In Flames

“Come Clarity” (Ferret Music)

compare to: Soilwork , Dark Tranquility

REVIEW: 3 / 5

In short: On its eighth album, Sweden’s In Flames continues its evolution from melodic death metal machine to accessible Ozzfest headliner.

For Swedish quintet In Flames, the road to mainstream metal success has been a long, strange trip. Beginning life in the mid ’90s as one of the pioneering bands of “Gothenburg style” death metal, a sound that crossed the twin guitar leads of Iron Maiden with the eviscerating ferocity of Carcass, few could have imagined the band ever attaining more than a cult following.

However, In Flames has proven the naysayers wrong, securing a spot on the main stage at last year’s Ozzfest and gaining scores of new listeners with each release. Although many long-time fans have been crying sellout since the release of 2004’s nu-metal damaged “Soundtrack to Your Escape,” In Flames latest album goes a long way toward capturing former glories, but still incorporates the band’s recent mainstream leanings. Tracks such as “Take this Life” and “Vacuum” show In Flames recapturing some of the aggression “Soundtrack” lacked, and “Dead End” features female vocals during the verses and the title track flirts with that time-honored metal tradition – the power ballad.

Although its attempts at experimentation don’t always work, In Flames continues to look for that careful balance between mainstream metal catchiness and underground aggression with increasingly successful results.

– Joshua Haun