New album Foregone out February 2023

[DE4life]

Dark Signs is a really underrated track in the IF discography. In 2007 I probably didn't think so, so probably I didn't appreciate it so much at Bloodstock, but nowadays I'd love if they played it. Opening 10 seconds are one of the best openings to any In Flames song, would have sounded even better with Colony style production. Reroute's production sadly nerfs the power of the guitars. Still sounds great, but should sound incredible. When Anders says "cut down to half a member", does he mean dude's physical or metaphorical penis has been cut in half? Some way to open a song anyway, love how it switches between the melodies and riffs during the verses.

Pre-chorus has that amateur-clean vocal charm that exists throughout Reroute. It's really unique and nowadays I quite like it. Although "and you call me names" always gives me a chuckle, sounds like something a ten year old would say. That's our hipster hamster for you though.

Screams in the song are actually in quite a high register, reminds me of how they sounded on ATFRT. Sounds painful, but at the same time I selfishly like that style of vocal, even if it was killing Anders' throat. Really like that final "what life can provide" scream at the very end.

It's funny, but literally until now I missed the "are you afraid?" line in the pre-chorus. One of the things I love about older IF stuff is, even after all these years, hearing things I haven't caught before.

Guitar work between 02:19 - 02:31 is really nice, but again, that fucking Reroute production burying it way too low.

Well anyway, awesome song, and here's the instrumental version because, why not.

 

[DE4life]

Having just listened to the Clayman album instrumentally, I have to say, Reroute and everything after it really was a huge step down guitar-wise. I say that as somebody who likes Reroute in particular as an album, but honestly, when you switch between Clayman and Reroute instrumentally it is night and day. Clayman is absolutely unbelievable in terms of pure guitar melodies. It's so tight structurally as well. Reroute has some of the old magic but the effort on Clayman is far higher - it isn't just production, either. Almost every song on Clayman is bursting to the brim with melodic energy and drive. Far more so than even the great albums that came before it. Nordstrom may have worked them hard during those sessions, but it's impossible to deny he squeezed every last drop of potential from Jesper and Bjorn on that album. Everything that came afterwards - and I include Come Clarity and SOAPF in that - is simply nowhere near the same level, melodically, as what was achieved on Clayman. Even TJR, Whoracle and Colony do not get to that level instrumentally, although they are of course all incredible albums in their own way.

It goes without saying that switching to stuff like Battles is absolutely fucking tragic, especially when you consider one of the primary songwriters on Clayman remains in the band. You can't help but wonder how the fuck Bjorn went from penning solos like we hear on OFTW , S&A and ATFRT to the absolute garbage on SC & Battles. How he and Anders can say their music has "evolved", or that albums like SC & Battles are a continuation of the IF sound, with a straight face is beyond me. Devolved is the correct term here. There is more effort put into a single track on Clayman than the entirety of Battles, and that really isn't an exaggeration. Instrumentally Battles is so simplistic it is actually quite pathetic. I can give SC a pass on some level as they were intentionally trying something different, regardless of how the end product sounded.

 

[The Grayfox]

Lol. Rest assured, in this instance it isn't that they're being condescending... they're just lazy. Anders has been condescending plenty of times in the past to older fans "they want anudda jestah race", "they don't jump jump jump muddafukkas to the old songs", "if you changed production then [insert new album here] would have loadsa stuff that sounds like the jestah race people are just idiots and don't understand how music works like i do", "i don't need to learn to sing because i have emotion in my voice mang", "won't listen to a band until they've released 5 albums", "can't play da old songs because of all the guitar tracks but having a million vocal backing vocal tracks and keyboard tracks are fine because we make songs for a live environment and fans don't get it we can't just have a hundred guitar layers but it's ok to layer everything else"... and so on and so on and so on, but for this specific thing, it's just the band doing the bare minimum to make it appear that they still care about da roootz.

