In Flames has been the point of the spear for Swedish Death Metal, being at the forefront of the New Wave Of Swedish Death Metal and pushing the boundaries of the genre by exploring a diverse spectrum of influences and paving the way for a multitude of bands, not just those from Sweden.
Having been the foundation of In Flames since 1995, the songwriting duo of singer Anders Fridén and guitarist Björn Gelotte, In Flames are about to bring their 14th album to the world and are using the anger and frustrations of the world to create what they have hope is ‘more metal’ and an increase in aggression.
The usual wide range of sounds is evident by the start of the second track, with the opener ‘The Beginning Of All Things That Will End’ being a sedate instrumental before ‘State Of Slow Decay’ brings chugging guitars and dualling riffs along with crippling drums expressing that exact anger that was mentioned earlier. Matched with an abrasive vocal, the feel of this Modern Metal album sounds rather good.
‘Meet Your Maker’ follows up and some people may have heard this track as it has already been released with cascading drums and chopping guitar riffs mixing it up with blistering double kick drums and a chorus that could be lined up with something in the arena of Metalcore.
There are more sedate tracks thrown into the album, but this 12-track album has the feel of a polished and edgy Metal album by a band who knows all the tricks in the book and can mix it up with any band or sound they want to. Let’s be honest, this band have done pretty much everything there is to do in their career and therefore In Flames has nothing to prove to anyone and can just focus on what they want to.
Foregone is a high-class album that might not bring anything new to its discography, but what it does do is show others just how good an album can be from front to back. I’m not convinced that this album falls into the Death Metal arena, more of a Metal offering for the masses to enjoy.
There are no two ways about it, any tracks that In Flames decide to play at Bloodstock Open Air in the summer, it’s going to sound fucking ace.
Foregone will be released Friday 10th February 2023 via Nuclear Blast Records.
Ed Ford
Tracklist
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The Beginning Of All Things
2. State of Slow Decay
3. Meet Your Maker
4. Bleeding Out
5. Foregone Pt. 1
6. Foregone Pt. 2
7. Pure Light Of Mind
8. The Great Deceiver
9. In The Dark - A Dialogue In B Flat Minor
11. Cynosure
12. End The Transmission
Online
https://www.youtube.com/@InFlames