Customer Reviews

Come Clarity (Bonus Dvd) (Spec) (Dig)

5 star:		(60)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Come Clarity" by In Flames is being billed by some critics as a return to original form, but that couldn't be further from the truth. As one reviewer very accurately pointed out, In Flames is one of the very few metal bands that can alter their sound successfully (for the most parts) with every release. The sound on "Come Clarity" could be described as more straighforward metal, and for the most part this CD is their heaviest in a long time. I'm not going to go so far as to say that this is their best album; for me, everything really came together for In Flames on "Clayman". However, few fans of this album would disagree that "Come Clarity" is their best since that CD.

Regarding the songs, there are many good ones here. "Take This Life" is a very powerful opener, but it really just sets the stage for the rest of the album. "Leeches" and "Reflect The Storm" slow down the pace a little but are just as heavy, although I must say that the clean vocals on the chorus of "Reflect The Storm" didn't appeal to me at first.

"Dead End", which utilizes vocals by Lisa Miskovsky paced by Anders' screams, is really one of the most interesting songs on this album. Normally I dislike extensive female vocals in heavy songs (Arch Enemy just plain sounds weird). However, it really works on "Dead End", and the vocals combined with the speed and heaviness of the song make it very memorable.

"Scream" and "Vacuum" aren't the best In Flames songs, but they're not as bad as some reviewers have indicated. In fact, "Scream" is probably the heaviest song on the album.

Having said all of that, I would consider the stretch from "Pacing Death's Trail" to "Vanishing Light" to be my favorite part of "Come Clarity". All of these songs are very good, with "Crawl Through Knives" at the top.

Regarding guitar work, its much more solid on "Come Clarity" than on recent releases. You will find some very good solos as well as dual guitar harmonies that In Flames used to be know for (and do extremely well, mind you). Regarding the guitar harmonies, I'm not sure why more current bands don't use this as it can really expand the complexity and power of a song.

This is a great release by In Flames. I'm not saying that STYE an RTR were all that bad, but "Come Clarity" is their best in awhile.

You know, it never ceases to amaze me when people do not even know how to write a real review for a product. First of all, when you review a bands album you are suppose to give input on THAT ALBUM; not say it sucks because it is different from their last one or first one or whatever. Many In Flames fans have seemed to turn their back on the band after switching up their style really after Colony. You have to understand that musicians are artists and people. I am sure MAKING THE SAME ALBUM over and over again will get very boring to them, not to mention they would have to constantly be playing THE SAME SONGS than on tour. You cannot blame these guys for wanting to experiment with their sound and do different things. I love every album that they made from Lunar Strain to this latest release. Each one has something different about it and they all are great metal albums. Anders sounds nothing like Davis from Korn, stop being haters.

On a side note, for all the people that really hated Soundtrack to Your Escape and called it to dumbed down or simple songs please watch them perform the whole album on their Used and Abused DVD. There is really nothing simple about that album when you watch them do it live and calling them Nu Metal is simply retarded. Come Clarity is a great mix of their older work and their newer. My personal favorite would be Our Infinite Struggle and Take this Life. I hope they keep making albums like this and the fans smarten up and realize bands do what they have to do to survive in a cut throat industry.

Well here we are. The 8th studio album from the highly acclaimed Melodic Death metal band, In Flames is out. However as most fans agree, the last two albums have been somewhat disappointing. Especially Soundtrack To Your Escape, with the lack of proper solos and Anders screaming vocals, to name a few problems. (Some have even gone so far to call them nu-metal, which is absolutely absurd, because nu-metal isn't even real metal - it's alternative metal with hip-hop/rap influences). So In Flames have brought a new album out, with "more guitar solos" and is "more upbeat." But the question still remains...are they the old In Flames, or the new? To be honest they've sort of combined the two sounds, as Anders described this album as a `best of In Flames.'

They are some strong moments in the album but also some weak. Firstly, when I think of the older In Flames, I think of well-constructed, highly melodic songs, such as Colony, Jotun, etc. Basically everything from the Jester Race to the Clayman era. These new songs don't really sound like that anymore. The harmonics between the guitars are not so strong, and don't interlock in a decent melody to remind me of the `Food for the Gods' music. On the whole the songs in the past were more epic, majestic and out of this world. Come Clarity presents a little more modernized songs. Secondly Anders voice hasn't really improved since STYE. It's not a proper death growl, unlike the other albums. It's more like a constrained scream. I'm not saying death screams aren't good, but they don't fit with In Flames' style. For example, Alexi Laiho has a high-pitched GROWL that goes well with Children of Bodom's music but Anders' SCREAM is too forced. Thirdly, some of the drumming gets out of control. Instead of the old blast beats, it's just a pounding overlay of noise. This can be felt most prominently in "Take this life", which also features Anders appalling screams. However a great solo slightly redeems the song.

