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Jester Race

In Flames - Jester Race Audio CD

A fair review of the In Flames "Jester Race" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all In Flames reviews here, or go back to the In Flames tabs.

Band: In Flames
Title: Jester Race
Rating:

Release Date: 1997-02-11
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Moonshield 2: Jester's Dance 3: Artifacts of the Black Rain 4: Graveland 5: Lord Hypnos 6: Dead Eternity 7: Jester Race 8: December Flower 9: Wayfaerer 10: Dead God in Me

Great Package
The album cover is an alternate, apparently it's used now for the Japanese release of the Lunar Strain/Subterranean package. This is the Japanese version of Jester Race, and it's got some great features. The track list appears to be out of order, probably to separate the album tracks from the bonus tracks. If it was in order, you'd hear Dead Eternity, three songs, and Dead God in Me, then you'd hear Dead Eternity again in demo form, then you'd hear the Inborn Lifeless, which is the demo of Dead God in Me. The way this one is laid out, it makes a little better sense.

As I mentioned, there's the two demos. These were recorded around the time of Subterranean before Michael Stanne went back to Dark Tranquillity, and Anders Frid�n left D. T. to join In Flames. Aside from the lyrics and vocals, the tuning is about a step and a half higher than on the final versions (Beginning with Jester Race, In Flames tune to C natural rather than E or E flat).

The Jester Race is a great album as-is. With the two extra tracks it's even greater. In the states you can get these tracks on the remastered "Subterranean," and you can get The Jester Race packaged with the Black Ash Inheritance e. p. This is just an alternate way of listening to things.
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One of the best albums from these revolutionary Swedes.
While always a fan of other Swedish melodic death metal bands such as Dark Tranquillity and At the Gates, I seemed to overlook In Flames, feeling they were maybe not as heavy, maybe even a little bit more sugary than the aforementioned bands. I must admit to jumping on the In Flames bandwagon a little later than most of the metal community. I guess the reason for that was that I had only ever really heard the first few songs off The Jester Race. Looking back, I don't think my metal maturity had progressed much passed the "this album kicks my butt" stage, so the Iron Maiden-like leads and concentrated melody just didn't do it for my Morbid Angel-obsessed teenage angst. A decade on and I can't help but regret my narrow-mindedness as not only is this really very classy and pioneering, it's actually pretty heavy. The Jester Race sees vocalist Anders Friden enter the line-up and while he does his thing quite well here, I think his vocals would improve on later outings. Musicianship is once again top notch and there's certainly nothing wrong with the production. But it's the song writing that makes this album a step up from everything In Flames released before it. Good variety and a lot of obvious effort makes for an absorbing listen all the way through.

The Jester Race is commonly seen as In Flames' finest moment. Although I may not agree with this statement, it is certainly a fine album and one that captures the Swedes sound perfectly. It's not as regularly aggressive as the preceding Subterranean, nor as streamlined as the proceeding Whoracle. It lies somewhere in between, mixing up the acoustic, riffs and melodies with unadulterated metal. It's actually a fairly restrained album, rarely hitting top gear, which is maybe why I find it so thoroughly comforting, even relaxing, while still feeling the need to raise the devil's horns in recognition of all things metal. An album for everyone into melodic death metal, not only due to its classic status, but due to its upmarket entertainment value.

In Flames we trust
this is an amazing In Flames release, possibly one of their best. well, i do. unless you've been listening to In Flames newer stuff, you will really appreciate the classic Gothenburg sound. the songs may appear random is style, but regardless it is what metal was supposed to be.

this is a brief overview of the tracklist:
1. moonshield- 1/2 heavy guitar & 1/2 acoustic, a rather calm song. *****
2. the jesters dance- an instrumental, very well done! great sound. ****
3. artifacts of the black rain- the pace is picked up, a much more metal sound. great guitar work. *****
4. graveland- creative intro, not the best song. . but still good. ****
5. lord hypnosis- a good balance of guitar riffs & steady metal. *****
6. dead eternity- heres where the heavy stuff comes out, guitars sound great towards the end. ****
7. the jester race- the best song, nothing more to it. *****
8. december flower- dont let the title deceive you, a very good song with an excellent guitar solo. *****
9. wayfaerer- another well-done instrumental, this sounds like something Queen should of played (in a good way). *****
10. dead god in me- probably the next best track, very heavy & melodic. the lady sceaming towards the end gives it a good kick. *****

go buy this album, or die (and pick up Colony too).

Old Gothenburg sound
All of you who say STYE sucks, should really get a life. Now, one thing I absolutely hate is how people compare this album to In Flames' later work. Ok, onto the album. This album is absolutely amazing. The guitar solo on December Flower just blew me away. The only thing is I just couldn't understand Anders sometimes, which is why i like In Flames' later work lyrically. If you like old gothenburg sound, get this album. If you're into as people would say "numetal" in which STYE really is NOT, then get STYE. .

In Flames Best album
This was years ago. Excellent album, The first song I ever heard was from this album (The Jester Race)I downloaded it off Napster. This was the beginning of my exploration with this band. So as to say I purchased several other albums and really enjoyed them. I just recently purchased "The Jester Race", because I was unable to find it locally. I rate this album as number 1. I currently I own 5 of their records. Anyone who enjoys fast hard metal, with a melodic content this is your album/band! you won't be disappointed I assure you! .

You can see a complete list of all In Flames discography, or go back to the In Flames tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.