Come riprendersi dopo un tracollo iniziato nel 2002 con "Reroute To Remain" e seguito dal piattume di "Soundtrack To Your Escape"? Diciamolo, "The Tokyo Showdown" ha chiuso in bellezza la prima parte della storia degli In Flames, periodo costellato da ottimi dischi che bene o male hanno contribuito insieme ai Dark Tranquillity alla nascita e allo sviluppo del Death Metal Melodico.
Il problema è che nella seconda parte dell'avventura del gruppo Svedese di Death ce n'è ben poco. Trionfano l'industrial, l'alternative e il Nu, trionfa l'influenza del Metal Americano.
Questo "Come Clarity" non si distoglie troppo dalle soluzioni precedentemente adottate, ma indubbiamente si tratta di un buon disco. Sì, il gruppo ne esce bene da quel "Soundtrack" che tanto aveva deluso.
Il sound del disco si presenta fin dalle prime battute aggressivo. La martellata iniziale di "Take This Life" non passa inosservata, così come la prova vocale di Anders Fridén, che (a parte nelle parti clean, sempre molto belle) assume tutti i canoni del cantante Nu-Metal. La prima traccia scorre bene, è pesante e melodica. La successiva "Leeches" si apre con un riff molto elettronico. Anche qui pesantezza e melodia convivono alla perfezione, bella la prova di Fridén e dei chitarristi Gelotte e Strömbland, che inseriscono riff azzeccati.
Solo una parola basterebbe a descrivere "Reflect The Storm": bellissima. Uno dei brani più azzeccati dell'intero lavoro, ritornello fantastico, melodia trascinante e malinconica.
Il trittico di apertura è promosso a voti alti. Si può affermare senza esitazione che il gruppo si è ripreso molto rispetto al vecchio disco. Peccato per la durata breve dei brani ("Leeches" dura appena tre minuti.), ma la cosa non disturba troppo.
Ci avviciniamo alla parte centrale del disco con altri tre brani diversissimi tra loro, "Dead End", "Scream" e la title track "Come Clarity". La prima è una vera perla, dove tra i riff spaccaossa si insediano voci femminili e parti melodiche non indifferenti. La seconda è frenetica e forse più scontata, grande lavoro dei due chitarristi. La title track è una ballata di come ne sono state scritte tante (troppe), ma come tale è anche un bel brano, arricchito da un bell'arpeggio acustico e da una performance vocale intensissima.
Il disco sorprende, non è il massimo dell'originalità, e non si può di certo paragonare a "Jester Race" o "Colony", ma almeno fino a questo punto non delude. Tuttavia i riff di "Vacuum" sanno già di "già sentito" e siamo appena a metà disco. Nulla di nuovo, belle parti melodiche e ritornelli semplici, che entrano subito in testa. "Pacing Death's Trail" non presenta proprio nulla di nuovo (anzi, l'inizio sembra l'esatta copia del brano precedente rallentato), piace di più la successiva "Crawl Through Knives", perfetta sintesi tra melodia e potenza, senza troppa elettronica e troppi fronzoli inutili.
Mancano ancora diverse tracce, ma il disco ha veramente poco da dire ancora. "Versus Terminus" è quasi inutile nella sua banalità, "Our Infinite Struggle" si salva grazie ad una struttura più articolata, mentre "Vanishing Light" è semplicemente noiosa.
La conclusiva "Your Bedtime Story Is Scaring Everyone", oltre ad essere il brano più lungo (e lungo qui è veramente una parola grossa, cinque minuti scarsi.), è anche quello più particolare. Lasciatevi accompagnare dalle delicate linee di tastiera, fino ad un ultimo delirio di potenza.
Una buona prova, per un gruppo che sembrava spacciato. Forse poco originale, e non più Death Metal, questo è certo. La presenza di molte canzoni non lo rende pesante, in quanto la maggior parte dei brani non raggiunge i quattro minuti di durata, più semplicemente non aiuta l'ascoltatore ad indviduare i singoli brani. Sarebbe stato meglio con qualche canzone in meno e una durata media maggiore.
