r/melodicdeathmetal • u/Lanxturn In Flames (1994-2002) • 10d ago
Discussion Which band do you think has fallen off the most since their prime and which one do you think can (or is already) pulling themselves back around?
I think In Flames is the unfortunate most obvious pick. Listen I get it, they’re artists and they wanna “evolve” their style into however it fits them creatively and I support them as musicians on that basis. However, it’s hard to look past the contrast of how comically average their new music is compared to the god-like heights of their 90’s era.
Over the past few months I’ve started to come a lot more favorable to Dark Tranquillity, and their past 2 albums are surprisingly solid! Glad to see them still going strong and I hope for the best in the future
Thoughts/discussions?
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u/AKjon92 10d ago
I feel both arch enemy and amon amart has been very bland in their latest albums, their pre covid stuff is fantastic tho
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u/kirkcummett In Flames 10d ago
Amon Amarth has been releasing the same album since after Deceiver of the Gods lol. There are a few good songs here and there but overall it's pretty bland
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u/bonesawtheater 10d ago
They definitely peaked with Twilight. Everything after that was mid at best.
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u/kirkcummett In Flames 10d ago
Especially the last album. I can't hear a difference between all songs and they sound like they were specifically made for live performances
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u/dsoi 10d ago
Arch Enemy, for me, really started to fall off after Rise of the Tyrant. And it honestly has nothing to do with Alissa as a frontman, I just think the songs started to sound very bland in the 2010s and onward.
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u/DappyDreams 10d ago
This coincides with when Chris stopped giving a fuck and Michael took over the songwriting reins
(Yes I know Chris left the band and rejoined between Doomsday and Tyrant, which solidifies my point nicely)
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u/historicusXIII 10d ago
I think War Eternal still stood out, but the rest is all indeed bland and same-same.
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u/PostIronicPosadist 9d ago
Deceivers is pretty darn good as well, but I agree on the rest being meh
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u/sithrevan1207 9d ago
Amon Amarth is such a bummer. I got into them around Jomsviking and honestly I think that is their last great album, and even that one is one of their weaker albums looking back. They peaked at With Oden on Our Side through Surtur Rising imo. I don’t think I’ve listened to anything off their last album even once since I listened to it when it came out, and hardly anything off Berserker either
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u/Bethanydk419 4d ago
I liked Decievers but blood dynasty boring af. My least favorite AE album post Angela joining. First 3. Great music but just can't stand Johans vocals. They just don't work. Agreed on Amon Amarth doing the same album over and over its like they've run out of viking lore
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u/KingBolo992 10d ago
I've been listening to a shit ton of Dark Tranquility lately. They have been killing it and imo they don't have any bad albums in their discography.
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u/Daewoo40 10d ago
Think the closest they come to a "bad" album is Construct, and that's not too bad it's just a way off Haven, Fiction, etc.
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u/lemsvga 10d ago
We are the void sounds pretty uninspired to me if anything.
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u/Daewoo40 10d ago
Apathetic is just the only song that really stood out off Construct - for the wrong reasons.
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u/Bethanydk419 4d ago
Agreed absolutely every album solid ma favorite still the Gallery Fiction second though
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u/michael199310 10d ago
Amon Amarth, from sound to compositions and even cover arts. They steadily declined since Surtur.
In Flames made a step into right direction with Foregone.
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u/DemodiX Insomnium 10d ago edited 10d ago
Before The Dawn. Banger albums 2003-2008, mediocre after, starting to pull themselves back slightly with later stuff.
Surprisingly same-ish for Wolfheart, early albums are so damn good and after Skull Soldiers barely 3 good songs for me.
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u/Lanxturn In Flames (1994-2002) 10d ago
Nice I’ll check them out! A good “light at the end of the tunnel” that they’re coming back around with the later stuff lol
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u/TidesTheyTurn 10d ago
Shit, I didn’t realize they had even returned. It’s just not the same without the original clean vocalist for me. And now the main guy is on drums? Even though I’m sure he writes plenty (if not everything) like his other projects, the snippets I’ve browsed just now pale in comparison to the old stuff.
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u/Grumpy_Fella 10d ago edited 10d ago
Agreed. It's almost as if having too many bands to work on has a detrimental effect. For me, Saukkonen's peak was sometime around 2009-2013 (corresponding with Black Sun Aeon)
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u/DevilsGrip 10d ago
Those first 2 Wolfheart albums blew me away! After that I totally got bored with them.
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u/Ok_Damage5952 10d ago
Arch Enemy for me. Such formulaic rubbish they've pushed out the last several albums.
