well the new In Flames album "A Sense of Purpose" has officially leaked onto the Internet, and while my initial reactions were disappointment, the album has come to grow on me, if only marginally. The album has a very distinctive sound its best described as a mix of old and new school sounds, which at times can be frustrating, like on the track Sleepless Again, which starts with a Whoracle-esqe acoustic riff, which got me thinking initially " OMG THIS IS IT, IN FLAMES MIGHT HAVE RETURNED" but then abruptly goes into Come Clarity ****thrashing and rasping, which is probably the best way to describe Anders voice on this album, raspy. The drums are for the most part great, and the album has solos which was great and remind one of the colony days, that is before it abruptly ends and goes into new-school territory. With that said, i do like new in flames, just not as much as there older material. New in flames relys on greats choruses, personal lyrics, and and a great sense of struggle. THe only probelm is only two fo those three elements are in play here, teh choruses and lyrics. What made Come Clairty and Soundtrack so special was sense of struggle in them, this album just feels bland and uninspired. That is probably my biggest problem with the album, it feels as if they didnt even put any effort into it. All in all, I originally disliked this album, but after multiple listenings I accepted that this wasn't Whoracle 2, and grew to appreciate it for what it is......but after that section I went through I went straight back to dissapointment. While there are a few killer tracks that really remind me why i love In Flames so much in the first place (March to the Shore, Delights and Angers, and Sleepless Again) too much of the album feels lazy, uninspired and just bland
I grudgingly give this album a...6/10
Sad Days indeed