Elenco tracce testi e video
02 Leeches (02:55)
Leeches
Like leeches
"In ignorance we trust"
If you say this way
I will take that way
Fuel for the fire on which I thrive
Spit me out
I'm glad I don't belong
Save me the speech
You'll be forgotten and gone
It burns
It rips
It hurts
Leeches
They preach to us
Where's the wisdom from blocked minds
Spit me out
I'm glad I don't belong
Save me the speech
You'll be forgotten and gone
It burns
It rips
It hurts
They make you bleed your turn
The chance of a lifetime
How does it feel to be alive
[Solo]
A tear for the poet
That can't be heard
Praise the artist that steals
Spit me out
I'm glad I don't belong
Save me the speech
You'll be forgotten and gone
It burns
It rips
It hurts
They make you bleed
Your turn (It rips, it hurts)
The chance of a lifetime
How does it feel to be alive?
03 Reflect the Storm (04:16)
Shot for shot
Let the bullet penetrate me
Embrace me
Tell me stories of golden gods
The precision in your voice
Pierce the walls that I've built
Your eyes reach deep in ME
Take a chance
They don't come much bigger than this
Dark Star spend another day with me
A dead surface that doesn't reflect
The storm underneath
Take a chance
Bring me the calm
... And it leaves NOTHING
Expose the dark side,
Awakened and emotional,
Expose the dark side,
Impossible to tame
Away from the light of the sun
Away I find what is really me
Throw yourself into the eye of chaos
Infiltrate me
Sneak out before I awake
Take out the trash and burn it
Try to find a beautiful place to lay
These fragile bones of mine.
Away from the eye of the storm
Away I find what is really me
Away from the light of the sun
Away I find what is really me
05 Scream (03:12)
We are ordinary people
We all live different lives
In the end were pretty much the same
We're just living in different lies
We just live in different lies
We just live in different lies
They scream
You scream
I scream
We scream
But no one listens
Abuse to feel superior
Is it working for you?
They scream
You scream
I scream
We scream
Abuse to feel superior
Is it working for you?
We are ordinary people
In a world built on stress
When we build walls around us
We end up in a mess
We end up in a mess
We just end up in a mess
They scream
You scream
I scream
We scream
But no one listens
Abuse to feel superior
Is it working for you?
They scream
You scream
I scream
We scream
Abuse to feel superior
Is it working for you?
We just live in different lies
We just live in different lies
They scream
You scream
I scream
We scream
But no one listens
Abuse to feel superior
Is it working for you?
They scream
You scream
I scream
We scream
Abuse to feel superior
Is it working for you?
06 Come Clarity (04:15)
-Solo-
Rushing through thirty
Getting older every day
by two drawing pictures
Of innocent times
Can you add colour
Inside these lines
I want you to lead me
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
I want you to lead me
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
Sure, if we change my perspective
I'm certain I will change today
I'm certain it will change our ways
When things fall into place
I want you to lead me
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
I want you to lead me
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
-Solo-
I want you to lead me
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
I want you to lead me
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
I want you to lead me
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
I want you to lead me
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
Take me somewhere
Don't want to live
In a dream one more day
07 Vacuum (03:39)
The yesterday we loved
Speak of tomorrow
The burden of man is that
Time never takes a pause
We live from Monday to Sunday
But we forget what it means
Then a ghost comes to visit and
We tell stories from tabloids
Call all your friends
Watch fake photos
From a made up vacation
Speaking in tongues
About ancient artefacts
We steal from beggars
And ask for understanding
We lie, rape, steal and murder
To make tonight's headlines
Trust the system
Make your contribution
Smile, applaud, love, hail
The weaker you get
The stronger they become
Listen in silence
Hear her voice
How far are we
Ready to take this?