As far as not understanding why more Foregone isn't played - if you think about it, it makes sense. Foregone is the rootsiest album ever to exist. It's so absolutely roots-infested that it has, through sheer force of da rootz, become In Flames oldest and most hardcore album. Think back to how they've treated older albums - LS, TJR, Whoracle especially. Barely played, and if they do play those songs then it's the same ones over and over again. Behind Space, Graveland, The Hive.

Same treatment for Foregone, and we should have seen it coming, as Foregone technically comes before LS in the album order nowadays. It's a miracle they play anything off it at all.

Why does Anders sound like a Puerto Rican from New York City?

 

[The Grayfox]

Whilst it is indeed a disgrace that Minus has only been played 8 times, the only positive is that it actually was recorded, so we at least have one video of that track being played live.

I didn’t realize that. I was at one of those 8 times. History was made!

 

[Jester Slave]

Guitar work between 02:19 - 02:31 is really nice, but again, that fucking Reroute production burying it way too low.

Yes, very Minus-y, or as the younglings would say: Minussy. It's baffling how certain songs not only did not become staples, but did not get their proper share of setlists when they had been just released. And we can't even blame it on Anders' voice, because back then he used to sing similar songs, and his new vocal capabilities makes a record like R2R a prime material to sing again, because he can just switch out the lunatic screams to death(tm) growls(tm).

It's true that Clayman is probably the most artistically interesting record they've put out. I complain about the vibe of that record, yet each song is like a different work of art. You could find a bunch of samey songs on the following records. They wouldn't be able to keep up with their release schedule of a new album every 2 years if they aimed for this level. You can't just churn these out, nor do I think every single record should be this compact. There are bands who try to make most of their records into some sort of concept album, and it's just fucking tiring after a while; just record 10 or so songs which you think are cool and save these grand concepts for when you really feel like you either struck gold or have something to say.

 

[DE4life]

Why does Anders sound like a Puerto Rican from New York City?

Preparing for next album collab with Bad Bunny

I didn’t realize that. I was at one of those 8 times. History was made!

Well, it's 8 times as per setlist.fm anyway. Not every show is catalogued there, but a pretty huge amount post-Reroute are, so I think it's quite safe to say it isn't much more than 8 times. And yeah you may have been there for Minus, but were you there during Bottled's limited 40 show run like this cool muthafucka? ...

It's true that Clayman is probably the most artistically interesting record they've put out. I complain about the vibe of that record, yet each song is like a different work of art. You could find a bunch of samey songs on the following records. They wouldn't be able to keep up with their release schedule of a new album every 2 years if they aimed for this level. You can't just churn these out, nor do I think every single record should be this compact. There are bands who try to make most of their records into some sort of concept album, and it's just fucking tiring after a while; just record 10 or so songs which you think are cool and save these grand concepts for when you really feel like you either struck gold or have something to say.

Clayman was definitely an apex insofar as the focus being on the guitars was concerned. After that album it became more about the whole, inclusive of vocals, for better or worse. The guitars on Clayman really do carry a massive bulk of the weight, even having intricate melodies in the chorus on most songs. On tracks like Clayman the vocal rhythm itself is already being played by the guitar in the chorus. Also, for the record, Clayman is one of the most stunning melodic tracks they have ever written. Almost the entire song is just one great melody after another. OFTW, Swim and Suburban Me are the other songs primarily in that bracket. Suburban Me in particular is just incredible. The guitar work in the chorus especially is just out of this world. I should also note that Daniel is awesome on that album as well, the drums really add a lot of punch to everything. The bass is also noticeable in how it drives the rhythm, especially in the sections where the guitars briefly fade out.

Clayman is that candy that is overloaded with sugar. You know it's bad for you in that it makes everything else taste kind of bland, but it hits your senses in a way that always has you coming back for more.

 

[Xpyro125]

I've never actually heard them play Darker Times from SOAPF live, and I'm quite OK with that. I've only seen them once since SOAPF was released and that was in 2019, and on that occasion they played All For Me and WTDSD. The latter, great, the former... bleugh. Although it was a bit better live than on CD at least.

