In Flames "Whoracle (2008 Reissue, Deluxe Edition Digipak, Enhanced CD, Mexico, Witch Of The East, WOE006)"

Whoracle is the third studio album by Swedish heavy metal band In Flames, released on 18 November 1997. The title of the album is a portmanteau of the English words "whore" and "oracle". It is the final In Flames album to feature Johan Larsson and Glenn Ljungström. It is also the last release with Björn Gelotte playing drums, as he permanently switched to lead guitar in future releases.

In 2020, it was named one of the 20 best metal albums of 1997 by Metal Hammer magazine.

Apart from "Everything Counts", which is a cover of a Depeche Mode song, all songs were composed and arranged by In Flames. The lyrics were translated by Dark Tranquillity guitarist Niklas Sundin, as Anders Fridén was not confident in his English.

Fredrik Nordström noted that it was not easy to record at times, since the band members usually preferred drinking beer and playing Tekken 3.

While some regard Whoracle as a concept album, guitarist Jesper Strömblad denied this. He acknowledged reading reports that Fridén came up with a story around the end and rebirth of the world, but recalled events differently and said the album wasn't solely about that.

Tracklist:

1. Jotun 03:54   
2. Food for the Gods 04:19   
3. Gyroscope 03:26  
4. Dialogue with the Stars 03:01
5. The Hive 04:03   
6. Jester Script Transfigured 05:45   
7. Morphing into Primal 03:05   
8. Worlds Within the Margin 05:06
9. Episode 666 03:45   
10. Everything Counts (Depeche Mode cover) 03:17  
11. Whoracle 02:43   
12. Clad in Shadows '99 02:21  

Time:  44:45

Enhanced multimedia section includes a video for the song "Jotun", as well as a photo gallery, lyrics, winamp skins, wallpapers and screensavers.

Everything Counts by Martin Lee Gore.

All songs published by Prophecies Publishing, Hamburg, except Everything Counts, published by Grabbing Hands Music.

Track 12 appeared on the Colony album.

Whoracle comes as a concept album, with lyrics by Niklas Sundin and synopsis by Anders Fridén. It describes the past, present and a hypothetical future of the planet Earth.

Official music videos:

- Jotun

- Food for the Gods

Recording information:

Produced and recorded in the spring of 1997 at Studio Fredman.

Co-produced by In Flames.

Engineered by Anders Fridén and Fredrik Nordström

Mixed by Fredrik Nordström and Anders Fridén

Mastered by Goran Finnberg and Fredrik Nordstrom at the Mastering Room Gbg

Cover artwork by Andreas Marschall

Photos by Kenneth Johansson

All songs published by Prophecies Publishing Hamburg except "Everything Counts"

"Everything Counts" published by Grabbing Hands Music Ltd, sub-published by EMI Music Germany

In Flames "The Jester Race (Japan, Toy's Factory, TFCK-88777)"

The Jester Race is the second studio album by Swedish heavy metal band In Flames, released in February 1996. It is the first album to feature Anders Fridén as the band's vocalist, Björn Gelotte as the drummer, and Jester Head as the band's mascot.

The Jester Race was recorded at Studio Fredman by Fredrik Nordström, who also contributed keyboards for the album.

The song "Dead Eternity" was originally on their 1995 EP, Subterranean. "Dead God in Me" was also originally on Subterranean but with a different title, "The Inborn Lifeless", as well as different lyrics, a different ending, and a slightly different solo.

A remixed version of the song "Moonshield" was released on the EP Trigger. A video for the song "Artifacts of the Black Rain" was also released.

The Jester Race ranked No. 79 on Metal Rules' list of the Top 100 Heavy Metal Albums. It is considered a classic album of the melodic death metal genre, along with At the Gates' Slaughter of the Soul and Dark Tranquillity's The Gallery, exhibiting the dual guitar leads, growled vocals and acoustic sections typical of the genre.

Trivium frontman Matthew K. Heafy said in an interview with Wall of Sound that The Jester Race is "the one metal album you should have heard by now."

Track listing

1. Dead Eternity 05:01  
2. The Jester Race 04:51   
3. Graveland 02:46  
4. Moonshield 04:58
5. The Jester's Dance 02:09   
6. December Flower 04:10  
7. Artifacts of the Black Rain 03:17
8. Dead God in Me 04:15  
9. Wayfaerer 04:41  
10. Lord Hypnos 04:01  
11. Dead Eternity (demo) 05:02
12. The Inborn Lifeless (demo) 03:22

Time:  48:33

Japan bonus tracks are demos of "Dead Eternity" (5:02) & "The Inborn Lifeless" (3:22).

"The Inborn Lifeless" is an early version of "Dead God in Me".

Original release licensed to Nuclear Blast Records by Wrong Again Records.

The band was under contract to WAR, but WAR never released their own edition of this album - early editions bore both labels' logos and stated "Licensed from Wrong Again Records".

Quotation in "Lord Hypnos" taken from William Wordsworth's "Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood".

The release date of the album is uncertain. Nuclear Blast cites February 20, 1996 while it may not have been distributed widely until August.

Official music video:

- Artifacts of the Black Rain

Recording information:

Recorded and mixed at Studio Fredman in November 1995.

Produced by Fredrik Nordström and In Flames

Lyrical concept and song titles collaborated by Niklas Sundin and Anders Fridén

Lyrics on "Dead Eternity" by Jocke Göthberg

Engineered by Fredrik Nordström and Patrik Hellgren

Mastered by Staffan Olofsson

Logo by Glenn Ljungström

Artwork by Andreas Marschall

Photos by Kenneth Johansson

Layout by M&A Music art

In Flames "The Jesters Race/Black Ash Inheritance (Digipak, Germany, Nuclear Blast NB616-2)"

The Jester Race is the second studio album by Swedish heavy metal band In Flames, released in February 1996. It is the first album to feature Anders Fridén as the band's vocalist, Björn Gelotte as the drummer, and Jester Head as the band's mascot.

