Customer Reviews

Sense Of Purpose

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

IN FLAMES STOPPED PLAYING MELODIC DEATH METAL A LONG TIME AGO!!!

I would have thought that the band's last four albums had made this perfectly clear, but apparently some people still haven't gotten the message. I understand why people are upset by this fact. These newer In Flames albums are never going to be as impressive, important, or as flat-out incredible as the Jester Race/Whoracle/Colony era albums. Still, the writing was on the wall as far back as Clayman. In Flames was taking their music in a new direction, and it's your choice either to jump off (and believe me, after Soundtrack to Your Escape I considered doing just that) or come along for the ride. The band certainly isn't forcing anyone to buy their albums.

If you can get past the fact that the old In Flames isn't coming back, you may be surprised at just how good some of these newer albums are. A Sense of Purpose is still heavy, it's still melodic, and it's still undeniably a metal album. For me the ultimate test is how the album makes me feel when I have it blasting in the car, and from the very start this album had me banging my head and wishing I knew the lyrics so I could scream along. There are some wickedly catchy hooks and melodies on this album (Move through Me is a great example), and while I miss the old death metal vocals, Anders Friden's voice still packs plenty of punch. Most of these songs are short, vicious bursts of aggression, but the symphonic elements of the 8-minute "A Chosen Pessimist" were an interesting (and impressive) surprise.

The bottom line is that A Sense of Purpose is a good metal album. If it resembles nu-metal/metalcore/whatever more than melodic death metal, then so be it. I'd rather have In Flames continue to make records they believe in than return to a style they outgrew just to please a specific group of fans. If they gain more fans and (somewhat) mainstream recognition along the way, well, I don't think anyone can argue that they haven't worked hard for it.

I'm going to be honest..........I didnt really like the new album all that much when I first heard it. However, it grows on you. I can say that it is not Jester Race, Whoracle or Colony. Thank God it is not Reroute to Remain.......my least favorite In Flames album. I would say A Sense of Purpose is a combination of Clayman and Soundtrack to your Escape. If you didnt like those albums, then dont buy this one. Their last few albums have been very good, and in some instances groundbreaking. Lets remember one thing though. No two In Flames albums are alike. If you take Whoracle and compare it to Soundtrack to Your Escacpe you would think it was a different band. If you take Jester Race and Compare it with Colony you would think they had a different singer. If you take any album they have made and compare it with Reroute to Remain you would be confused. That kind of variety does not make it bad music, it keeps the music fresh and interesting. In Flames still has a signature guitar sound, with melodic riffs and heavy licks. Lets face it, most guys who play guitar would give their left arm to play like Jesper and Bjorn. Give the album a chance because it rocks hard and you can sing along with it. Gone are the days of singing about "Insectiod Eyes". Its about time an extreme metal act gets credit for writing incredible music AND great lyrics.

Marsh

I absolutely love the new In Flames album. The first listen I was a bit disappointed, it just didn't sound like what I had expected. HOWEVER, after a 2nd a 3rd listen, the album really began to grow on me.

Their sound is incredibly advanced and refined for this album. After a couple listens, their last few albums began to sound stale and one-dimensional. Their old old stuff (colony, whoracle, etc) is still fantastic, but this is a different beast. There is just so much energy in their music, it is truly incredible.

I love how each new album they put out is completely different from the last. I love the surprise of the new sound they continue to come up with, yet it still remains easily distinguishable as the In Flames sound. In Flames is a band that truly progresses in each successive album, and I totally respect that. Bands that never change eventually die out. People like to be surprised. That is why people like In Flames.

Also, In Flames continues to put on one of the best live performances I have seen! If you get a chance to see them live in a small venue, take it!!

In my experience, there tend to be 3 kinds on In Flames fans.

Group 1 are the old hardcores. These fans loved the old In Flames, and their favorite albums are usually either Lunar Strain or The Jester Race. They hate the modern direction of the band, and pretty much can't stand anything post-Clayman.

Group 2 are the new fans. These fans usually like a lot of modern emo and/or metalcore music, and generally first discovered In Flames around Reroute to Remain or Soundtrack to your Escape.

Group 3 Loved the old In Flames, but have adapted to the change and still like their new material too.

Quite simply, this album is a continuation of the modern trend in In Flames' music. I'd say it is the spiritual successor to STYE more than anything, carrying on with the "Korn on 'roids" sound. Thus, if you are in group 1, you will hate this. Group 2 will probably like this album, and I can already see The Mirror's Truth doing pretty well as a metalcore single. Group 3 will probably like it as well, though (like me) they will probably still be wishing in the back of their mind that In Flames would release another album like they would have 10 years ago.