I think All For Me is a fantastic song that’s very nearly ruined (If not ruined) by that absolutely abhorrent bridge. Anders’ vocals are so fucking atrocious there, and on an album with as much care as SOAPF, it seriously baffles me how that part made it through quality control. That just sucks especially because it’s such a fantastic song otherwise from the instrumentation to the specific raspy, straining sound of the vocals.

Somehow I've literally seen all of my most hated IF tracks live, despite some of them not even being regulars on the setlist. Bottled, Scream, The Chosen Pessimist (TWICE), Here Until Forever, All For Me, House, The Truth... I mean, some of these it's like, yeah, they've played them a lot over the years... but Bottled? Are you kidding me? Setlist.fm says it's only ever been played 40 times and somehow I was there for one of them. It was also the only time they ever played it in the UK. THANKS.

Fucking Bottled was played 40 times? That’s a goddamn travesty.

I do have to ask how well they performed Scream, because it feels like a song that was made for live performances. I think if done right, it could be an absolute killer live.

 

[eochaid]

Not having listened to the instrumental versions of both albums, I tend to not agree in the comparisons between Clayman and CC. Yes, Clayman is more varied but the guitar work in CC is superb. It's the strong point of the album and it makes it the one with more energy in their discography. With lots of layers to discover in every listening and, in my opinion, the best choruses, when it comes to the guitar work, that they've ever done.

As for R2R sound, it's moody and it lacks some punch but, with the perspective that time gives, I think that it works. We still can listen to it and think that the album has just been released.

 

[DE4life]

I think All For Me is a fantastic song that’s very nearly ruined (If not ruined) by that absolutely abhorrent bridge. Anders’ vocals are so fucking atrocious there, and on an album with as much care as SOAPF, it seriously baffles me how that part made it through quality control. That just sucks especially because it’s such a fantastic song otherwise from the instrumentation to the specific raspy, straining sound of the vocals.

Fucking Bottled was played 40 times? That’s a goddamn travesty.

I do have to ask how well they performed Scream, because it feels like a song that was made for live performances. I think if done right, it could be an absolute killer live.

I have never liked All For Me, I've tried but I just can't get into it. The main riff reminds me of Bottled, and a lot of the song is just too slow and plodding for me to listen to. It's just my personal taste, but it's not a song that interests me at all. There are some nice instrumental elements at certain points. The intro is nice and I like the section about 3/4 into the song, but it's not enough for me to listen to the entire thing. It's cool if people do like it, and as far as I can tell many do, it's just not for me.

And yes, Bottled has been played at least 40 times, although mostly in 2007. I think the last time it was played was 2009 - according to setlist.fm anyway.

Scream sounded okay live from what I remember. There's nothing inherently wrong with the song from an instrumental perspective, it's just that stupid chorus that ruins it.

Not having listened to the instrumental versions of both albums, I tend to not agree in the comparisons between Clayman and CC. Yes, Clayman is more varied but the guitar work in CC is superb. It's the strong point of the album and it makes it the one with more energy in their discography. With lots of layers to discover in every listening and, in my opinion, the best choruses, when it comes to the guitar work, that they've ever done.

As for R2R sound, it's moody and it lacks some punch but, with the perspective that time gives, I think that it works. We still can listen to it and think that the album has just been released.

Simply put, it's just not logical to try and compare the post-Clayman albums to what came before it. From Reroute onwards the band are trying to achieve a different sound, and it's clearly a purposeful transition. One can say that they prefer Clayman's ultra-melodic atmosphere, but to say it's objectively better than the albums that came after it would only make sense if the band were attempting to achieve the same sound afterwards, and it's obvious they weren't. The guitars in Clayman are the driving force for all melody, whereas afterwards they are positioned primarily to provide rhythm with the occasional lead and solo, with the vocals taking on the role of providing melody in the chorus and many of the verses.

