In Flames Challenge - Clayman (the beginning of the end, or like, the second, less good half)

Clayman (2000)


Hrm.... this was disappointing. I remember liking this more in high school. I remember my first conversation with this guy I was friends with in high school, the infamous Frank Metal.

"You know In Flames?"

"Yeah! You like In Flames?"

"How great is Colony?!"

"I'm a Jester Race guy!"

"Whoracle, though!"

"Clayman is going to be incredible! Like Whoracle is here, Colony was here, Clayman is going be to, like..."

Predictably, after putting his hand here, right around chest level, then here, right around eye level, then, like, completely extend his arm straight up, hand indicating that Clayman would be the best, the highest level of achievable In Flames, it was not all that great. I remember us listening to it together, in someone's room, on a CD player, after we all bought our own personal copies of Clayman, and I think, maybe also we all bought a copy of Highest Beauty by In Thy Dreams (way better).

You could make a movie montage.

Three kids, one long hair, budding beard, clearly emulating Bjorn Gellotte's look, and two other guys, wearing probably the Machine Head years of the Dragon tee and a polo shirt, respectively:

We listen to it, Bullet Ride, super sweet intro STAR WIPE
The clean singing part of Bullet Ride, we're confused FOGGY DREAM FADE
Pinball Map, we're nodding our heads along to that sweet two-step, cuz we're hardcore kids at heard SMASH CUT
We're arguing over whether or not Only For the Weak is any Good INTERCUT
scenes the remaining couple of good parts and us looking tolerant and the many, many, many remaining clean parts and slow parts, and us looking disappointed and it finally degrades to us trying to justify the rest of the record.

My experience, now, was much the same, but with less In Flames Apologism.

I stand by Bullet Ride, Pinball Map and Swim, Another Day In Quicksand is ok, and Clayman is heavy and fast, but not good, per se. The rest is between meh and not great. Most songs have cool moments, promising riffs, good solos. The songs aren't as formulaic as they will eventually become, but Clayman largely does not hold up. Strong and Smart, on the special edition, is GREAT! I have that song, alone, on my iPod.