CD REVIEW: IN FLAMES "A SENSE OF PURPOSE"

In Flames
“A Sense Of Purpose”
KOCH RECORDS
www.INFLAMES.com

“A Sense Of Purpose” a disc, chock full of emotional subtitles, sub states of mind, and prolific musicianship arrives the leviathan of melodic metal. Lyrically diving deep into untapped emotions, only for the strong to endure, and honest. Musically, another piercing in the ears, yet a welcome one… not of pain, but of intense scores, layers, pleasure and viscosity. A thick flow of musical injections, released one dose at a time. Amongst the highly favored tracks are the following:

The Mirror’s Truth; Nice short ditty to bring you into the world of IN FLAMES metal, in a matter of 20 seconds you have been brought into the thick gi-normous wall of sound form Sweden, let your senses be inflamed, let them be awakened to the first track of this disc. Intricate decisive guitar panning, searing bass guitar, locked on drums, and haunting vocal parades this song down the avenue of time, unsinkable, unfathomable and unrelenting.

Sleepless Again; A momentary acoustic intro, lead one to believe this will be a slow song. Listener beware, this is only a moment in time. The songs rips right into the audio spectrum of heavy laden bass drum rolls, multi-faceted-panning tom fills, awe inspiring bass line, and adrenaline injected guitars. Are your veins bigger yet? They should be, if not check your pulse.

Alias; The acoustic guitar feel reminds the listener of Metallica’s classic “Fight Fire With Fire” track (ie Ride The Lightning). Cliff Burton would be proud of the melodic arrangement in this track. The accents provided by the synthesizers just add to the comforting surround of melodies interspersed all throughout this opus.

I’m the Highway; Swift music introductions that curve into haunting lead guitar interludes combined with alluring melodic riffs make this another IN FLAMES classic. An unforgettable mixing of intricate drum work, low end bass guitar, mind searing vocals, and juicy distortion… nice work.

Delight and Angers; hypnotic and calming gang style vocals. Hard to imagine a caustic vocal run can be soothing, trust me, it can be. Relentless drum pacing and bass guitar rumblings ensure this to be a hit in the metal scene.

Move Through Me; rhythmic pulsing section, guitars/bass/drums, add the hook into the track. An urgent call to arms, a cause for reaction, a cause for chain reaction. From the track, to the player, to the volume, to the neck, to the bang.

The Chosen Pessimist; the longest track on the disc and the most emotionally musically sculpted piece of the disc. Slow melancholy guitars introduce the track to unleash a fury found later in the track. Drums and Bass in lock step unison, a clear distinction in sound, a mixing dream come true. For fans of Rammstein’s slower songs such as Engel, this is for you. I see the lyrical content as a plea for answers – the kind of answers only God can afford. Like thematically, in Hilastherion’s song “Why”, this song awakes you the reality of life and questions and the pursuit of answers.

Sober and Irrelevant; highly persuasive guitar solos and twin guitar flaring. Amongst the fuzzy and gray metal music scene that often times pervades popular culture, arrives a track of definition and clarity. Come clarity. Forthwith, we arrive at a audible shocking of the senses.

Condemned; strong wielding guitars curve the sound with highly punctual and active drumming. Fast, easy flowing bass guitar lowers the growl of the song, the sonic indulgence only In Flames can produce! Hark, yield to the Established Kings of melodic metal, das Konung.

Drenched In Fear; A fresh breath of air to the highly stimulated eardrums. The kind of fresh air you get after getting punched in the gut. No air left, but only to suck in the this with a yearning for emotional calmness. Where is the voice of reason? Let not this metal madness end, too good to pass up. Harmonic vocals, inventive drum surrounds, solid bass resonating, and racing harmonic/melodies on guitars. A masterpiece amongst many on this disc.

March to the Shore; pushing the envelope once again, the most apparent song on the release. A clean delineation of guitar sounds, mix well with the solid thickness of the bass. The drums cadence well with the vocal arrangements. At just the right time, just the right punch on the bass drum and snap of the snare. Well used splash cymbals add emotional effect in switching moods.

Thanks to KOCH RECORDS for sending us the disc. Well worth the listening over and over.