Search - In Flames :: Lunar Strain (Dig)

Folk/Melodic death metal

06/30/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I know that most of you In Flames fans have heard The Jester Race, Whoracle, or Colony, but If you have not yet heard Lunar Strain, then that's something you should strive for. This album contains many different elements to combine one sound. This was when the In Flames sound was born. A sound in which even today, they can still keep. This album is in many ways perfect and I strongly recommend that you buy it. You can thank me later."

Great black\death of old!

Charan Litchfield | England | 01/29/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Japenese version of the debut release by In Flames is quite good value if you want my opinion- mainly due to the fact that not only are all the classic debut albumn tracks on this release, but the bonus tracks included are of the entire 'Subterranean ep'(the band's second release)with an added demo track! The European versions of the first two In Flames releases have been out of print for 4 years now- mainly due to the label this was pressed on(Wrong Again Records) going bankrupt in 1996, so here is your chance to get hold of them on 1 cd!The actual material on this cd is typical of older Swedish death/black metal, but with a couple of differences! The music is typically 'Dissection' inspired(as many other groups in this scene were in the period elapsing from 1994 to now!), although is more melodic with softer guitars and less extreme vocals(still throat ripping stuff though). In fact, this band in a way pioneered this melodic death metal scene which has kicked off lately, so they have introduced a couple of original twists by adding to the Dissection sound. Of all the groups that were prentenders to Dissections mighty throne, In Flames were about the best runner up in my opinion because the first 2 albumns(and all their other releases in fact) were quite excellent. Sure, this has dated slightly by todays standards, because so many groups in the black\death metal scene have drowned their music with keyboards- this release hardly has any keyboards! This is technical death\black metal, with twin lead guitars, harmonic overtones, and good vocal performance. I personally rate the first 2 releases as In Flames finest, purely due to the presence of very good material, and very few poor songs. There are even some folky elements to the music which is a nice touch! This release is not perfect though, because the material is not the greatest I have ever heard by a long shot(things in the metal scene have chnged, and many bands have managed to improve on this sound). But, if you want a good sounding, solid performance melodic death/black albumn, then this is bound to impress you.In a nutshell, I think this is an excellent release that I have listened to several times since buying it. The material on this albumn is comparable to 'Dissection','Dawn','Mork Gryning', 'Non Serviam','Unanimated'....etc."

3.5 stars - strong debut, weak reissue

Justin Gaines | Northern Virginia | 02/17/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"1994's Lunar Strain was the debut release by Swedish melodic death metal legends In Flames. The band's helped define what is known as the Gothenburg style of melodic death metal, but in the early days they stuck pretty close to the formula At the Gates laid down. It's melodic, but much harsher and heavier than the band's later work. It's somewhat rougher too. In Flames was still coming together and hadn't finalized their lineup when this was released. Dark Tranquillity's Michael Stanne was enlisted as a guest vocalist for this album.



Lunar Strain isn't as essential as In Flames' later albums, but it's an important album and is still well worth hearing if you're a fan of the band or melodic death metal in general. Those who think In Flames got too accessible with The Jester Race and Whoracle: Reloaded will no doubt prefer Lunar Strain.



Edition Notes: Candlelight reissued Lunar Strain (and, separately, Subterranean) in 2005. The album has been digitally remastered (a real plus) and there are four bonus tracks. The bonus tracks are the band's 1993 demo recordings. They're interesting, but probably aren't anything you'll need to hear more than once. The liner notes are the most disappointing element of this reissue. There are no lyrics, nothing from the band on what was going on at the time, not even any songwriting credits.



Edition Notes 2: Lunar Strain was reissued yet again in 2009, this time by Regain. It's the same reissue as Candlelight's, only now it comes in a digipack."