Production aside, I like what they did with Reroute. Nowadays I don't mind STYE. CC and SOAPF are two of my favourite modern IF albums. I don't judge them against the 1996-2000 albums because they are purposefully created to achieve something different to what was output during the TJR-Clayman period. It's quite fine to subjectively say 'I prefer x album over x album', but objectively you are comparing albums that aren't aiming to achieve the same thing. The guitar melodies on Clayman are incomparable to anything that came after it, I'm quite happy to say that objectively. Whether that makes the music better, however, depends on what you are listening for. If your preference is dat catchy chorus sung by Anders then Clayman is objectively not their best album for this. You'd be better off with Reroute, CC or SOAPF.

 

[DE4life]

Oh, and also, on the 'old songs have too many guitar layers to play live' excuse...

Firstly, no. We have audio evidence that these songs sound quite fine live, in fact typically they sound great with the tweaks that are made. Faster, a bit heavier, and more energy. This is not a problem and I cannot imagine any person hearing those songs live would be disappointed because they don't have ten guitar layers as per the album.

Secondly, the stock response to this is 'well, even if you think those songs sound good live, the band might not be satisfied with how they sound'.

Lol, just fuck off with that. For this to be remotely valid as a reason we would have to believe the band are perfectionists when it comes to live performance. There is a myriad of evidence supporting the notion that this is absolutely not the case. Anders' clean vocals never come close to sounding as good as they are in the studio, and he's openly admitted he can't pull them off live and doesn't care because it's all about having emotion in the voice. Not the stance of somebody who is a perfectionist. In terms of guitars, Bjorn especially can be very sloppy live. He regularly changes parts of songs that are too difficult or precise, often butchering or significantly decreasing the quality of solos - especially OFTW. Now, that doesn't necessarily have a major impact when you are watching them live, but again, nothing to suggest Bjorn is anything close to a perfectionist when it comes to ensuring the album sound is perfectly captured on stage.

So no, I don't believe that excuse either. And the thing is, it's fine. I've never demanded they play older songs. It'd be nice, but if they don't want to then it's their right. I choose whether I give my money to them for a show or not. If they are playing mostly new stuff and I pay to go and see them, that's my decision. There's no reason for me to be disappointed or angry with them. I know what I'm paying to see.

I just wish they hadn't been so dishonest and, as Slave alluded to, condescending with their reasons as to why they don't play the older songs. From 'the crowd doesn't move' to 'too many guitar layers, the songs weren't meant to be played live' - it's just bullshit. IF were a live band from 1996 onwards, as soon as the core of the band was formed on TJR they toured regularly. They were able to adapt every song from TJR and Whoracle to be played live without a problem back then. Just be honest and admit you don't really want to play that stuff live - whether it's because they don't want to personally, or because they think shows with newer songs will sell more tickets, it's fine either way. I would respect that honesty far more than what has, at times, been gaslighting of the fans of the older works.

 

[eochaid]

I must say that, among the few bands that I have seen live, IF must be the most unprofessional. It's not just Anders weak singing. Bjorn also doesn't seem to give a shit about his live performances.

Also, excuse me but, paying 40€ or whatever they charge today for an hour and a half show is just a no for me. I expect bands to give their all during, at least, two hours. There's no technical or physical excuse for the length of their shows having in mind what a lot of other bands do.

 

[eochaid]

Also, I don't think that CC is an album vocal oriented. In fact, I can easily think of Anders struggling to create his parts. The guitars, and their melodies are there almost all of the time.

If I have to compare it to Clayman, this (Clayman) seems to me more vocal friendly.

 

[DE4life]

Vocals on Clayman are mostly just layered on top. They play their part but are not driving the melody in any noticeable way, often the vocals are just mimicking the guitar lines beneath. Clayman and Suburban Me choruses are good examples of this. Even in songs like Square Nothing and S&A where there are sections without major guitar-work, you'd struggle to call Anders' mumbling creating melody. Anders is doing his part but his vocals are following the lead of the guitar.

CC is a little different in that we already know the instruments were created completely independent of vocals and then sent to Anders to work with. In that sense you can say it's more of a guitar-driven effort than any of the post-Clayman albums. However, vocals are providing far more melody in various places compared to Clayman - especially in the choruses. By this point this is just how Jesper and Bjorn were structuring songs. They definitely put more effort into bringing the guitars to the forefront, but they aren't 100% key drivers of all melody in the same way they are on Clayman, for example.

