I, the Mask In Flames

• 1 Voices 04:47
• 2 I, the Mask 03:41
• 3 Call My Name 03:33
• 4 I Am Above 03:49
• 5 Follow Me 04:55
• 6 (This Is Our) House 04:18
• 7 We Will Remember 04:04
• 8 In This Life 03:52
• 9 Burn 03:43
• 10 Deep Inside 04:21
• 11 All the Pain 04:29
• 12 Stay with Me 05:16
• Total Runtime 50:48

Info for I, the Mask

Mittlerweile ist IN FLAMES mehr eine musikalische Institution in der Welt des Metal als einfach nur eine Band. Seit sie halfen, Schwedens legendären Sound der “Göteborger Schule” vor drei Jahrzehnten mitzubegründen, hat die Band stets einen Bogen um Trends gemacht, um ihren eigenen musikalischen Weg zu gehen. Das wird besonders auf ihrem 13. Studioalbum, »I, The Mask« deutlich, für das sie sich – um ihren Klang noch weiter zu verfeinern – erneut mit dem mehrfachen Grammy-Gewinner und Produzenten Howard Benson (MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE, MOTÖRHEAD) zusammenschlossen, der auch schon »Battles« (2016) produziert hatte.

Anders als auf früheren Aufnahmen, haben sich Fridén und Gelotte dieses Mal drei Wochen vor dem Produktionsbeginn von »I, The Mask« in Los Angeles getroffen und dort den Großteil der Songs zusammengetragen. Von da an haben Gitarrist Niclas Engelin, Bassist Bryce Paul Newman und der vorherige Drummer Joe Rickard den Arrangement noch etwas Substanz verliehen, bevor die Band dann zwei Monate im Studio mit den Aufnahmen verbrachte. (»I, The Mask« ist auch das letzte Album, bei dem Rickard am Schlagzeug saß. Er wurde nach den Aufnahmen von Tanner Wayne abgelöst, der auf dem Track ‘(This Is Our) House’ zu hören ist.) Abschließend war dann noch Chris Lord-Alge für das Mixing zuständig, der schon mit praktisch jedem großen Namen der Musikindustrie von CHEAP TRICK bis LINKIN PARK gearbeitet hat, während das Mastering von Ted Jensen (PANTERA, EAGLES, GUNS N’ ROSES) übernommen wurde.

Das Ergebnis ist ein Album mit monumentalem Klang, das deutlich macht, warum IN FLAMES als eine der größten Metalbands der Welt gelten. Von der Art, wie akustische Gitarren auf der Power-Ballade ‘Call My Name’ Platz für hymnische Riffs machen, über die gnadenlosen Riffs auf ‘Burn’ bis hin zu dem synkopischen Groove von ‘I Am Above’ ist »I, The Mask« ein vielfältiges Album, auf dem sich die Band musikalisch weit ausstreckt und Musik erschafft, die eingängig klingt und gleichzeitig geradezu zerstörerisch. Als treibende Kraft hinter all dem war es für Fridén wichtig, sich auf dem Album selbst herauszufordern und drei Tage in der Woche sogar Gesangsunterricht zu nehmen, um sein Arsenal an Fähigkeiten zu erweitern.

Zugegeben, wenn man sich erst »The Jester Race« von 1996 anhört und dann »I, The Mask«, gibt es da schon wesentliche musikalische Unterschiede, aber im Verlauf der veröffentlichten IN FLAMES-Alben kann man deutlich ihre Entwicklung sehen, und auch hören, wie sie es geschafft haben, ihre Relevanz in der Szene zu behalten, sich aber nie auf ihrem Erfolg auszuruhen.

In Flames

In Flames
In a music scene full of seemingly endless subgenres and transient trends, In Flames are an example of what it means to steadfastly stay true to your vision. Since forming in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1990 the legendary melodic metal act have toured the planet countless times and influenced many of today's biggest metal acts without ever ceasing to push their own signature sound forward. In that spirit the band's twelfth full-length Battles sees In Flames eschewing proven formulas in favor of trying new things, most notably finding a new collaborator in Grammy-nominated producer Howard Benson (My Chemical Romance, The Used ) who was brought into the band's coveted inner circle in order make Battles an album that will appeal to every type of In Flames fan.

“This album came together much sooner than we thought it would,” guitarist Björn Gelotte explains when asked about the writing process. “I was very reluctant in the beginning but I had a bunch of riffs so I just sat down with [vocalist] Anders [Fridén] and started working on stuff and it began to come together really quickly.” Before bringing things to bassist Peter Iwers and guitarist Niclas Engelin, the duo decided to leave the comforts of Sweden for Los Angeles where they would write all day and then BBQ and drink beer until the early hours of the morning. “I think being in California really affected this album in the sense that we had a studio in the house that we were staying at and the vibe was really relaxed which lent itself to productivity,” Fridén adds.

In fact although the band were only planning on recording 11 songs they actually came away with 15 of them and this inspiration was partially due to Benson's influence on the overall process. “I think it really helped having a producer who could make us focus on what we needed to accomplish and keep us on track,” Fridén continues. “This was a very new approach for us because we've never let anyone else in the way we did with Howard,” Gelotte adds. “We met with a lot of producers prior to starting this album and he seemed like the only guy who didn't want to change anything; he just wanted to make sure we were making the best In Flames record that we could and it just felt right,” he continues. “It's not that we aren't happy doing things ourselves. we just thought we would try something different because that's what this band has always been about.”

That confidence and palpable excitement is dripping all over Battles from the instantly infectious “take the power back” anthem “The Truth” to the jaw-dropping technical brutality of “Through My Eyes” and distinctive groove and climactic chorus of the album's title track. In other words, the album sees the band making the hooks sharper, the riffs tighter and honing the overall attack in a way that parallels their legendary live shows in an unparalleled fashion. “When people hear this album I think they're going to instantly know that it's the new In Flames without us repeating the same song over and over and that's something I'm incredibly proud of,” Fridén says. “There's something in the fingers of the guys and my voice that's undeniable but I really hope that our songwriting is something can continue to evolve the way that it did here in the future.”

That relentless drive to innovate in light of their success is something that's been inherent in In Flames' approach from day one and it's something they've never lost sight of despite their countless accolades and constant reinventions. ”We decided early on we are going to do this band our way and aren't going to think about what the flavor of the month is,” explains Gelotte. “In the end we are the ones who are going to have to play these songs and stand behind them and as long as we love what we you do and make the listener feel it then that's what makes it an In Flames song,” he continues. “That may sound like a cliché but it's true. We need the music to be as interesting to us as it is to our fans because this has never just been a job for us, it's a way of life.”

This mission statement to be working as evidenced by the fact that In Flames' audience is a wide range of ages, genders and music fans, which is ultimately due to the fact that the band have never tried to be something they're not. “The beautiful thing about this band is that you can do whatever the fuck you want and that's the whole point of the music because all of the restrictions and labeling kills it in a way,” Gelotte summarizes. “This time around we had the Howard filter to come in and give us a new perspective on how we could approach this songs but ultimately what it comes down to is very simple: Is it good or is it bad? If it's something that all of us can stand behind and be proud of then we know that it's an In Flames song.”

This album contains no booklet.