IN FLAMES new album being released on 1st March, 2019

[A88]

That's about right.

Steelbath Suicide and Chainheart were OK for me, but nothing special. Fast, raw, melodic. And that is one thing I don't like about Soilwork. Need for speed. Much of their musical output is fast and it just all blurs into one long thrashy song for my ears.

APP was much more refined and interesting. Nice choruses, nice melodies, some weird cool solos, great guests.

NBC is a great little album. But I never could quite get into it. Production is clean, but I don't like it. Sounds a bit flat. Also, I think this is the first album where you can actually hear american mainstream influences.

FNF/NBC2. Again, good, but not great. More commercial sound and all. I like keyboards on this one and the next album.

STD - not as bad as it sound. More commercial, but catchy songs, excellent production if a bit dry on guitars. Like they were all fast paced in the beginning, here they are all mid-tempo. Don't know, I like this album more than any of the IF commercial efforts.

STAGD - I think this is were they failed. Bad production, mediocre songwriting and it just sounds weak and pedestrian compared to albums before. Hated it at the beginning, learned to like a few songs with time. Oh, and someone should be shot for that awful music video.

TPB - Link between second and third phase. Faster, complex, still catchy. A few great songs, a few fillers. Let this river flow is a beautiful song. Guitar sound like inithe n beginnig of Akuma afterglow is really nice.

TLI/RM/V - all good, all similar, all have a great sound, on every one I could find a bunch of songs I like, and a few fillers. It is good, solid, stable melodic metal with a twist here and there. I enjoy it very much, but it just isn't anything special or groundbreaking.

 

[DE4life]

NBC was basically Soilwork's Reroute, although they did a much better job than In Flames imo. Production quality is way better on NBC compared to Reroute, songs are tighter, singing is better, everything just sounds more mature. First time I'd say Soilwork overtook In Flames in terms of album quality. No surprise since Soilwork had Nordstrom and Devin Townsend working with them, whilst In Flames had Daniel Bergstrand (who ironically then produced Soilwork's Stabbing the Drama in 2005, which imo also sounded shit). That said Bergstrand also has production credits for Soundtrack, CC and SOAPF... which all sound wildly different. So maybe he just lets the artist fuck around with stuff and then adds some touches at the end. I dunno.

I probably have a soft spot for NBC because it was the first Soilwork album I bought. Same with Dark Tranquillity's Damage Done. I do objectively think they're both great albums, but nostalgia likely plays a part in that too. I actually did buy Stabbing the Drama, assuming that since it was Soilwork it would be awesome. I don't think I've ever been so disappointed. Did not buy another Soilwork album until Verkligheten.

 

[DE4life]

Since we're waiting for ITM to be leaked/released and have nothing else to talk about, I'll throw in my favourite Soilwork tracks from each album... just because I'm bored really.

Steelbath Suicide - Wings of Domain
Chainheart Machine - Chainheart Machine (one of the best songs I've experienced live)
Predator's Portrait - Neurotica Rampage (Shadowchild is cool as well, weird singing though. Speed really improved his cleans a lot from 2001 to 2002, he sounds totally different on NBC)
Natural Born Chaos - Follow the Hollow
Figure Number Five - Rejection Role (I remember the music video was a parellel with IF's Trigger, pretending the bands had some kind of gang beef )
Stabbing the Drama - Nerve (literally the only song on this album I like)
Sworn to a Great Divide - Exile
The Panic Broadcast - Two Lives Worth of Reckoning (actually a really good song)
The Living Infinite - Tongue (I think, has been a while since I listened to this album and there are so many songs I'm struggling to identify them off the top of my head)
The Ride Majestic - The Ride Majestic (Aspire Angelic)
Verkligheten - The Nurturing Glance (although I've swapped between that, Witan and You Aquiver so it could be any of the three at any given time)

STD is by far the album I like the least songs off. Even Sworn and Panic Broadcast have three or four songs I thought were OK. STD had literally one and that's it.

 

[A88]

Yeah let's kill the time. We could do DT after.

Steelbath Suicide - Aardvark Trail (Gotta love the song with "Aardvark" in the tittle, plus the second riff in the song is very trademark Soilworkish), Wings of Domain

Chainheart Machine - TCM (just a thrill ride), Spirits of the Future Sun (just for that epic melody)

A Predator's Portrait - Needlefast (great riffs, crazy solo (IA?)) , Shadowchild (love that fade out ending)

NBC - As We Speak, Song of the Damned

FNF - Rejection Role (Better than Trigger lol), always had a soft spot for Distortion Sleep

STD - Nerve, probably Weapon of Vanity. A bunch of good choruses and drumming on this album.