Listen in silence
Hear her voice
Before it all crumbles
Lie, rape, steal and murder
Smile, applaud, love, hail
Gather in front of the TV
Exploding sympathy
The weatherman, our trust
Our punctual company
We steal from beggars
And ask for understanding
We lie, rape, steal and murder
To make tonight's headlines
Trust the system
Make your contribution
Smile, applaud, love, hail
The weaker you get the
Stronger they become
Listen in silence
Hear her voice
How far are we
Ready to take this?
Listen in silence
Hear her voice
Before it all crumbles
-Solo-
Lie, rape, steal and murder
Smile, applaud, love, hail
Listen in silence
Hear her voice
How far are we
Ready to take this?
Listen in silence
Hear her voice
Before it all crumbles
09 Crawl Through Knives (04:02)
The black hole
Forever mine
I need the fear
Push me out
Ohh be brave
Show me signs
Should I feel shame for
The questions that I have?
If you could be
The things I need
(I'd crawl through knives
An inch per tear)
These knees
They bleed, for you
(Let the colour persuade
The hate that you fear)
Feed the lie
Force the reason
Leave me in doubt
Need some motivation
It's in my hands
The sky, so bright
It's burning
It's for me to decide
If flames will reach
Heaven tonight
It's in my hands
Nailed to the floor
Paralysed
Emotions drifting
Searching the new
If you could be
The things I need
(I'd crawl through knives
An inch per tear)
These knees
They bleed, for you
(Let the colour persuade
The hate that you fear)
It's in my hands
The sky, so bright
It's burning
It's for me to decide
If flames will reach
Heaven tonight
It's in my hands
The sky, so bright
It's burning
It's for me to decide
If flames will reach
Heaven tonight
-Solo-
It's in my hands
The sky, so bright
It's burning
It's for me to decide
If flames will reach
Heaven tonight
It's in my hands
The sky, so bright
It's burning
It's for me to decide
If flames will reach
Heaven tonight
10 Versus Terminus (03:18)
When all is said and done
We know what's right, what's wrong
But does it matter then when all is said and done?
When all is dead and gone
We know who lost, who won
But does it matter then when all is dead and gone?
See everything go, end of all things
The life that we know
Shift your point of view, you've been warned
This one-way ticket is for you
When all the lights go out,
We'll know what life's about
But does it matter then when all the lights go out?
When all the laughter dies,
We'll see nothingness and realize
But does it matter then when all the laughter dies?
See everything go, end of all things
The life that we know
Shift your point of view, you've been warned
This one-way ticket is for you
When all is said and done
We know what's right, what's wrong
But does it matter then when all is said and done?
When all the laughter dies,
We'll see nothingness and realize
But does it matter then when all the laughter dies?
See everything go, end of all things
The life that we know
Shift your point of view, you've been warned
This one-way ticket is for you
11 Our Infinite Struggle (03:46)
In a disaster story
A central conflict of primal rage
Usual sort of desperation
Characters remain the same
Never cut you out,
I cut you in
Feeding on life leftovers
I am writing to you
You should realize
It hurts in me too
Walk on broken glass
Is the pain safe at the end?
All the elements in life's complexity
Make our struggle infinite
Never cut you out,
I cut you in
Feeding on life leftovers
I am writing to you
You should realize
It hurts in me too
All the elements in life's complexity
Make our struggle infinite
Never cut you out,
I cut you in
Feeding on life leftovers
I am writing to you
You should realize
It hurts in me too
To cut you in
Feeding on life leftovers
I am writing to you
You should realize
It hurts as I cut you in
Carico i commenti... con calma
Altre recensioni
Di Ale79
L’album risulta essere il più completo, ricco e fantasioso.
5 minuti da pelle d’oca, tutta da ascoltare.
Di Brizz89
Questo album mette in luce come avvicinarsi al commerciale per la band non sembra essere un problema.
Scream [...] risulta infatti una delle migliori dell'album, e sa coinvolgere come poche altre.