Don't worry though. There are plenty of good aspects in the album: I'm only fussy because I'm a huge fan of their older stuff, and people who like both new and old, tend to agree their older material is more superficial and easily surpasses RTR and STYE. "Leeches" is a monster of a track. Only 2.55 minutes long, it bursts with energy the whole way through, including the 38-second solo. In has almost an Industrial sound to it, and a very catchy beat. "Reflect the storm" has the old In Flames classic style (albeit Anders voice).

Another good thing is that Anders clean vocals have definitely improved. On STYE his voice sounded strangled, but they are much better now. "Come Clarity" is a shocker. It sounds nothing like a melodic death metal song, but a slow but heavy power metal song. There is beautiful clean vocals, with Anders singing "I want you to lead me, take me somewhere, just don't want to live, in a dream one more day." This could hardly be called a `melodic DEATH metal song.' Especially with the lyrics.

"Pacing Death's Trail" has a very catchy beat, and is exactly like the old In Flames, lyrics, music, drumming and everything. Anders voice goes pretty well with this song.

"Crawl through knives", "Vacuum" "Versus Terminus" and "Our Infinite Struggle" all have `death growls/(screams)' for the verses but clean singing for their chorus.

An interesting song is "Dead End" which features the female vocals of Lisa Miskovsky. It fits rather well with the music, and chorus (clean singing by Anders), and contrasts vividly with the death screams.

A song to be wary of is "Scream." This is rubbish for In Flames' standards. In fact a mediocre band should be ashamed of producing such nonsense. Basically as far as the music goes think: Linkin Park. A cruel comparison, but when hearing the chorus it's exactly what it sounds like. Obviously it's a lot heavier, but it's just an embarrassment. The lyrics go like "I say scream, you scream. Scream, we scream but no one listens", with Anders literally screaming the words. Gah. Avoid at all costs. The song isn't even structured well; it's boring and annoying.

"Your bedtime story is scaring everyone" is a slow atmospheric long song to close the album. It's slightly pointless though. You get 3.45 minutes of scuffling noises, with a chord here and there, then Anders voice suddenly booms out and ends at 4.30 leaving some more scuffling noises.

In a nutshell: Anders clean singing voice is great; his growling is no longer a proper growl but a bark; Jesper and Bjorn play well, but they don't harmonise enough (except for a few old-sounding songs like "Dead end", which has the Godly harmonies); the bass is good, but the guitars cover the sound sometimes; and Daniel's drumming is good (epecially in "reflect the storm", but in some songs ("Take this life" and "scream") there's an excess of pounding instead of the well crafted blast bleats.

Now this may seem like a harsh review, but considering In Flames are my favourite band, I have very high expectations of them, and this is a review mainly to old-school fans. For a random band, this album would probably get 5 stars. To new fans of In Flames or melodic death metal, I'd advise you to get the first 5 albums first!

Dylan, 18, Australia

I first heard of this band from a friend who was always talking about them, so i finally came to listening to them 2 months ago and i was amazed. About 2 years ago i wouldn't go near a cd that had any screaming or shouting at all [ex. Slipknot [what?? they are a good band] who got me into metal] then i heard this album and it comletely changed my perspective.[With help from my favorite band TRIVIUM [To all the haters f. uc. k off they're awesome]. Anyway to the songs:

Take this Life - If you like this chances are you'll love this album. 10/10

Leeches - Don't know about this one the drums/synths seem to override the singing. 8/10

Reflect the Storm - I love everything about this song. Awesome vocals by Anders on this. 9/10

Dead End - Ummm... first time i heard this i was a bit sceptical..womens vocals in metal???. But when Anders comes in it blew me away and i have to listen to it again!!! Awesome lyrics 3rd best song on album. 10/10

Scream - Definitely the Heaviest on album. I prefer their earlier stuff when it comes to heaviness. Doesn't work for me but still good. 6/10

Come Clarity - The second song that blew me away. I was expecting a full acoustic song you have to hear this song if you like Reroute/STYE. Only thing that bugs me is the chorus, kinda repeatative but still 10/10

Vacuum - Great song. Great Vocals. Great Drums. Great Guitars. 2nd Favorite song on album. 10/10

Pacing Deaths Trail - Clayman, Colony Fans will love this song I did. 9/10

Crawl Through Knives - My favourite song. Everything is Awesome and it is so catchy. 10/10

Versus Terminus - See Reflect the Storm. Awesome and Catchy. 9/10

Our Infinite Struggle - I didn't really get into this song but its still pretty good. 7/10

Vanishing Light - Love this song much like crawl through knives. Awesome lyrics. 10/10

Your Bedtime Story is Scaring Everyone - Instrumental. I thought. Very calming actually. Bedtime Story??? Wow Another surprise from this song. I love it!!! 10/10

Overall great album 9.5/10

If you are a true In Flames fan grab this.
If you only like them up to Clayman grab this.
If you like their latest works only grab this.
If you have never heard of In Flames before grab this.