STAGD - Don't know... Exile I guess

TPB - Let the River Flow

TLI - Can't really tell without listening the album again, but something like the first four songs minus Memories Confined

TRM - TRM to keep it simple

Verkligheten - Witan, with The Nurturing Glance and Arrival following

Wow, it is much easier doing this with IF discography.

 

[DE4life]

Wow, it is much easier doing this with IF discography.

It really is Soilwork tend to have more consistent work but less standout songs - for me at least. It's pretty easy for me to identify the best songs from each album, whereas I could practically pick any song off TJR/Whoracle/Colony/Clayman and give an argument as to why it's the best.

Also I just listened to Exile and oh my fucking god, that guitar tone is literally one of the worst things I've ever heard. I'd forgotten how incredibly awful it was on STaGD. Totally ruins the album. Hard to believe they settled on that sound as "good". It makes my ears want to vomit.

 

[DE4life]

As for DT...

Skydancer - Alone (really tough actually, there's a lot of songs I really like on this album)

The Gallery - Punish my Heaven (Lethe a very close second)

The Mind's I - Insanity's Crescendo (best song on the album by far imo)

Projector - Therein or Nether Novas I guess... I don't really like this album.

Haven - Rundown, although this is another album I dislike.

Damage Done - Single Part of Two, tough one though as I love so many songs on this album.

Character - Lost to Apathy (My Negation is really good as well)

Fiction - Misery's Crown

We Are The Void - Her Silent Language

Construct - Endtime Hearts

Atoma - Atoma

That was pretty easy too!

 

[Jester Slave]

We could do DT after.

Please don't.

As for DT...

Fuck, I was late...

 

[DE4life]

Feel free to give us your lists too, Slave. Have you even listened to any of DT and Soilwork's actual metal albums?

 

[Ilias7]

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2049910235057725&id=134855083229926

 

[A88]

So...

Trail of the Li... just kidding.

Skydancer - Not really an expert for this album, but Crimson Winds maybe.

The Gallery - Edenspring (love that beginning) and Lethe (ah, the times when band weren't racing to get right to the first chorus)

TMI - Hedon, Still Moving Sinews (I really like riffing on this album, very traditional and melodic)

Projector - ThereIn, Sun Fired Blanks (good album, a mess of production)

Haven - The Wonders At Your Feet

Damage Done - Can I just throw in the whole album? Nope? Then it's Hours Passed in Exile, Format C: For Cortex... oh and The Poison Well (DT Eurovision contest entry) even though it was released after.

Character - Lacks character. Am I1 and Lost to Apathy

Fiction - Fuck, I like a lot of songs from this one. The Mundane and The Magic (I thought Liv Kristine was singing, but nope...), Blind at Heart, Terminus

We are the Void - Yes you were for this one! Boring album. Her Silent Language, maybe In My Absence.

Construct - Uniformity, Endtime Hearts and The Silence in Between. Oh, and Zero Distance is a good single.

Atoma - Atoma, Clearing Skies.

Yeah, that was easier, but also made me realize I do not like a good chunk of DT discography. I really can't remember when was the last time I listened Character, Haven, WATV... They are really solid band but not too exciting.

 

[DE4life]

The only DT albums with songs I listen to regularly are Skydancer, The Gallery and Damage Done. I listen to stuff off Atoma sometimes too but that's mainly because it's new. I'm not sure how much I'll be listening to those songs in 5-10 years time.

I've said it a million times but Skydancer is so underrated. Yes the production is shit and Anders' vocals are at times just terrible, but that album has so much fucking charm and raw passion. A Bolt of Blazing Gold & Through Ebony Archways did the male/female vocal dynamic better than any In Flames song other than possibly Dead End. In Tears Bereaved has some awesome riffing and really incredible lyrics. Shadow Duet is amazing too, only officially released song with Anders and Stanne sharing vocal duties, I think? Of course Anders, according to the lyric booklet, is "the voice of beauty" riffs on Nightfall By The Shore of Time are solid too... a lot of these songs would sound great if re-mastered and re-arranged to be a little more refined.