Basically, if you like new In Flames, this is for you. If you don't, this is not for you. They definately didn't take any steps back to their old form with this one.

In-Flames gave me what I would expect from In-Flames; metal packed music with fast paced, melodic, heavy guitar riffs, accompanied by the powerful, busy drums that give each guitar riff a new meaning as it does multiple rhythms in single parts. Bjorn's vocals on this album are as always powerful and well fitting to the melody and follow the music fantastically all the way through. Although many metal singers do this, I am a big fan of the way Bjorn switches from the scream to the voice on many of the songs as he gives the songs more range and he manages to bring out the melody further when he does the switches.

All in all Sense of Purpose is an outstanding metal album, however, I only give it four stars because I feel there is no progression from their previous album Come Clarity in regards to songwriting. Listening to Sense of Purpose, as much as I liked it, I felt it could have been named Come Clarity Part II. Despite that personal view of mine, I advise any metal fan to without hesitation buy this album...

Ok first off I have to say that I'm not a huge In Flames fan. I'm liking them more as I listen to them, but I only discovered them about four months ago. I have a mixed cd with about 21 songs from Whoracle through Come Clarity and that was enough for me, so I thought. When I first heard this band I had also recently got into Soilwork and I've been familliar with Killswitch Engage, not saying these guys sound exactly the same or anything, but that what I'm guessing is called a metalcore sound was kind of getting old for me. Even still I was able to find several songs that I enjoyed, but I never expected to like an album as much by these guys as I do this one.

My first thought when hearing this was that a lot of old fans will probably hate it. There are no death metal influences on this one. The vocals are a mix of singing and half screaming. I'm very impressed with the music on this one. The guitars are great, filled with great riffs and a lot of great melodies and solos. The drumming is also solid, especially in the first track "Mirror's truth."

Some will note that a lot of these songs sound the same, and to an extent that may be true, but for me there's enough variations to enjoy each song as its own. Some of the lyrics could have been better. "I feel like sh't but at least I feel something," is quite cringe worthy. I wouldn't mind it in a verse, but in a chorus it just doesn't work as well. Fortunately the song is quite catchy and I enjoy it in spite of the lyrics.

So far Alias is my favorite song of 08. I love the vocals especially in the chorus. I also really enjoy the lyrics in the chorus. There's a great acoustic section as well.

My only other minor complaint is that the sound of the guitars could have been heavier. I guess they wanted to emphasize the melodies, but I think they could have done that with a heavier sound, but that's just a minor complaint.

For me Ireally like this album. It's a solid metal album filled with catchy songs. If you're looking for a metalcore album or death metal album then this isn't it, but if you're looking for a collection of solid tunes that you can listen to again and again then give this a try.

I discovered Inflames in 2000 with their release of Clayman. That album is still on my top ten list of all time. Needless to say, Clayman is still my favorite Inflames album. ASOP is their best work since R2R and definately much better than their last album "Come clarity". The first half of the album is stronger than the second half, but it could possibly feel that way since I haven't invested much time in the second half since the first half is so great. ASOP is not easily comparable to any other Inflames album and Anders took a giant leap in direction on this album just as they did from Colony to Clayman as far as creativity and risks. Remeber many cried sellout when they first came out with Clayman and I thought there was nothing like it out there and that is what makes it special. If you are looking for a typical brutal death metal album buy the new dismember not the Inflames, but trust me ASOP will grow on you and become one of your favs for 2008. EM

I was looking for a really great metal album, and wanted something much harder than what I usually listened to. I love bands like Disturbed, Five Finger Death Punch, Lacuna Coil, Chevelle. However I have developed a taste for the much harder thrashier sound. I wanted something with the sensibility of a Tool or Metallica but a bit more angry and emotional. I found out about In Flames from a few forums and they seemed to be just what I was looking for.

This is a GREAT album. If you like good quality really hard metal, but aren't interested in something very very black, I think you would like In Flames. The melodic hard sound is just that perfect mix of shredding with a tempo. Some of the riffs are quite intricate and the quick solos top notch and at times even pretty.

I can't give this album a five rating, just because I have a hard time with the vocal quality. After a while the incessant cookie monster vocals are a bit tiresome. I think the growling is really good and certainly contrasts well with some of the more melodic riffs. (together they make and very interesting sweet and dark quality) However, I would have to reserve the five star for that mythical metal band that can do it all thrash, growl, amazing guitar and still have the ability to actually sing.

It never ceases to amaze me the amount of controversy raised with each new In Flames release. I like many others thought their last release CC was a nice return to form and brought back many older elements into the music again. However many still felt In Flames was still pandering to the nu-metal crowd and the album was no different than STTYE and RTR. Personally I really like both STTYE and especially RTR. I didn't mind some of the experimentation and nu-metal elements that came into play. After all it was never dominating and was still In Flames to me. However I did miss the guitar harmonies and solos and was glad to see In Flames bringing those elements back with CC along with some added aggression.

