In Flames vocalist Anders Fridén chatted with Altpress.com about the bands ever-changing sound and how it continues to evolve on their forthcoming release, “Siren Charms“. As the comment section on nearly any In Flames post will tell you, there are fans of the bands heavier days who are quite unhappy with groups increasingly accessible catalog.
When asked if he would ever consider tossing those older fans a heavier ‘throwback’ song:
“I don’t think I can. There are too many of them, so I cannot please everyone. It’s just impossible. But it’s interesting what you said, because every time we release a new album, our “worst album we’ve ever done” gets moved up one album. With Whoracle, people complained because it wasn’t Jester Race. When we released Colony, people complained because it wasn’t Whoracle.”
He continued:
“…Even with Reroute To Remain or Come Clarity or Soundtrack. Those are great albums. But when we released Reroute, [people said] it was our worst album ever. Sometimes when I read those things, I’ll be like, “What the… No! You totally misunderstand.” But at the same time, I can’t give into that. It’s part of the game, and everybody has their say. But I cannot write exactly for you. That is just impossible, because there are too many people with their own wishes. But I’m very proud of our history. It took us to where we are today. I would never say we’ve done anything that I want to get away from.”
When asked on why they continue to change with each album and whether or not that is part of their legacy, he replied:
“I wanna challenge our listeners a little bit. They shouldn’t know exactly what they’re gonna get. They’re definitely gonna get In Flames in some sort of way, but I don’t wanna do Whoracle or Jester Race part 2. We’re not a big planning type of band. It’s metal, it’s rock ’n’ roll; let’s do whatever.
When I got into the metal scene and first heard of punk rock and metal, for me it was like, “Whoa! There are no rules! You can do whatever you want.” Then, when I started playing in bands, all of these rules were told to me. What? Can I not do what I want? I have to be this person to be part of this scene. I cannot look this way? To me, you can do whatever you want. I can promise you one thing: We will never do a country album.”
In Flames will release their new album “Siren Charms” through their new label home of Sony on September 09th.
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