And Alone is just an all around awesome song with maybe the best lyrics I've ever seen, bar none. With my background I can't help but admire such amazing wordsmithery.

Gallery & Damage Done are both objectively better than Skydancer, for sure, but there's just something about Skydancer that I really dig.

 

[Vermyn]

So when The full Battles album leaked, it was November 9th, 2 days before release. Do you think it will be the same this time around?

I feel it could be at any moment, but I’m still thinking Monday. Just have a feeling I guess.

As for me, all soilwork up until and including stabbing the drama is cool. After that album it kind of was more hit and miss for me. Their newest album though sits well with me so far though, probably because I’m older and I really enjoy TNFO.

 

[Jester Slave]

Feel free to give us your lists too, Slave. Have you even listened to any of DT and Soilwork's actual metal albums?

I think I've listened to the older Soilwork records as well, when they got remastered. Had a few good songs, but otherwise meh.

If there's a version of DT records without the vocals, I'll gladly give them the chance, but I am physically unable to listen to it otherwise.

 

[DE4life]

I think I've listened to the older Soilwork records as well, when they got remastered. Had a few good songs, but otherwise meh.

If there's a version of DT records without the vocals, I'll gladly give them the chance, but I am physically unable to listen to it otherwise.

I forgot about your hatred of Stanne, so yeah, forget DT

Surprised you wouldn't like NBC though, considering your love of Reroute. Although I don't know if you were including NBC when you refered to "older" Soilwork records.

 

[Jester Slave]

I didn't, FTH (song) was one of the first songs I received on MSN. Follow The Hollow and Distortion Sleep. Though it was Nerve which made me fall into them for realz.

 

[DE4life]

Hungary had internet back then?

 

[ThePhobiac]

imma do DT. Only brief descrips because mobile

Skydancer — A Bolt of Blazing Gold.

The Gallery — Silence, and the Firmament Withdrew. Holy fuck though, it’s hard to pick just one.

The Mind’s I — Tidal Tantrum. Also my favorite DT song, period.

Projector — Nether Novas. Hard to choose. Album is a masterpiece front to back and my favorite by DT.

Haven — Feast of Burden. First DT song I ever heard.

Damage Done — White Noise / Black Silence. Hard to choose. All great songs.

Character — My Negation.

Fiction — Focus Shift. Hard to pick just one.

We are the Void — Iridium.

Construct — The Silence In Between.

Atoma — Encircled. Hard to pick just one. Killer album.

 

[ThePhobiac]

Also, Nell Sigland was on Mundane and the Magic because she was the best female vocalist in Theater of Tragedy

Fuck, I miss that band

 

[Jester Slave]

Hungary had internet back then?

If you rode the bike fast enough in the basement, then occasionally yes.

 

[DE4life]

A Bolt of Blazing Gold is definitely one of the better quality tracks off Skydancer.



Really cool intro. I love the melodies they're playing at the start. The riffs come in pretty much perfectly as the intro builds up to the first verse. Anders' vocals here and going to be hit and miss depending on if you enjoy them on Skydancer or not, but I like them anyway. 02:51 - 03:55 mixes Anders' vocals with the female vocals nicely and I also really like the female vocals on this track in general. There is then a bit of a sudden shift which comes out of nowhere, it picks up nicely from that point but the transition is clearly still a young band finding its feet. Again, I really like the female vocals here and it's pretty cool to hear Stanne's cleans enter for a brief duet. I'm not sure the outro needs to be as long as it is, the song should probably have ended at around the 05:30 mark rather than stretching it out another minute and 42 seconds. That said it is a pretty nice acoustic outro, reminiscent of what you'd hear on a couple of Lunar Strain tracks.

Through Ebony Archways is pretty interesting too. Considering this is DT's first MDM album it's pretty bold to have a song that is 90% clean male/female vocals. It's a good one too, more concise than a lot of the other songs on Skydancer and flows really well. I can't really think of any other MDM debut albums that have a song with almost all clean vocals on. Part of the reason I appreciate Skydancer is that there is a lot of experimentation going on. Some of it works, some of it doesn't, but you can tell the band had a ton of ideas and tried their best to put them out there in as coherent fashion as possible. I think they hit the mark a lot of the time and if the songs had been refined a little more and production massively improved this would likely have been received far better than it was and is.