I think the subject matter pretty much says it all.
With their new album coming out on September 9th called "Siren Charms", In Flames seems to have gone in a completely different direction than I ever could have imagined they would. And that's even taking into account their previous 2-3 albums. (Sounds of a Playground Fading, A Sense of Purpose, etc.). And even though this transition seemed inevitable based on those albums, I still find myself off balance based on what I've heard from "Siren Charms".
"Through Oblivion" in particular.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeX2uS4jWMs&feature=youtu
Maybe I'm being a little too dramatic? I don't really fall into any particular category of "In Flames Fan" that exists out there. I.E. the people that only like the old stuff, or the people whom only like the new stuff. I pretty much like it all when it comes to In Flames (the same argument could be made for Music in general, on my part). For me this has nothing to do with whether or not I hate the "new" In Flames. I like their music, so I am still going to listen to it (new or old). I'm not going to turn into one of those people that gets emotionally troubled over the direction they've gone in. I do like to watch those people lose their minds though, that's fairly entertaining.
But I suppose I'm rambling. I'm not trying to drive a particular point, or say that "You people need to grow up, and just enjoy music for what it is.". Those people are equally amusing to watch. No, that's not what I want. I just enjoy discussing a band that has been around forever and created one of the most diverse fan bases that I know of because of how much their music has changed.
My personal opinion though? Well here it is:
Although I don't necessarily think it's bad on a spectrum based solely on whether or not the music itself is good, I do feel that they went in a direction that would have been better suited as a side project. This could even be said for the "Sounds of a Playground Fading" album, and maybe even "A Sense of Purpose". To reiterate, I'm not strictly an old school IF fan, or a new school one. But when I think of In Flames, I think of MDM, not Alternative/Progressive Metalcore (or whatever arbitrary sub-genre of Metal you want to classify it as).
So if there are any "Jesterheads" out there, feel free to share your opinion on this. And sorry if this has already been discussed. I browsed through the forum a bit and didn't see anything relevant within the past couple of months. So I thought I'd start something.
I've never gotten around to listening to In Flames, but I love the techno elements in there, I dont know what that subgenre is called though. dont know if this input was even worth your time reading ._.
They do execute the techno elements of the genre fairly well. And you can pretty much find that in any album that you listen to. If you're into the more modern rock sound that they're doing now, then I'd definitely say listen to their newer stuff. The "Sounds of a Playground Fading" album does that sound fairly well. I'd recommend checking out some older stuff too. Like the song, "Only for the Weak", if you can handle something a bit heavier. If you want something more "middle of the road" between heavy and light, try the song "Cloud Connected" (that song has a lot of techno like effects). You could also try basically the entire album of "Soundtrack to Your Escape". That whole album is very...electronic? I'm not sure how I would describe it. If you're looking for a song recommendation from that album, I'd have to say give, "My Sweet Shadow" a try. Probably the most well known song from that album.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gOroLFHcF0
And don't feel like it wasn't worth my time, I was happy to even see 1 reply. In Flames is one of my all time favorites and I just enjoy discussing them. Even if it is just to recommend songs to people who haven't listened to them before.
Dang, this change is really different. It's not as grimey or heavy as their other stuff. I'm not about their older stuff, I like Jester Race, Colony, and that 90's stuff from them but I like their stuff from Reroute To Remain and on way more. I didn't know many other people listened to them.
Anyway my favorite song from them has always been Dead End off the Come Clarity album. Favorite album is A Sense Of Purpose. So maybe that puts some perspective on it.
I don't like it. The unified guitars isn't there. My favorite part was always their twin guitars and how they accentuated each other with their very hard and melodic style. The singer changed his singing style and it's not as good as his previous one. It's not bad, it's just not as good as his past style. Would've preferred if they added more female vocals or more breakdowns/bridges that had a softer tone, rather than the whole song being a complete vocal change. The change was okay though, overall it wasn't good and it doesn't stand out.. It sounds exactly like they said, a Depeche Mode vibe. The song Rusted Nail was so much better though, this one is just weird and doesn't sound like them. Neither are worth more than a one time listen imo.
Time to go listen to some older In Flames and ignore this latest release.
Yeah, when I first heard these new songs, that was my first inclination as well. It's just not the type of music I want to associate with them.
And yes, the guitar harmony is definitely missing here. That's what really made their stuff stand out. Mainly because they did it so well. I think Jesper leaving the band after "Sounds of a Playground Fading" definitely influenced that change. It doesn't seem like Niclas is contributing at all.
Dead End is a great song. It really stands out because it's one of the few songs that features female accompaniment. Some of their older stuff does too, but it's not quite as distinct. I do love that album though. Easily in my top 3 for In Flames albums. I can't say that A Sense of Purpose is in my top 3, but I do still very much enjoy some of the songs. As a matter of fact, Delight and Angers was the song that initially got me interested in them. And I expanded from there. Unfortunately it's really hard for me to name an absolute favorite from them because I like pretty much all of it. Top 5 though?...well, I'd have to say: "Episode 666" (Whoracle), "Zombie Inc." (Colony), "Only for the Weak" (Clayman), Trigger (Reroute to Remain), and "Evil in a Closet" (Soundtrack to Your Escape). Not in any particular order.
I'll probably still listen to Siren Charms when it comes out, but I'm not expecting anything spectacular. It really is a shame that this had to happen to them.