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u/Miserable-Sound2923 10d ago
Thing that annoys me about them is they will release a couple absolutle bangers of songs most albums then have the rest of the album be very bland. Like they show they can do great things then just dont.
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u/Lanxturn In Flames (1994-2002) 10d ago
I think they’re middle of the road passable records, but I didn’t mind Blood Dynasty
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u/crazy_lolipopp 10d ago
In flames by far. One of the biggest downfalls in all of metal imo.
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u/antinumerology 10d ago
Jester Race to Clayman are 4 of the best metal albums of all time let alone melodic death metal. And then nothing but garbage for A QUARTER OF A CENTURY.
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u/crazy_lolipopp 9d ago
Yep. I mean Reroute to Come Clarity is alright and I have a lot of nostalgia for that era but after that they got unbearable.
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u/l33tfuzzbox 8d ago
I dont like aoundtrack, but come clarity is a beast. I really loved sense of purpose at thr time but haven't felt the need to revisit it in a while. Did see them live 3 times foe that cycle. After that though, ugh. Foregone is a step in the right direction. The previous had I am above which slays too.
Colony is always their best though.
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u/antinumerology 9d ago
I was in my late teens when Reroute came out and it sounded like garbage to me then, and still does now. That's very generous you. But I will not disparage anyone that shows respect to Jester Race which is probably in the top 5 albums of all time for me any genre.
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u/flames2388 9d ago
Foregone is not an unbearable album dude lol not in the slightest
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u/crazy_lolipopp 9d ago
Sure, that album is the only exception I'll take. It's still mid tho.
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u/flames2388 9d ago
Ahhh glad you recognize it at least. I couldn’t disagree anymore with it being “mid” though lol 😆 cheers man 🍻
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u/IntenseFlanker 9d ago
It was a step in the right direction, but still has a few modern In Flames stinkers on it. Pure Light of Mind could have stayed in the cutting room dumpster.
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u/flames2388 9d ago
Damn really??! lol 😆 options are crazy, I think it’s one of the best songs on the album, it’s a great ballady track
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u/Huemun 9d ago
Meh thats a bit of an exaggeration. Those albums were still good for what they were. It's after Jesper left that the band really went to shit.
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u/antinumerology 9d ago
Jester Race is "still good for what it was"? What? It's one of the best metal albums of all time and that hasn't changed.
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u/Huemun 9d ago
I'm talking about the albums after Clayman like Reroute to Remain to Sounds of a Playground fading. Those albums had good songs and were well written and produced but weren't really good melodic death metal albums because the band had left the sound they had before. I never mentioned Jester Race. IMO Jester Race is good but Whoracle is hands down In Flames best record.
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u/antinumerology 9d ago
Ah k my apologies. Yeah I'll duke it out about JR vs W but that's like arguing 11/10 vs 12/10 so there's no point. I have to disagree though that anything after Clayman has good songs though. There's just nothing of substance there. Well written well produced nothingness.
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u/Limp-Training-5137 10d ago
In flames by far imo. Melodies in the latest albums where a glimpse of the past but the lyrics and feeling are not.
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u/Lanxturn In Flames (1994-2002) 10d ago
^^^this
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u/bonesawtheater 10d ago
Don’t know why you’re getting downvoted
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u/mentally_fuckin_eel In Flames 9d ago
People on reddit hate people responding with "this" because it's considered a pointless non-response. Redditors love to overcorrect issues by downvoting people to oblivion.
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u/Dzilla1080 10d ago
Nobody has mentioned how IF showed signs of pulling themselves back with foregone. Banger of an album with a few bad ones sprinkled in there.
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u/ParanoidalRaindrop 10d ago
First thought was IF too, but I'm also kinda displeasd with Eluveites newest release too. That's just that single release though.
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u/Mysterious-Policy577 10d ago
I mean, alestorm went downhill after black sails at midnight and the ones after back through time at most contains one or two good songs
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u/DeepFryEverything 9d ago
Last years album is an absolute banger. I would highly recommend it. It's my favorite since Sunset.
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u/Randsu 10d ago
Since IF has been mentioned already I'll say children of bodom, fell off pretty hard but I thought hexed was excellent
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u/Ok_Damage5952 10d ago
Hexed was easily their best since HCDR/AYDY (although I feel it was better than AYDY, but it's possibly not a popular position). But tbh, I actually love a lot of Bloodrunk and RRF but not so Halo/UWC
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u/mjstokes85 Children Of Bodom 10d ago
Blooddrunk and Relentless, Reckless, Forever were poor but Halo of Blood then was a massive return to form and actually their best album in my opinion.
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u/PrometheanDemise 9d ago
Yeah I really loved everything up to and including Blooddrunk, they lost me after that and I thought Hexed was pretty great.