The Jester Race was recorded at Studio Fredman by Fredrik Nordström, who also contributed keyboards for the album.

The song "Dead Eternity" was originally on their 1995 EP, Subterranean. "Dead God in Me" was also originally on Subterranean but with a different title, "The Inborn Lifeless", as well as different lyrics, a different ending, and a slightly different solo.

A remixed version of the song "Moonshield" was released on the EP Trigger. A video for the song "Artifacts of the Black Rain" was also released.

The Jester Race ranked No. 79 on Metal Rules' list of the Top 100 Heavy Metal Albums. It is considered a classic album of the melodic death metal genre, along with At the Gates' Slaughter of the Soul and Dark Tranquillity's The Gallery, exhibiting the dual guitar leads, growled vocals and acoustic sections typical of the genre.

Trivium frontman Matthew K. Heafy said in an interview with Wall of Sound that The Jester Race is "the one metal album you should have heard by now."

Track listing

1. "Moonshield" Jesper Strömblad 5:04
2. "The Jester's Dance" (instrumental) Strömblad, Johan Larsson 2:11
3. "Artifacts of the Black Rain" Strömblad, Björn Gelotte 3:17
4. "Graveland" Strömblad, Glenn Ljungström 2:48
5. "Lord Hypnos" Gelotte, Strömblad, Ljungström 4:03
6. "Dead Eternity" Ljungström, Strömblad 5:03
7. "The Jester Race" Ljungström, Strömblad 4:53
8. "December Flower" Strömblad, Ljungström 4:12
9. "Wayfaerer" (instrumental) Strömblad, Gelotte 4:42
10. "Dead God in Me" Strömblad, Ljungström 4:19
11. "Goliaths Disarm Their Davids" Ljungström, Strömblad, Gelotte 4:55
12. "Gyroscope" Strömblad 3:23
13. "Acoustic Medley" (instrumental) Strömblad 2:32
14. "Behind Space" (live) Ljungström, Strömblad 3:36

Time: 54:42

Original release licensed to Nuclear Blast Records by Wrong Again Records.

The band was under contract to WAR, but WAR never released their own edition of this album - early editions bore both labels' logos and stated "Licensed from Wrong Again Records".

Quotation in "Lord Hypnos" taken from William Wordsworth's "Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood".

Official music video:

- Artifacts of the Black Rain

Recording information:

Recorded and mixed at Studio Fredman in November 1995.

Produced by Fredrik Nordström and In Flames

Lyrical concept and song titles collaborated by Niklas Sundin and Anders Fridén

Lyrics on "Dead Eternity" by Jocke Göthberg

Engineered by Fredrik Nordström and Patrik Hellgren

Mastered by Staffan Olofsson

Logo by Glenn Ljungström

Artwork by Andreas Marschall

Photos by Kenneth Johansson

Layout by M&A Music art

In Flames "Clayman (2014 Reissue, Limited Edition Digipak, Germany, Century Media, 9984918)"

Clayman is the fifth studio album by Swedish heavy metal band In Flames, released via Nuclear Blast on 3 July 2000.

Clayman is the final In Flames album to feature their original melodic death metal sound. According to Andy O'Connor of Spin: "Clayman represents a sweet spot between their deathier, more complicated beginnings and their commercial aspirations."

The album's lyrics explore themes such as depression and internal struggles. The band tuned their guitars to drop A# on the songs Pinball Map and ...As the Future Repeats Today.

The album's cover art is based on Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man drawing. The Jester Head appears in the background, both on the cover, and in the album booklet itself. Music videos were produced for the songs "Pinball Map" (directed by Tamara Jordan) and "Only for the Weak".

Matt Kantor of AllMusic gave the album four stars out of five and said: "With some of their best writing yet, they continue to tighten up a sound that could please fans of everyone from Queensrÿche to Arch Enemy to maybe even Satyricon. With their blend of speed, melody, and pensive aggression, In Flames is indeed hard to pin down. Clayman at its core, though, is invigorating, well-executed metal that, dare it be said, is a fun listen; this probably isn't far from what the band intends."

In 2005, Clayman was ranked No. 448 in Rock Hard magazine's book "The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time". In 2020, it was named one of the 20 best metal albums of 2000 by Metal Hammer magazine. In 2020, "Bullet Ride", "Pinball Map", "Only for the Weak", and the title track were re-recorded for a 20th-anniversary edition of the album. Fan responses to the re-recordings have been mixed.

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Anders Fridén; all music is composed by Jesper Strömblad and Björn Gelotte.

1. "Bullet Ride" 4:42
2. "Pinball Map" 4:08
3. "Only for the Weak" 4:55
4. "...As the Future Repeats Today" 3:27
5. "Square Nothing" 3:57
6. "Clayman" 3:28
7. "Satellites and Astronauts" 5:00
8. "Brush the Dust Away" 3:17
9. "Swim" 3:14
10. "Suburban Me" (featuring Christopher Amott) 3:35
11. "Another Day in Quicksand" 3:56
12. "Only for the Weak (live)" 4:51  
13. "Pinball Map (live)"  4:30
14. "Strong and Smart (No Fun at All cover)"  2:38  
15. "World of Promises (Treat cover)"   3:50

Time:  59:38  

3-panel digipak with 10-page booklet.

Recording information:

Recorded and produced at Studio Fredman, Gothenburg, Sweden.

Fredrik Nordström – additional programming, synthesizer, recording, production

In Flames – recording, production

Axel Hermann – artwork, layout

Tobias Lundgren – photography