P.S.
I don't know why people don't like they're last two works, Reroute and STYE....yeah, so they're not as good but they are still 5 star albums. If you liked Clayman or Colony better Come Clarity would be more suited to you. If you no longer like the new albums including this one, perhaps it's time you stopped listening and find a new band to listen to [at least until they change their sound like in flames did]

Cheers.

Around 2000, when their fifth full length ("Clayman") was released, the highly influential Gothenburg melodic death masters known as In Flames did something daring: they experimented with their sound. Keyboards and clean vocals were introduced to the mix, thus making the band's music more melodic and also more radio friendly. Plus, subsequent albums (like 2004's "Soundtrack to Your Escape") sounded downright simplified and commercialized to some fans. While this new sound attracted some newcomers, most In Flames diehards yearned for a return to form. Well, the band obviously heard those cries, because their new album, "Come Clarity," is easily their best and heaviest album of the past several years. The aggressive riffs, raging vocals, pounding rhythms, and a few of the guitar solos (i.e. in "Leeches") return, as do the Maiden-esque guitar licks and catchy songs.

The album begins "Take This Life," which is bursting at the seems with fast drumming and fiery riffs. "Scream" is an appropriately named track, because frontman Anders Friden screams in a very angry tone throughout, while the guitarists (Bjorn Gelotte and Jesper Stromblad) provide suitable back-up propulsion. The walloping "Pacing Death's Trail," "Crawl Through Knives," the scorching "Versus Terminus," and the pounding "Vanishing Light" are a few other brutal tracks.

But, even though "Come Clarity" is a return to form for In Flames, they haven't completely abandoned their new musical touches (much of this album balances heavy stuff with delicate melody.) Some of the keyboards and clean singing are still in tact, here, and tracks like "Reflect the Storm" even have dreary, sing-along choruses. Plus, songs like "Dead End" (which features Lacuna Coil-esque female vocals) and the title track (which begins with acoustic picking, but gradually becomes heavier) have heavy rhythms, but the clean singing makes them have a melodic and somewhat pretty edge. Lastly, the album closer, "Your Bedtime Story Is Scaring Everyone," is very ambient; part of it is occupied by spacey, cool piano playing and distant sound effects.

This record still doesn't top my personal favorite In Flames record, "Jester Race," but "Come Clarity" is still a very good album. It should please both old and new fans (so if you like this band, get this album!), and it's an early candidate for album of the year.

Ive always enjoyed everything In Flames has put out, but this album is just extraordinary. Its like a crossover between Whoracle and Colony or Clayman. You get the best of both worlds of In Flames, older and heavier, and newer and more melodic. If you were dissappointed by Soundtrack to Your Escape (which, I'll be honest WASNT the greatest) then have no fear because Come Clarity is just what you need to change your mind about them.

The stand out tracks include:
Take This Life
Leeches
Come Clarity
Vacuum
Crawl Through Knives

All the other tracks are great too, those are just some of my personal favorites. Dont make the mistake of passing this up!

In Flames, in my opinion, are the band that set the bar for other metal bands. If you can be as good as In Flames, then you definitely will have a successful career. To me, there are not very many bands in today's metal scene that can play great music like this Swedish quintet. With every album they've released, these guys have brought something new and unique to the table, and that's what makes them so interesting. Here are some of my highlights of the album :

1. Take this Life - This track begins with the signature chunky and heavy guitar sounds of the band. Yes, it is the single of the album, but I love it. I especially enjoy the first part of the chorus.
2. Leeches - I love how Daniel Svensson, the drummer, separates his bass, snare, and off-beat cymbal rides. The first time I listened to the song, I went back to the amazing chorus a few times.
4. Dead End - You would probably predict that what I think makes this song great is the female guest vocalist, Lisa Miskovsky. You would also be correct. She has an outstanding voice.
6. Come Clarity - The title track begins with a little acoustic guitar, which is a nice break in all the action. This song flows very well.
9. Crawl through Knives - The first song I heard off the CD, and it's a thriller. It's exciting, considering it is structured differently from the other songs on "Come Clarity".

In the end, basically, if you listen to other In Flames stuff, you probably already own this CD. If you don't, I suggest you buy it as soon as possible. As for those of you who don't like In Flames, give 'em a try. I'm almost positive you'll like what you hear. Thank you for your time.

