 666" or even a "Square Nothing" on there. Still worth my money however.

 

[lostpro]

NBC from soilwork is NOTHING like the new in flames. NBC is a great album.. holds on to the gothenburg roots and adds some new stuff.. great vox, great music..

RtR is incosistent but can be considered a pretty sub-mediocre album for in flames.. Minus and Drifter are the best songs on there.. Minus is the closest thing you'll get to the old in flames sound (colony style).

Whoever said minus was "bad".. should give it a few more listens.. it seems the consensus from all the fans is that it's the best song on RtR.

 

[Jim LotFP]

Originally posted by lostpro
Minus is the closest thing you'll get to the old in flames sound (colony style).

Colony was their fourth album, so it's hardly the 'old' sound. It was the last one I liked at all though.

 

[necronine]

R2R is awesome. No way is it commercial! Its heavier than Clayman. It has more of a death metal vibe than Clayman. The choruses are catchier and more melodic, but the riffing is more death metal than their previous albums. It's different for them, but awesome nonetheless. Clayman is still the masterpiece in my book. Album of the year?? Its between NBC and R2R. I havent been too thrilled this year though. Angel Dust and Arch Enemy werent as great as they should have been.
See you all in Atlanta!

 

[J.]

Nile and Primordial kick the shit out of anything released this year so far.

 

[JayKeeley]

I guess the point might be moot, but I just got the new In Flames CD, and I think it is fantastic! I don't hear any nu-metal migration, or any less intensity than what would be expected from IF - agreed, it is very melodic a la Clayman, but I thought Clayman was great too, and I'm not a melody bigot.

I agree that Jester Race is a classic, but that style has been done to death at this point. If In Flames continue in this vein, then I have no complaints whatsoever.

Note: Everyone seems to complain about the production? WTF? The production is superb. These complaints are so typical when people download crappy MP3's (at 28K bit rate) one month before album release. It's always worth the wait to get the real article before judging it.

 

[Charlie E.]

Originally posted by metal71
Everybody's bitching about the new In Flames. Someone even went so far as to compare them to Slipknot. That's a bit much. It's not THAT bad! Either way, if you like old In Flames better, check out these two killer albums:

Soilwork - Natural Born Chaos

Dimension Zero - Features In Flames guitarist Jesper Stromblad, along with former IF guitarist Glenn Ljungstrom and Marduk vocalist Jocke Gothberg.... Very heavy, a lot like the classic At The Gates album 'Slaughter Of The Soul'....

Two very good metal albums, Soilwork being a little more melodic/prog than Dimension Zero, which is more of a Gothenberg-style Swedish death.....

Later

Don't forget Dark Tranquillity's "Damage Done".
(ex-In Flames fan)