In Flames and Dark Tranquillity - bands going in opposite directions?

[JesterOfDeath]

Well, for me, i've heard both albums (bought DD and downloaded R2R) and i love them both! DD's amazing and R2R shows IF breaking new kick-ass ground once again! I think both albums redefine both bands and those two albums have my vote in albums of the year! And yes, i will buy R2R as soon as it comes out.

 

[CAIRATH]

I haven't heard DT's new album yet but I didn't like R2R very much. The album seems to get progressively worse. The first few songs were good, then it starts getting boring, and there were some pretty bad tracks at the end.

I like all the IF albums. Even Clayman (which quite a few IF fans seem to hate for some reason). But this latest one doesn't sit well with me.

It's clear that they wanted to go into a different musical direction. But unlike Soilwork's latest album they couldn't manage to make it work in my opinion.

For the most part the album just seems inconsistent to me. Like they didn't really know what they wanted to do either.

 

[speed]

I really dont care about the vocals etc., I do actually like the new In Flames vocals on the new album. I also like to listen to Clayman and i love Predators portrait. These new albums by In Flames and Soilwork however just seem like a waste of a talent- I really dont see any evolution musically other than more of an emphasis on the chorus, and the music has lost much of the energy and originality-much more so for Soilwork. They just are both rather generic to me- i guess that is my opinion- but I know i will only rarely listen to these two albums.
I guess I would like those who like both the new soilwork and in flames to point out to me why they like these albums so much. And Elitist- cmon, one has to draw the line somewhere or one would be seduced by the charms of lessor but more heavily promoted and socially accepted music .

 

[SentencedToBurn]

i like RTR because the riffs are still good and the song writing is really good. the chorus's are great and sometimes beautiful and the singing is really good (more so for new soilwork). There is an atmosphere that i like for both the new soilwork and in flames too. They are still great, but in a diffrent way.

 

[Metal88]

This whole selling out/evolving/staying with roots business is discussed among fans of EVERY band at some point. At least as a general rule. What do you think that means? We've got people here saying "change is good, blah blah blah" or "the new direction sucks, blah blah blah" -- you people are idiots. This is really quite simple: Bands are what they are. They can't make the same album over again so it stands to reason they try new things and these new things are never as good as their first 2 or 3 albums b/c the originality of the band has already been heard. Pick any band, this is generally true. The first 2 or 3 albums are great and then by rule the band can't be as good anymore. It's no one's fault, this is just naturally the way it works. It makes sense if you think about it. Every band I have ever liked with one or two exceptions has spectacular early albums and mediocre to shitty late albums. And it makes sense. Everything is as it should be.

If you're a fool with a short list of excpetions, shove that up your ass. Anyone with any sense can see this is obviously a good general rule: "Bands and projects fizzle out after a few albums." -- and it's only natural. No big deal. The way this works is so obvoius that I don't think it's even worth discussion.

 

[SentencedToBurn]

it doesnt fade out, it just changes from how their old shit sounded. but most fans cant accept that so they are just retards and talk shit about it.

 

[Heliologue]

people associate by artists, not by albums. if the new CD's were released by a band new band to the scene, they might garner more respect, but it's incredibly difficult not to judge an album relatively, that is, in sight of their back catalogue.

new album is different or not as good as old album, therefore new album is competely bad.

it's too bad that kind of reasoning exists in a more enlightened musical culture.

 

[StorTroll]

Originally posted by Misanthrope
Hours passed in exile
White noise black silence
format c: for cortex

are what i consider the highlights of the album

Hmm, how about Final resistance? There a lot At the Gates vibe there...

 

[Wanderingblade]

The whole of the album is a hilight IMO

Thing is, as DT have shown us so recently, you can't really predict their direction.

Atm... they're kinda diverging, but they were anyway.

 

[Orchid]

Originally posted by Misanthrope
Hours passed in exile
White noise black silence
format c: for cortex

are what i consider the highlights of the album

I would have picked the exact same tracks.

 

[Don Corleone]

i like in flames' new direction. i love their older stuff too. i just cant choose between them but if you ask me which one is more technical and more non-mainstream, of course i'll say the older stuff.

