IN FLAMES vocalist Anders Fridén spoke to Cameron Buchholtz of the Rock 100.5 The KATT radio station about the band's upcoming studio album. The follow-up to 2016's "Battles" will include the song "I Am Above", the official video for which make its online debut on December 14. The clip was once again directed by Patric Ullaeus of Revolver Film Company, who has previously worked with DIMMU BORGIR, LACUNA COIL, AMARANTHE and KAMELOT, among others. Asked about the response to the 21-second "I Am Above" teaser, which saw some fans praising IN FLAMES' return to a heavier sound of the past, Anders said: "I don't know about that part. I mean, I'm happy that people are excited, of course. Personally, I don't like these hype things where they say, 'Oh, they're back again,' or, 'It's this again,' and then they get the full album and [are], like, 'Oh, fuck. It's not…' 'Cause we never do the same album twice; we always take things forward. But I think this one is a little bit more guitar-oriented and slightly heavier… Don't take 'heavier' for grant… But it has a different feel to it." The vocalist added: "I'm super happy. It's everything that we are: it's melodic; it's aggressive, it's big — big choruses. And I hope people like it. "If you're familiar with IN FLAMES, as a band, as we are today and have been for awhile, then I don't think you're gonna get disappointed." Anders also talked about the contributions of IN FLAMES' latest additions, American musicians Tanner Wayne (drums) and Bryce Paul (bass). Asked if Wayne and Paul changed the songwriting dynamic in IN FLAMES, Anders said: "No. They are part of the band for sure, but me and Björn [Gelotte, guitar] have been working for three months for this album. We are a strong band, and I think live, everybody comes together. But when it comes to writing, you don't want too many chefs. We've been doing it for such a long time, we know what we want, and we wanna get there as fast as possible, you know what I mean? But they bring a lot to the table, of course — the community, the feeling of the band and everything. So, yeah… [They're] awesome guys." Wayne, who is best known for his work with UNDERMINDED, SCARY KIDS SCARING KIDS and CHIODOS, stepped into IN FLAMES following the recent departure of Joe Rickard, who played on "Battles". Tanner made his live debut with IN FLAMES in July in Brno, Czech Republic. Longtime IN FLAMES drummer Daniel Svensson announced in 2015 that he was leaving the band to focus on his family life. Paul has been playing most of the shows with IN FLAMES since longtime bassist Peter Iwers's November 2016 exit.
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