 

[The Grayfox]

And yeah you may have been there for Minus, but were you there during Bottled's limited 40 show run like this cool muthafucka? ...

Unfortunately, I too have been there for Bottled. But I also got the rest of STYE, so there's that. Which means I've gotten one of two times Borders and Shading was played. Also one of the two times they've covered Blinded by Fear. Going through setlist.fm, I've actually gotten quite a few rarities that I've taken for granted. They are definitely missing some shows though. I know Suburban Me was tried at least once and according to somebody who was there, it didn't go well... specifically the solo. And have they really not played Artifacts since 2012? What a god damn travesty.

Also... https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/in-flames/2006/marquee-theatre-tempe-az-73da66c5.html

Fucking hell...

 

[Jester Slave]

Damn, what a start to a show. Them not playing Artifacts is also a crime. Great melody, barely longer than Graveland, great solo (or call it whatever you want to), absolutely doable vocals.

Listening to Graveland just now, it's actually closer to Lunar Strain than TJR. Good job guys, you bullied them too far into old-school.

 

[DE4life]

Unfortunately, I too have been there for Bottled. But I also got the rest of STYE, so there's that. Which means I've gotten one of two times Borders and Shading was played. Also one of the two times they've covered Blinded by Fear. Going through setlist.fm, I've actually gotten quite a few rarities that I've taken for granted. They are definitely missing some shows though. I know Suburban Me was tried at least once and according to somebody who was there, it didn't go well... specifically the solo. And have they really not played Artifacts since 2012? What a god damn travesty.

Also... https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/in-flames/2006/marquee-theatre-tempe-az-73da66c5.html

Fucking hell...

Brothers in arms having both endured the suffering of Bottled live.

The Artifacts hiatus doesn't surprise me - keep in mind until recently they hadn't played fucking Episode 666 for over 13 years. Happy to play The Hive on loop for practically a decade plus though.

When I went to see them in 2006 in London they played some really good stuff, although nothing truly rare. Leeches, System, Trigger, Behind Space, Crawl Through Knives, Black and White, Moonshield, Episode 666 and Vacuum were all really cool to see. Vacuum was in fact only ever played in 2006, so if you didn't see them that year and like that song you were and likely are shit out of luck.

Suburban Me attempt ending as a fail wouldn't surprise me. No chance of Bjorn pulling off that solo live - especially considering it wasn't even him on the album.

As far as crimes go, Evil in a Closet only ever being played 10 times has to be up there. One of their best ballad-type songs, actually within Anders' ability to pull off live, and they've only ever played it 10 times - all in 2004. Meanwhile the godawful Here Until Forever has been played 139 times. Disgusting. No offence to Move Through Me, but how does a bang average track like that have 61 more live appearances than EIAC?

Frankly, it feels like the band just have shit taste when it comes to their own music.

 

[DE4life]

Damn, what a start to a show. Them not playing Artifacts is also a crime. Great melody, barely longer than Graveland, great solo (or call it whatever you want to), absolutely doable vocals.

Listening to Graveland just now, it's actually closer to Lunar Strain than TJR. Good job guys, you bullied them too far into old-school.

Not sure I'd go as far as Graveland being LS material, but keep in mind they were playing that one regularly between 2006-2008 also. Between 2009 - 2016 they basically played nothing from TJR at all, then briefly started playing Moonshield in 2017 before switching back to Graveland as their go-to, for reasons only known to Anders and Bjorn.

For anyone who cares, top 10 tracks of all time played by IF, according to setlist.fm:

1. Cloud Connected
2. Take This Life
3. Only For The Weak
4. Pinball Map
5. The Quiet Place
6. The Mirror's Truth
7. Trigger
8. Behind Space
9. My Sweet Shadow
10. Colony

Behind Space being 8th is interesting, although it should be noted that it picks up most of its hits between 1998 and 2006. They didn't play it at all for 9 years between 2009 and 2018. For whatever reason it's back in favour now though. Must be Foregone connecting them with da rootz again.