Enter new album ASOP. On the positive side In Flames has kept the guitar harmonies in tact and thrown in even more soloing. The album is very guitar driven and Anders vocals are better for the most part. The first 2 songs, while a bit commercial sounding, are very good and start the album well. 'I am the Highway' and 'Move through Me' are a couple standout songs in the middle of the album. But it's the last 4 tracks that really lift the album up another level a make it a very good one. These tracks are heavier and have a lot more sense of urgency. Heck, I would even say they saved the best track for last. 'March to the Shore' is killer!

On the negative, these songs are generally more laid back and less aggressive than CC. This may be due to the production a bit. While it is clearer, it lacks a little bite and power that could make these songs penetrate more. Also there are a few moments that do pander to the nu-metal crowd a bit much! Anders, though much improved from a technical standpoint, does a little too much whining as if he is trying to reach the teen angst emo crowd? It gets quite annoying honestly.

Overall this is a very good album from In Flames. Not quite a masterpiece like CC, RTR, Clayman, Colony, Whoracle, and Jester Race. But it does take a while to grow like some have mentioned, and I find myself liking it more and more with each spin!

As one reviewer put it, he has liked and defended all previous In Flames but he has to draw the line here. Well I am still on the the In Flames side of the line. ASOP is still very guitar driven and has plenty of good songs, harmonies, and solos to keep this long time fan happy. But I have to admit, In Flames are creeping dangerously close to that line here at times. Perhaps STTYE was the closest they have come to crossing it actually. So while ASOP is very good, a shift back towards the heavier while keeping the guitar harmonies and solos in tact would be appreciated next time!!

Many fans have been yearning for a return of The Jester Race era style of In Flames since they traveled from that path on Soundtrack To Your Escape. While this album isn't exactly what they have hoped for, it does serve as a good mix of both old and new In Flames styles which may keep old school fans interested. This album does not disappoint. These Melodeath Godfathers haven't lost their touch. The album is full of the guitar harmonies, melodies, and powerful choruses we'd expect from In Flames and are weaved throughout the album masterfully and the drums are phenomenal as always. They continue to show that they are masters of their craft. The album opens with the single The Mirror's Truth. Although the song is catchy, it's too short. Next is Disconnected, one of the most memorable songs on the album. This song features fast riffs and a powerful, anthemic chorus. Track 3, Sleepless Again, has a brief acoustic intro and is a very solid track. The acoustic guitars are put to better use in Alias with a brilliant bridge. Alias is a great song that features a melody reminiscent of Only For The Weak from Clayman. I could imagine Alias being a live hit, with a chorus you can chant along with.

I am The Highway follows the trend of fast and melodic guitars and a sung chorus. Delight and Angers is another sing-along, anthemic song. Move Through Me has a more heavy feeling than previous songs on the album and has a nice groove to it. The guitar solos are a nice touch, too. The album then takes a bold, progressive step with The Chosen Pessimist. This is the longest In Flames song, clocking in at over 8 minutes. This is a slow ballad with an amazing climax, but it feels almost out of place at this point in the album. It feels like this would be a better album closer. The next song Sober and Irrelevant has a classic In Flames feel to it. The guitar solo in this song is fantastic, but it's over too soon, like some of the other solos on this album. Condemned features a heavy groove and some powerful guitar lines that accompany Anders' voice to make this an outstanding song. Drenched In Fear is this album's highlight song. The chorus reminds me of Reroute To Remain's epic chorus. The clean singing and vocal harmonies really make this song stand out. Some might feel that this song is too poppy, but there is nothing wrong with vocal hooks and melodies. Songs like this are what makes In Flames stand out in the metal world. The last song March To The Shore kind of pales in comparison to it's predecessors. It's a good song, don't get me wrong, but it leaves more to be desired and doesn't seem very fitting to be at the end of the album.

The lyrics in this album follow the trend set by previous efforts, whereas they focus on internal struggles and conflicts with society. They have improved, though, despite a few lines here and there that come across as whiney. As for vocal skills, Anders does a great job. His raspy voice compliments the music well.

Overall, A Sense Of Purpose is a fantastic album. It is without a doubt the best album since Clay Man. Possibly better! In Flames did a great job with this album by mixing aspects of their older and newer styles. Some fans of the old In Flames style may get in a butt-hurt over this album and refuse to give it another try, which is a shame. A Sense of Purpose does take time to sink in, and once it does, you can see it for what it really is a masterpiece!