In Flames "The Jester Race + Black Ash Inheritance (2014 Reissue, Special Edition Digipak, Germany, Century Media, 9984888)"

The Jester Race is the second studio album by melodic death metal band In Flames. It is the first album to feature Anders Fridén as the band's vocalist and Björn Gelotte as the drummer. A video for the song "Artifacts of the Black Rain" was also released. It was also the first album to feature the Jester Head, the band's mascot.

After releasing The Jester Race, the band then toured with Samael, Grip Inc. and Kreator. The album was the band's second full-length album released following the more mainstream success of the 1995 EP, Subterranean. The Jester Race was recorded at Studio Fredman by Fredrik Nordström, who also contributed keyboards for the album.

This album ranked #79 on the website Metal Rules' list of 100 Greatest Metal Albums. It is also considered a classic album of the Gothenburg style of metal, 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.

There is a remix of "Moonshield" that is on In Flames' future release Trigger.

Tracklist:

1. Moonshield 04:58  
2. The Jester's Dance 02:09  
3. Artifacts of the Black Rain 03:17  
4. Graveland 02:46  
5. Lord Hypnos 04:01
6. Dead Eternity 05:01   
7. The Jester Race 04:51   
8. December Flower 04:10   
9. Wayfaerer 04:41   
10. Dead God in Me 04:15  
11. Goliaths Disarm Their Davids 04:56  
12. Gyroscope 03:26
13. Acoustic Medley 02:34
14. Behind Space (live) 03:37   
15. Moonshield (live) 04:17   
16. Artifacts of the Black Rain (live) 03:10  
17. Moonshield (C64 Karaoke Version) 02:39   

Time:  01:04:48  

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.

Recording information:

Recorded and mixed in November, 1995 at Studio Fredman.

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