The thing I think about both this new record and Sounds, is that since Jesper's departure, the songwriting style has changed into a style that is a bit more freestyle in nature, and sometimes clashes in a way that doesn't sound as thought out, as though the song doesn't achieve the full picture that it's going for... and oftentimes, the beautiful intros just don't seem to match with the song at all, like on Rusted Nail. The guitars become too jarring.
Overall, it simply sounds like an extra member or better producer could now shape the songs into better executions, that a little more time needs to be spent on the tracks.
Other than that, I believe In Flames are still a pretty decent band, and I can still really groove to their songs. They do sound quite weaker in songwriting strength than they did on A Sense Of Purpose (a record I personally really loved, especially the song Chosen Pessimist), and I do think they need to change up the sound a little bit once more (the Sense Of Purpose sound is no longer sounding as strong and well thought-out), but generally, they're still pretty good.
I think that Rusted Nail has a really catchy chorus once you really digest that it's not as catchy as In Flame's usual hits. Anders still has quite a bit of vocal swagger about him, and he can still write a catchy chorus. Through Oblivion really has some great keyboards and manages to sound like old-school In Flames in that sense, though I think a better execution of ideas could have packed so much emotion and timelessness into what is currently a bit of a sloppy chorus in terms of Ander's lines and just how they are layered and lined up.
From what I hear so far though, I am excited about the new release, and I feel like they're will be at least 6 tracks I really like, which is about the usual for an In Flames release. At this point, though, I really do think In Flames should try for something huge, big, extreme, and experimental with the next release.
Even an acoustic album, like the song Come Clarity, would probably be a breath of fresh air!