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u/LukaDonwitzki Be'lakor 10d ago
Good shout. I was stunned by how much I loved Hexed after 4 straight albums that I was left feeling disappointed by
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u/Honeysenpaiharuchan IOTUNN 10d ago
Somehow I can’t get into Dark Tranquillity because I find them just boring. But I saw them live and I have a lot of respect for their talent and ability to put on a banger show.
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u/bonesawtheater 10d ago
YES. I feel this way too, even with their classic albums. Saw ‘em live and was entertained l, but it still didn’t tip the scales for me.
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u/SaxophoniumYT_769 The Halo Effect 9d ago
The only album i really like by DT is Fiction, maybe i should listen to an early album again but last time i did nothing stuck with me
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u/Mkolt451 10d ago
Wait, am I the only one who thought Foregone was a slight return to form for In Flames?
Sure, it’s not Colony but I’m not expecting a return to that. But I thoroughly enjoyed Foregone more than the most recent Soilwork albums.
Disarmonia Mundi is worth a mention.
Unanimated as well.
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u/Lanxturn In Flames (1994-2002) 10d ago
It’s a welcome re-introduction back to REAL melodeath imo, but is a longgg ways to go until it’s back on track. I do hope it’s a sign of blending modern with old school classics though! (Not at ALL in the same way as Clayman re-recorded tho)
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u/MaxInTheGameIndustry 3d ago
I think the newer Soilwork albums are really good but VERY different, so definitely not in line with the vibe the band gave off in their first several albums.
Disarmonia Mundi's Dormant Stranger is so weirdly bad when pretty much their 2004 - 2015 were incredible. Cold Inferno is so goddamn good.
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u/christfrost 9d ago
- Wolfheart. First three records are unbelievable. And then suddenly it's absolute snoozefest ever since. Not sure if they'll come back.
- In Flames. Not gonna go in details there.
- Soilwork peaked with Living Infinite. Not really sure what happened afterwards.
- Scar Symmetry had a good start.
Has to give props to the Insomnium, dudes been giving out consistent A tier albums their whole career.
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u/MaxInTheGameIndustry 3d ago
I'd say that Scar Symmetry's first 3 albums are incredible and then the first album with the new singers was pretty good. I have a soft spot for them, so even their 'bad' stuff I really enjoy.
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u/nakano-star 10d ago
Yup, IF and Opeth. Old stuff is fire
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u/CadianGrunt8675309 10d ago
The most recent Opeth album is a great example of a band bringing themselves back (for those that didn’t like the solely prog direction). Easily one of their best.
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u/EasyMode556 10d ago
It was still a little too proggy for my tastes but hopefully this was just them dipping their toes back in the metal water and they’ll come back full force in due time
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u/Mkolt451 10d ago
I think that’s being a little too generous lol. Sure, there’s a little bit of growl vocals as opposed to zero on the previous 3 albums but all other aspects, not even close to Still Life or Blackwater. Calling it one of their best is subjective, because I don’t recall it doing much for me and I gave it a solid 3-4 listens when it first dropped. That being said, since it’s been a while and I DO have it on vinyl, I will revisit it this morning.
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u/Poopydoopyhead123 9d ago
Opeth? Fallen off? You must know about some other band named opeth, because our swedish boys have consistently put out amazing music for 30 years. Weakest album is sorceress imo, but it's still pretty good. Their 2 most recent are great, heritage is awesome, and pale communion is one of their best.
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u/QuintoriusBestBoy 10d ago
I still like modern In Flames, but I won't deny the difference: Jester Race through Clayman is legit the kind of music I'd send to space to proudly represent what the human race has achieved in terms of musical entertainment. SOAPF to Foregone is more of a guilty pleasure, and there are some glaring flaws in their modern songwriting.
Dark Tranquillity was already mentioned a few times in this thread, but they were my immediate thought for a counter-example. Atoma (from their 11th album) and Wayward Eyes (from the 13th) are among their very best songs in my opinion. The entirety of Moment is extremely enjoyable as well. They really struck gold with their current guitarist (Johan Reinholdz), and Mikael's voice has never wavered.
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u/Mkolt451 10d ago
I’d say Soundtrack and Come Clarity are part of the pre-suck era. There were some aspects of sucking on those two but there were still bangers.
Foregone is the first sign of them leaving the suck era, hopefully. lol.
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u/QuintoriusBestBoy 10d ago
I was thinking the same, that's why I didn't mention these albums from the middle of the discography. Soundtrack is actually one of my favourite albums of all time (but unlike the early era, it's definitely more of an acquired taste). Very unique vibes and production.
