Clayman

In Flames got their shit together with this release. Every song on this album is good - not a single dull track. This is an album I can play from Bullet Ride to Another Day in Quicksand without having to worry about that moment where I go, "Oh shit, this is the boring song I don't like" *skip*.

Now that doesn't mean that every song is classic material, there's just not a single bad song. I tried looking for a song that didn't have a single good riff or hook - failed. I tried looking for a song that was good and catchy but just not memorable - failed. When you combine great riffs, catchy hooks and original ideas to create an atmospheric album, it's going to turn out excellent.

Some say that this is the album where things started going downhill for In Flames. I say that happened when they changed producers, this is the last album produced by Fredrik Nordström. The difference between this album and its close sibling Colony are the diversity of ideas. They continue the tradition of acoustic breaks with Square Nothing, but also incorporate a spacey sounding acoustic break to introduce Satellites and Astronauts. Each song also has its own little quirk - Only For the Weak is that sing-a-long chorus and the neckbreaking opening riff. Suburban Me is the blurting bass-line in the first verse. Clayman has that arpeggio during the bridge and the circle-pit inducing chorus. Did I mention how well this album is mixed? All the instruments are where they are supposed to be - the bass isn't too muted and carries the rhythm with the drums and the guitars are up front and loud.

The only thing this album fails to deliver are memorable solos. When I think of Clayman, I think of hooks and catchy songs - not solos, and that is why this is only my second favorite album by In Flames.