In Flames - The Jester Race (1996)

Lineup:

• Anders Fridén
• Jesper Strömblad
• Glenn Ljungström
• Björn Gelotte
• Johan Larsson

Track Listing:

1. Moonshield
2. The Jesters Dance
3. Artifacts Of The Black Rain
4. Graveland
5. Lord Hypnos
6. Dead Eternity
7. The Jester Race
8. December Flower
9. Wayfare
10. Dead God In Me

the first time i heard IF, i was stunned. The reason being, i was told that this was a black metal album & so most of the black metal albums released back in 1996 sounded grim & thats a good thing if you like black metal.
however, In Flames were not a black metal band, but the new vocalist Anders Fridén who was with Dark Tranquility before making In Flames his home, did have growly & raspy vocals which would get any black metal followers interested.

But the melody, twin guitar harmonies, catchy grooves & classical arrangements made this a totally different musical experience all together.

the classical guitar intro to the opening Moonshield just tells you what to expect from this brilliant talented band. every song gets better n better with more melody, & fantastic guitar arrangements.

The Jesters Dance is a short 2 minute song with classical guitars, heavy palm muting riffs & grooves all aligned in perfect symmetry. The The Jester Race is another smooth track where the guitar melodies just wont refuse to go away.

Wayfare is another cool instrumental track which has serious progressive overtones. at one point in the track it sounds as if Eddie Van Halen was Jamming with his Swedish counterparts.
the sense of melody is impeccable.

in fact all the songs are very strong & the high light being the guitar driven classically arranged parts which are everywhere. the production is good but could have been a lot better, as it doesn't do justice to the fantastic guitar parts.

if one takes away the vocals (the only thing really death metal here) & drums , all you are left with is just some really fine European classical music played by really talented guitarists Jesper Strömblad and Glenn Ljungström.


even though this album doesnt really get the credit it deserves, it still makes a very impressive listen. If At The Gates were responsible for starting the whole Gothenburg death metal movement, also known as melodic death metal, then In Flames should be credited for making it popular.

Get this one please

My Rating
9/10

review by Pritham 'Metal farmer' D'Souza