As far as albums are concerned, Reroute is their most played album, barely beating out Clayman with 3139 plays to 3130 respectively. It's a steep drop off from that point, as SOAPF comes in 3rd with 2221 plays. TJR is 12th and actually comes behind Lunar Strain in 11th, although that solely owes to Behind Space being played so often. They have only ever played three songs off TJR remotely regularly live - Moonshield, Graveland and Artifacts. Imagine having played more songs from fucking Siren Charms and Battles live over the course of your career - keeping in mind TJR came out in 1996 and the other two came out in 2014 and 2016. Quite pathetic, really. Watch Them Feed has been played more times than everything, except the three aforementioned songs, from TJR.

They can claim to love that album, and say "you're not an In Flames fan if you don't have TJR", but actions speak louder than words. These fucks don't respect that album at all. For what it's worth, TJR's play count increases slightly if you include the medley of Dead God/TJR/Behind Space they were playing in 2008, but not enough to push it above Lunar Strain (and you'd also have to give +54 to LS anyway due to Behind Space being part of the medley).

Based on the average setlists on setlist.fm, worst year to see IF live would probably have been 2014 unless you really, really love Siren Charms.

 

[DE4life]

Also, just to loop back to the earlier discussion about the melodic differences between Clayman and Come Clarity, see below examples.

Choruses of Clayman & Suburban Me (instrumental):





Aside from these both being utterly glorious, it's clear that the vocal lines are based on the guitar melodies. You can hear this very clearly on both.

Now, if we are to compare, say, Leeches and Crawl Through Knives choruses from CC:





The difference is stark. Firstly, much less melodic, but that's because the vocals are being relied upon for the primary chorus melody, not the guitars. Anders is creating the melody with his vocals on these choruses, with the guitars simply supporting, whereas on Clayman the guitar melodies create the vocal melodies.

 

[DE4life]

I would also posit that Colony is actually a more vocally inclusive album than Clayman. The former has a lot less melodic guitar-work, where the vocals actually do create parts of the melodies (think the Ordinary Story verses, or the 'helpless excuse, a fallen reality' section from Insipid 2000, although there are other examples). The latter is heavily, heavily focused on the guitars doing almost everything, to the point of reducing the vocals to genuinely little more than a supporting role. The closest you get on Clayman is probably the Bullet Ride verses (although again, can you call that mumbling 'creating melody' ?) and the chorus to Pinball Map (probably why it's played so often live). Although when you listen to Pinball Map instrumental the guitars are still bookending the vocal melodies, just more subtly.

Looking at it this way, you can maybe understand why Anders felt Nordstrom was sidelining him and wanted to move to a different producer. On Clayman he really was sidelined with the guitars given precedence in every respect. Fortunately for Anders, Bjorn and Jesper didn't like being made to work that hard, and were evidently more than happy to move to a producer that would place less emphasis on the guitars and more emphasis on the vocals.

 

[The Grayfox]

Suburban Me is a fucking work of art, I’ll say it until the end of time.

Graveland is a weird thing. The crowd never gets into it, yet it’s become a staple in their set. If their logic of not playing certain old songs is due to non reactions from the crowd, I guess I don’t understand why it even matters which old songs get played. Is Graveland just the safe choice because it’s short and to the point, easy to pull off? Is it because it’s one of Anders’ favorite songs? Same with the Hive. It doesn’t get a huge reaction. There was a time when I thought “ok, switch out Episode 666 and play something else from Whoracle.” Now I would love to see Episode 666 back in the rotation because at least it would be different. Why Graveland and The Hive? Why not Artifacts and Jotun? Why not Moonshield and Food for the Gods? Is it laziness? They don’t seem to have a problem pulling out some rarities for Dalhalla. You’ve rehearsed them, so why not just keep them around? The crowd goes mild for Graveland anyway, so just let them go mild for Stand Ablaze instead.