Unitron Why people think In Flames just abandoned death metal for money is beyond me, considering their style of melodic death metal has always been closer to heavy metal and alternative metal anyways. They just kept expanding and improving their sound, with Reroute to Remain being their peak. The two before this and several of the following albums are great too, but the songwriting on here is just through the roof. If it's not a amazing melody putting you into a state of bliss, it's a crushing hook of a riff getting you jumping. There's little electronic touches here and there, great acoustic moments, and right when you think you might get bored with a song they'll throw in some killer groove to wake you up.

If you're just looking for death metal, put on a Obituary or Atheist classic. However if you're looking for something that's both heavy as hell and beautifully melodic, In Flames has had that mastered since Colony and like no other band within the melodic death metal scene.

UMUR "Colony" is the 4th full-length studio album by Swedish death metal act In Flames. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Records in May 1999. It´s the successor to "Whoracle" from 1997 and it features a couple of lineup changes since the predecessor. Björn Gelotte solely focuses on playing guitar on the album (he also played drums on the predecessor) and Daniel Svensson has been recruited as the band´s new drummer. Bassist Johan Larsson has been replaced by Peter Iwers. Guitarist Glenn Ljungström has also jumped ship and the guitars are therefore now handled by the above mentioned Björn Gelotte and by Jesper Strömblad. Vocals are handled by Anders Fridén.

Fans of In Flames usually mention the first five albums as mark 1 In Flames, where the band could be identified as a melodic death metal act, and from album number six ("Reroute to Remain (2002)") and onwards as a more alternative oriented metal act, but listening to "Colony" it´s obvious the journey towards alternative territories started much earlier. Stylistically the material on the 11 track, 41:35 minutes long album is still rooted in melodic death metal, and the listener is exposed to plenty of soaring lead guitar melodies and harmonies, as well as powerful riffs and rhythms. The vocal part of the music is one part semi-growling/screaming vocals and one part harsh semi-melodic shouting. The latter vocal style is usually used in the chorus of the tracks and is the bridge to their alternative metal future.

"Colony" features several strong compositions and I´ll mention "Ordinary Story", "Zombie Inc.", and "Coerced Coexistence", as some of the highlights, but "Colony" is overall a very consistent release when it comes to the quality of the material but also when it comes to style and sound. The album reeks high class songwriting and paired with high level musicianship and a powerful and detailed sound production, "Colony" is a high quality release by In Flames. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Whoracle" is the 3rd full-length studio album by Swedish death metal act In Flames. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Records in October 1997. "Whoracle" features the exact same lineup, who recorded the predecessor "The Jester Race (1996)", which considering the lineup shuffles on the early days of the band, is no small feat.

Stylistically "Whoracle" pretty much continues down the same melodic death metal path as the band also played on "The Jester Race (1996)" (still with the occasional ethnic Scandinavian folk melody thrown in). There hasn´t been a radical development of sound but the songwriting is generally a bit more focused or mature if you will. In Flames are a skilled and tight playing unit, so the musicianship is on a high level. Ultra melodic guitar leads and harmony themes, strong acoustic guitar parts, a powerful and organic playing rhythm section, occasional use of keyboards for atmosphere, and Anders Fridén´s high pitched screaming growling and occasional use of clean vocals.

The material on the 11 track, 42:31 minutes long album is consistent in style but still relatively varied which is mostly due to the band including two instrumentals and a cover of "Everything Counts" by Depeche Mode. The latter is a bit of a surprising choice for a cover, but it works great. The rest of the tracks are all high quality melodic death metal. "Whoracle" also features a professional sounding production, which suits the music well, so upon conclusion In Flames have produced a high quality release and a 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

Kev Rowland It is safe to say that I wasn’t a fan of the last In Flames album, ‘Battles’, where I said “Now, change isn’t necessarily bad, and it can often be good, but then there are also the concerns that the band haven’t changed so much as having left the planet altogether and gone into a new universe. Possibly one where they have been starved of oxygen which could explain what they are doing now.” So, when I realised there was a new album out, I wasn’t exactly overjoyed at the prospect of listening to it. Between this album and the last they have changed the rhythm section, and one wonders just how much that has had an impact on the overall sound as although this is not a return to the classic sound which made them so many fans, it is certainly a huge leap to the better.

Okay, so it is still alternative metal as opposed to the melodic death with which they made their name, and the overall sound seems quite compressed and being kept under tight control as opposed to being allowed to roam free and find the right spot. They still sound as if they are angry young Americans as opposed to a Swedish act who have been together for nearly 30 years and should really know better by now. But the riffs are tight, the guitar interplay works, and I was surprised at just how much I enjoyed the album. I found myself playing it without gritting my teeth and bearing it just for the sake of a review, which is a massive difference between the last release and this one. There is no way that In Flames will ever have the impact they did when they burst onto the scene all those years ago, but if they keep producing music like this then old fans may at least tolerate what they are doing, and they may even gain some new ones. I won’t be so hesitant when I next see a new album by the band, and that at least is progress.

UMUR "The Jester Race" is the 2nd full-length studio album by Swedish melodic death metal act In Flames. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Records in February 1996 (Licensed from Wrong Again Records, who In Flames were contractually obligated to). There were quite a few lineup changes between the band´s debut full-length studio album "Lunar Strain (1994)" and the "Subterranean (1995)" EP, and there have been quite a few changes again on "The Jester Race". In Flames finally settled with Anders Fridén as their permanent lead vocalist. Fridén had worked with artists like Septic Broiler, Ceremonial Oath, and Dark Tranquillity before joining In Flames. The band didn´t have a permanent drummer on the previous releases either, but that was fixed here too as Björn Gelotte joined the lineup. The usual suspects are Glenn Ljungström (guitars), Jesper Strömblad (guitars), and Johan Larsson (bass).

Stylistically the music on "The Jester Race" continues the melodic death metal style with ethnic Scandinavian folk leanings which the band also played on the two previous releases. The band´s sound is a bit more developed here and the songwriting slightly more memorable too, but you´ll find few surprises on the album if you´re already familiar with "Lunar Strain (1994)" and "Subterranean (1995)". In Flames were on to something special with those releases though, so there are probably very few (if any) complaints about the musical direction on "The Jester Race". Anders Fridén continues the trend of high pitched screaming/growling vocalists, and you´ll be exposed to fast-paced and very melodic harmony guitar riffs and solos, fast- and mid-paced heavy beats, and acoustic sections too. The folk influence is mostly heard in the acoustic parts, but many of the epic guitar themes also reek traditional Scandinavian folk melodies.

"The Jester Race" is a consistent release both in terms of the musical style and in regards to the quality of the compositions. From the opening notes of "Moonshield" to the closing notes of "Dead God in Me", the 10 track, 40:27 minutes long album features high quality melodic death metal played by skilled musicians. The album is well produced too, featuring a powerful and raw sound production, which suits the material well. Upon conclusion there´s been a positive development of sound since "Subterranean (1995)", and paired with a better sounding production, and a band who have honed their playing skills too, "The Jester Race" is a high quality sophomore studio album by In Flames. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.