Five Former Members Of In Flames Unite In The Halo Effect



Someone uploaded it to YouTube here, not sure how long it'll stay up for though!
 
Pretty different from the previous songs that have been released. It reminds me a bit of 'Lost to Apathy'. In fact I've had a lot of Character/Fiction vibes from the songs that have been put out there so far, which is interesting as neither Niclas nor Jesper had anything to do with those albums.

Stanne has been in phenomenal form on everything released so far. In my view it's the best he's sounded since 2007.
 
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The Needless End is a great song. Could have benefited from a stronger chorus, but I won't hold it against the track.
 
I don't really hear major amounts of early In Flames in anything THE have put out. To my ears their music on the whole sounds far more like mid-2000s Dark Tranquillity than any period of In Flames.

As for 'spiritual successor to Reroute to Remain', wtf? THE's music thus far sounds nothing like anything on Reroute. If he'd said Character or Fiction then I'd say yeah, I can 100% hear that. THE feels like the path I wish DT had taken after 2007.
 
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There's that one thing... Successor to R2R?

Even if this album was to sound anything like IF, it does not, then it would be related to Whoracle or Colony, it does not.

And then, R2R is early years? Even if it's in time it's not in spirit.
 
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I mean, I guess it depends how you define early years. For me early years of IF would be the LS/Sub/TJR/Whoracle period. Put on anything from those albums and compare to THE and it sounds nothing alike, other than both being melodic and metal.

But yeah, even if we are defining Reroute as 'early' IF (album is 20 years old, so I guess some could see it that way) THE tracks sound nothing like this. Again, put on anything from Reroute and then one of THE songs. Nothing alike.

People are just really desperate to have something that sounds like older IF, because there is not and has never been anything like it. I don't think there ever will be again. You can hear small parts of what made up older IF in certain sections of THE songs - but that's all. You can say that about many songs and bands over the years. Even some Black Veil Bride songs can briefly sound like older IF. It doesn't mean the overall song or band sound anything like them though.

For me THE is in that vein of Swedish MDM from the mid-2000s. It doesn't sound like 90s MDM at all (listen to classic ATG, IF, DT, Arch Enemy, Night in Gales, etc... totally different sound). I'm OK with the mid-2000s style as I still liked that sound a lot. But if you're going to compare THE to any band it'd be DT - Stanne plays a part in that, but just listening to the song structures and types of melodies there's a gothic tinge which was always DT's trademark. Those 'happy' melodies that defined classic IF, and the AOR-influences that permeated Soilwork of that timeframe aren't really there in THE's music. The former only in brief bursts, the latter not at all.

Imagine Anders or Speed's vocals in place of Stanne - do any of THE's currently released songs sound like an IF or Soilwork song with those vocals? Not for me.
 
I define their career by periods.

Early days would be from LS to Whoracle.

Then, Colony-clayman would be a transition period.

R2R to ASOP the next step.

SOAPF onwards decadence years.

THE sounds melodeath and that's all. I don't think that they can be compared to any other band. Stanne's vocals makes it very distinctive and related to DT but I also have the feeling that, the same band with Anders on vocals would have an IF vibe.
 
I don't really hear major amounts of early In Flames in anything THE have put out. To my ears their music on the whole sounds far more like mid-2000s Dark Tranquillity than any period of In Flames.

As for 'spiritual successor to Reroute to Remain', wtf? THE's music thus far sounds nothing like anything on Reroute. If he'd said Character or Fiction then I'd say yeah, I can 100% hear that. THE feels like the path I wish DT had taken after 2007.
I think days of the lost and feel what i believe with Ander's late 90s /early 2000 vocals would fit in well into Colony or Clayman.
 
Everybody is talking about IF and DT too much while missing the obvious Gardenian sound in the latest song.

Anyway, all the songs released so far are good to excellent. Can't wait for the album.
 
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I've read some comments comparing it to Insomnium and I feel that they have a point
 
I like the new song but the production on all these is bothering me. It feels cheap and weak. Guitar tone lacks power and lacks clarity.

I really was hoping for production/sound closer to something from Whoracle-Colony-Clayman. What we got here seems generic.

The band is good, music is good, but production is average at best. I think they could do A LOT better.

Latest Nightrage for comparison



This is how THE should sound IMO.
 
I feel the opposite. THE production is good, Nightrage sounds generic and cheap.
 
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THE production isn't on Clayman level, but what is? God-tier production and musical skill that we may just have to accept as a one off. Personally I don't have any issues with THE production, it sounds fine. It certainly isn't ruining any of the songs for me.
 
Also, probably not going to go down well, but I actually hear a little of Cyhra in THE stuff. Particularly the melodic intros. In 'Feel What I Believe' I can imagine Jake's vocals coming in just as the intro section ends. The major difference between the two is that in THE the melodies and riffing are more intricate and interesting than Cyhra, whose songs on NHIH in particular run out of stream as soon as the intro is done. THE manages to keep things interesting throughout.