Let me just say that i am a big old school in flames fan. whoracle and colony are two albums the redefined melodic death metal and metal in general. fortunently (and unfortunently), in flames never look back and make the same album twice, so when reroute and soundtrack came out i was a little taken back. both were great experimental albums for the band, but as a fan, i felt it really lacked any depth. most of the songs were bland, one-dimentional tunes that were missing the chatchy guitar hooks in flames is known for.

come clarity changes all that. while the band isnt writing another woracle or colony (as some wish they would), they've taken a step forward in sound, while still looking back on their roots. every song on this album is solid and has traces of their old school guitar harmonies and catchy choruses.

the problem with this album will face isn't itself or in flames. its the fans. come clarity probably wont convert the haters who left them after clayman (or even before). anyone who is the least bit optimistic about in flame's future will listen to this album and really enjoy it.

i hope that everyone will atleast give this album a few listens even those who think in they've lost appeal. you might find something in it that you like, and give you a secure feeling that in flames knows what theyre doing and they continue to stay fresh and innovative with every release they make.

definently an early album of the year contendor.

When I first got this cd, I thought it was something quite of a disappointment at first. I saw the Jester holding out his heart in front of him and some of the lyrics and song titles were emo. But since I love In Flames way too much to just drop the album and not give it a good listen, I payed close attention to it and realized how it's, how can I say it, bashing emo? For In Flames to have songs from their past with such deep-thought lyrics like Only The Weak, which that song is quite a good point against emo, how could they ever become a emo metalcore band? In Flames is alot more clever than what most people think. They made the signs way too generic and bold, it's all in plain view that they were aiming to mock all this typical, trendy emo junk out there in the mainstream. Look at the signs: Jester holding out his heart, song titles and lyrics (which for that matter if you read correctly, they have some lines going against the generic emo chants). And they mocked the emo scene so much, they actually got signed to an emo record label! They did have some troubles with Nuclear Blast about releasing Come Clarity in the USA, so I guess you can say that they just signed on to Ferret to do top it off as something hysterical. This album is quite heavy, and I do hear the death metal influence from the old days. And that shows that they can dish out the brutal riffs still, which in fact, emos hate death metal, so I don't see why people want to just straight up call this an emo album.

That's just the way I see it, and I thought it was an amazing album.

Some time ago, I had heard In Flames' new "single," Take This Life. I was pretty frustrated at what I heard. It wasn't nearly as straightforward as the last two embarassing ablums, but it still had a chastising commercial vibe to it. There were some passable guitar melodies, but the vocals made me gag. "The rest of the new album must be like this," I thought, neglecting to listen to it until as of late. But the thought I was a jaded cynic nagged at me ceaselessly, until peoples' claims that this was some sort of superb return to form convinced me to buy it.

This album does mark alot of changes. In Flames' traditional dual-guitar Gothenburg melodies are finally prominent again, as opposed to the downtuned nu-metal power chord crap in STYE. The insipid electronics have been suffocated down to a bare minimum, though I could do without them completely. Friden's vocals are my major concern; One minute he roars like back in the Clayman days (In fact, "Crawl Through The Knives" may be his best vocal performance ever), next minute he croons awkwardly like some tepid Hawthrone Heights clone. Hell, I'll just say it. He sounds downright emo at times. Still, bad clean vocals are something we just have to shrug off with In Flames. I'll take his emo-boy singing over his frog-croak whispers from the old albums any day. Oh, and the solos are back. Most of the tracks (not really enough) feature a bit of Jesper's guitar wizardry.


Despite the return of the twin guitar melodies, some of the songwriting is fluffy at best. "Your Bedtime Story is Scaring Everyone" is a good example of what no death metal band should ever degenerate into, "Scream" is refreshingly aggressive but doesn't really go anywhere, while "Dead End" is some sort of bad Evanascecneauceas experiment. This isn't to say that all the songs are fools' gold, though. The title track brings back the accoustic side of In Flames' musical spectrum (Depite the nauseating vocals), Vacuum is one of the most harmonically adventurous songs in the band's repertoire, and Pacing Death's Trail is vintage In Flames.

So that's it. It seems like these Swedes are trying to please old and new fans alike, and I believe their attempt at covering all bases prevented them from creating a consistently great album. Is this album another Lunar Strain/Jester Race/Whoracle/Colony/Clayman? No, it's Come Clarity-- Not a masterpiece, but a step in the right direction. In Flames has pushed out of the commercial drudgery that encapsulated their last two albums, which is commendable. Now let's see what they can do come clarity.
- Thus says the Pellington