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u/cloudconnected88 9d ago
In Flames pulled a Hail Mary, huge comeback with Foregone. It may not be the style everyone wants front to back but truly some bangers with Foregone pt1, the great deceiver, and state of slow decay being objectively good songs, much closer to early 2000s levels quality.
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u/Dzilla1080 9d ago
State of slow decay gives me chills. Especially the parts where anders goes DEEP, you know the part? Those are the same chills when I listen to clayman album.
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u/cloudconnected88 8d ago
Riiight! I honestly think there’s some moments on Foregone that recapture that “In Flames” magic. For me it’s those 3 I already mentioned, but I really enjoy “A dialogue”, “meet your maker”, and “in the dark” too even if they aren’t quite as good. And then I’ll give some credit to “I, the mask” which I don’t really think is a great album but if you take the first 4-5 songs + “stay” it’s a damn fine EP.
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u/Old_Map3920 9d ago
In Flames had a perfect run until 2011, but then came Siren Charms. However, with Foregone, they redeemed themselves for me.
Arch Enemy is just boring af (I couldn't even like their earlier stuff after giving Burning Bridges a chance, In Flames and DT did it way better imo), but the new single with Lauren is promising.
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u/Gravesplitter Dark Tranquillity 10d ago
Dark Tranquillity*
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u/Lanxturn In Flames (1994-2002) 10d ago
Thanks!
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u/Gravesplitter Dark Tranquillity 10d ago
But yes I agree with you, Dark Tranquillity doesn’t have a single bad album. I fell off them a little with We Are the Void/Construct but I’ve been listening to them again nonstop and those are both excellent albums especially Construct.
And of course Endtime Signals is excellent.
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u/Lanxturn In Flames (1994-2002) 10d ago
Same I’m the same way, they have their “ebb & flow” moments with me as well but I always come back appreciating that they are just overall generally consistent
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u/Excellent_Worth_5658 9d ago
I actually really liked In Flames' 2023 album Foregone! To me, it was their strongest album in many years (since Come Clarity, which is one of my favorites). They still put on a killer live show, too, so I don't think of them as anywhere past their prime.
I think Amon Amarth is starting to get a little stale. I've listened to them since "Versus the World" and still love them, and they also put on a good show, but I haven't really connected strongly with any of their music since With Oden On Our Side and some songs off Twilight of the Thunder God. They're more popular than ever, but I feel like they're becoming a legacy act and mostly living off the strength of their core discography.
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u/Slapnutmagoo2U 9d ago
Jesus Christ the in flames talk is endless. There is many many many people who like the newer stuff. One of the most worn out things spoke about.
No offence intended. Music is entirely subjective.
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u/izovice 9d ago
Idk man, Foregone was a pretty decent return. I'll admit I skip a bit of songs from Purpose to Battles. Their core sound imo is still very much there in every album.
I'd like to hear more Scar Symmetry. Hard to do without Christian though. Not really a falling off but a falling apart.
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u/Workdiggitz 9d ago
Unfortunately the band has had alot of line up changes as well and has pretty much just become Pers passion project. And while he was always the main songwriter and still plays amazing the new stuff feels like everything is written to a drum machine. Like it dosent feel like a band anymore if that makes sense. I love scar symmetry and hope per continues to make more records but the feel is just not the same as it used to be.
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u/Bokuja 9d ago
In Flames is the super obvious pick yes. Jester Race up to Clayman is straight magical music. Hell, I even enjoy Lunar Strain a good bit (maybe it's because I enjoy black metal, who knows). Then came Reroute and Come Clarity....which are honestly pretty fine. The rest is awful.
For other bands that fell off:
Amon Amarth, became a "party metal caricature". A far cry from their Nordic legend themed beginnings as meat-and-potatoes melo-death.
Norther. They quit years ago, but after their main guy left, their releases went off a cliff....
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u/NinjaFamiliar2474 9d ago
without changing styles Arch Enemy, Amon Amarth and (lets be honest) Children of Bodom fell off. Bands that fell off because of changing we have In Flames and Sonic Syndicate
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u/INH-Enterprises Children Of Bodom 9d ago
In Flames hands down, I may not be the biggest fan of theres but even then, these guys released melodeath essentials from Jester's race to clayman and come clarity is a banger too, but then they fallen off hard especially when Jesper left the band. It took them 17 years to release something worth while, imho they should've retired years ago.
