So, this EP/single comes as a pre-album tease for us diehard In Flames fans, and I think it served it's purpose quite nicely indeed.
Now, the thing about In Flames is that they cannot afford to turn out another album that sounds similar to ANY of their past works if they want to regain the respect of metal fans everywhere. This EP proves that they can live up to these expectations that I (and many others) have for them.
So let's analyze the music on this EP then. The guitar work throughout, I find, sounds like a great mix of In Flames' new and old eras. There's definitely a reason that In Flames is one of the biggest metal bands in the world today, and their masterful creation of melodic riffs is definitely a contender for the reason of said popularity. Looking around, I've seen people comparing the riffs (especially on the track "Tilt") to The Jester Race-era In Flames, which definitely isn't a bad thing at all.
The drumming is absolutely phenomenal and has evolved slightly from their past efforts. It has just the right mix of death metal technicallity and metalcore catchiness. Let's just say that people whose ears gravitate towards the drumming in a song will not be disappointed in the least,
Now, Anders is the only reason I didn't just give the EP 100%, His vocals are as catchy as ever, but his harsh isn't quite harsh anymore, and the constant layering of his pseudo-harsh and clean vocals gets kind of messy at times. Still, it shows that fans of Come Clarity will still be digging the vocals on this album, which is obviously important for mainstream success. The strong clean vocals in both "Tilt" and "Abnegation" are very promising, giving off a very Bjorn Strid (Soilwork) type of vibe. The chorus on "Abnegation" is definitely one of their strongest in a while. Also, I appreciated the lack of the soft, brooding vocals present on past songs like "My Sweet Shadow". I don't know, maybe some people really like that from Anders, but it sounded like a speed-bump to me.
Overall, this EP gives new hope that "A Sense Of Purpose" is going to be absolutely crushing. It seems like In Flames is writing tracks that are appealing to both old and new fans of the band, leading one to believe that "A Sense Of Purpose" will be just the fresh offering that In Flames fans everywhere are craving.
I, for one, can't wait!