 

[Misanthrope]

Originally posted by speed
What about Soilworks latest boring nu-metalish release- or Hypocrisy, or even the very slow and less complex new Meshuggah album? It seems every big Swedish band except for Dark Tranquility, has recently sold out. I guess these guys are tired of not making any money- but the boring music these bands have recently put out, is a disgrace to the whole scene.

You dumbfuck, please apologize and walk away.

inflames that i can consider nu-metalish but soilwork? are you even familiar with numetal? or do you just hear clean vocals with catchy riffs and say " o its new metal" ?

Fuck by that standart opeth must be numetal too

 

[Misanthrope]

Originally posted by JesterOfDeath
Well, for me, i've heard both albums (bought DD and downloaded R2R) and i love them both! DD's amazing and R2R shows IF breaking new kick-ass ground once again! I think both albums redefine both bands and those two albums have my vote in albums of the year! And yes, i will buy R2R as soon as it comes out.

Its different yes but how is using clear and blatandly obious numetal elements ( and considering that elements havent been new for the past 8 years btw ) groundbreaking? Think before you type next time, and you might walk away with your life

*shoots him in the face*

 

[Misanthrope]

Originally posted by StorTroll


Hmm, how about Final resistance? There a lot At the Gates vibe there...

Yes but i feel its too minds eyeish.

 

[-Desecrated-]

I do not like In Flames new direction (and it has nothing to do with the vocals). I haven't given new DT a chance... and honestly I think the only melodic death band worth it right now are Arch Enemy. You guys can bitch and complain about how they're 'selling out' by having a female singer... but the fact is they not only stick to their roots but also manage to evolve with every album. I haven't been dissapointed with a release from them yet.

I also saw In Flames live with Slayer at NYC... and they were horrible. Too bad I missed AE but I'm sure they'd put on a much better show

 

[J.]

Armageddon's 'Crossing the Rubicon' is better than anything Arch Enemy have released.

 

[Useful Idiot]

Originally posted by speed
...the very slow and less complex new Meshuggah album? It seems every big Swedish band except for Dark Tranquility, has recently sold out.

Very slow and less complex does not equate to selling out...at least not in all cases. The new Meshuggah album is a lot darker than anything they have previously released, and making it slower is one of the reasons. It's more of a slow but relentless attack rather than Chaosphere's constant pummeling. Destroy Erase Improve wasn't fast either, yet it was amazing. The new album, though not my favorite, is still complex and still Meshuggah.

But, then again, is there any point to arguing about "selling out"? Listen to it if you like it.

 

[zodi]

I can't really say that I think DT is going in any speciall direction, they change back and fort all the time. But for DD, yeah, a more brutal sound... While In Flames have changed in the same direction basically all the time (from Lunar Strain to R2R) and its just now I think that they have gone a little to far... I liked Clayman but R2R is pretty boring IMHO. But I don't think it's som sort of consius(sp??) sellout, and I respect their choice...

 

[speed]

yeah i agree i went a little too far to get people riled up- the posts were getting rather boring. I was wrong on Meshuggah- they certiantly did not sell out, but they have toned it down quite significantly. So sorry Misanthrope. Well I am hoping the new route these bands are taking will be better realized on their next albums.
Metal 88 I think made a very good point- that a band has only three albums and then they sort of lose it- and why because they sound the same. Well I dont consider the new In FLames and Soilwork albums to be progressions, what is new but boring and generic song structures and more clean vocals cmon that is not progression. Progression is a band like Ulver ,Arcturus, or Anathema- or even Opeth- bands that incorporate new musical ideas and take new directions, and do it with emotion- it seems neither Soilwork nor In Flames have taken this route.
The final question is, if you had only heard songs from these new albums, would you honestly be that big of a fan, or even care what they put out?

 

[Belial]

Originally posted by -Desecrated-
I also saw In Flames live with Slayer at NYC... and they were horrible. Too bad I missed AE but I'm sure they'd put on a much better show

I had placed an order for a ticket to that show, but after hearing Reroute to Remain I had the order canceled. I just don't have the stomach to discover how that sounds live. Hehe.