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u/TunaThrower666 9d ago
La música arte, no ciencia. Tú opinión de que una banda esté cuesta abajo es absolutamente subjetiva. Sigo In Flames desde el Jester Race, puedo coincidir en tu valoración sobre sus últimos 15 años, pero es sólo una opinión. Algo parecido me pasó con etapa de Blaze en Iron Maiden. En su día la odiaba hasta el punto de no ir a sus conciertos. Hoy me flipa el X Factor, más que algunos de sus álbumes con Bruce. Es arte amigos! 🤟
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u/Malariath 8d ago
In Flames, went from best melodeath aka Lunar Strain into unlistenable slop since Clayman, including. As to pulling back, probably none. CoB with Hexed?
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u/Blaescht 8d ago
Cattle Decapitation. Monolith and Anthropocene are perfect albums. Their last two albums felt like Anthropocene B sides. Copy and paste, again and again, plus extra goblin vocals. I hope they come back around
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u/Automatic_Stick8608 7d ago
In flames “fell off” is the posterboard unc take for all of metal imo. Post clayman all the way to 2011 still rips. Even with playground being the worst of that spree, it still has a few really good songs. Siren charms and battles are understandably bad, with only a couple good songs on siren, but foregone has a plethora of great tracks. I will listen to any tracks of theirs minus sirens and battles, just depends what era of metal I’m wanting.
In summary In Flames just left melodeath around 2000, but that was not where they “fell off” at all and are now back
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u/tankofpigs 10d ago
Soilwork
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u/lycantrophee Soilwork 10d ago
Lol, not really. Their early stuff is unpolished, but pretty listenable, then a string of bangers (except Sworn to a Great Divide, but even that album has 2 great songs and has shitty production overall, which doesn't help). The Living Infinite and The Ride Majestic are excellent. Verkligheten is good, and Övergivenheten is okay.
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u/BoZNiko663 10d ago
100% agree, I don't bother with their first 2, released a string of 5 GREAT albums, never cared for The Panic Broadcast, after The Living Infinite, the band fell off HARD in terms of my taste.
They began going in that Night Flight Orchestra/Progressive direction which I don't care for at ALL and it's never been the same since.
But the latest single Spirit Of No Return is a glimmer of hope, and Björn has said he wanted this new record coming to "revisit the 2000s". It only took the death of a guitarist sadly to bring about a noticeable change to their sound.
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u/Dzilla1080 10d ago
I'm in the minority, but I don't like soil work. Vocals is not it for me. I like maybe 2 or 3 of their songs
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u/Polkawillneverdie17 10d ago edited 10d ago
Couldn't agree less about In Flames.
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u/Daewoo40 10d ago
Battles is not good.
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u/leech666 10d ago
Siren Charms is worse, imo. I like "The End" on Battles therefore it ranks higher than Siren Charms for me but they are both not really good. Sounds of a playground fading is also not very good imo. These are the worst albums imo. I, the Mask I am indifferent about. It's okay. Forgone is the best album since Come Clarity. My absolute favourite is Colony but I like everything from Jeste Rrace to Come Clarity. The ones before Jester Race I need to revisit.
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u/Daewoo40 10d ago
Rusted Nail was probably the best single off Sirens Charm, Monsters in the Ballroom was different.
Little biased with Sounds of a Playground as Sleepless Again was my morning alarm for 3 years..
Not a big fan of before Whoracle as the production did nothing for me. Foregone just had the misfortune of releasing around the same time as The Halo Effect so it never got much playtime.
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u/jgtengineer68 10d ago
IIRC in flames has no original members left.
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u/Creative_Tone_9241 9d ago
Bjorn and anders have both been there since the jester race
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u/jgtengineer68 8d ago
Thats still not original. But yes it is close. THough i'd argue Jespar leaving dramatically changed the band dynamics. Sure come clarity and a sense of purpose still happened with him there but after that?
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u/Creative_Tone_9241 3d ago
I the mask is a very good album to me. It had great leads and solos, incorporated acoustic sections back into the songs in the old style, and had great bass and drum work. Definitely anders best vocal performance in a long time. I think it’s a far better album than foregone. Forgone released all the good songs beforehand and the rest of the album was just completely forgettable to me or even downright bad like bleeding out.
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u/Creative_Tone_9241 9d ago
I the mask is a better album than forgone to me. It has classic in flames leads, harmonies and solos. It brought back the acoustic sections and interludes. I am above was a terrible single choice as it painted the album as more alt metal in flames. All the strong tracks on forgone were released ahead of the album. The rest to me is just forgettable late era in flames to me
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u/paranoid-agent 10d ago
The latest Dark Tranquillity album was excellent, maybe even top 5 in their discography for me. I thought they were done after too many lineup changes since Fiction but I'm glad to have been proved wrong. Stanne seems to be as enthusiastic as ever, so fingers crossed for more quality albums from them.