IN FLAMES Frontman Doesn't Get Bothered By Criticism Of Band's New Music

Brendan Crabb of Australia's Loud magazine recently conducted an interview with vocalist Anders Fridn of Swedish metallers IN FLAMES. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

On a recent incident when someone posted a fake audio clip on YouTube purportedly containing IN FLAMES' latest single, "Deliver Us", when in fact it was "Episode 666" from the band's 1997 album "Whoracle":

"All these people were posting these comments like, 'I hate the way you play now,' 'Your old stuff was so much better' and 'You suck now.' It was playing 'Episode 666' and people were still complaining about how much better we were in the past. It shows how much some people's attitudes won't change. It's funny how some people phrase some of these things."

On how some "fans" constantly call for IN FLAMES to perform more obscure earlier material:

"I've been hearing that since the day I joined the band it's part of the game. I don't really get bothered by it. People can like what they want to like and there's nothing I can do about it. We still have a sound; it might be a little different (these days),but it's the same ideals and intentions. We didn't do a country album. If people like one song of ours, great. If they like an album or the whole catalogue, that's fucking awesome. Sometimes you're in a trend and the next day you're out of a trend, you can't do much about it. I don't like comparing old versus new, back and forth. Let them be what they are; they are different albums, different periods and we are different people."

On how last year's departure of longtime guitarist and songwriter Jesper Strmblad affected the songwriting process for IN FLAMES' new album, "Sounds Of A Playground Fading":

"The songwriting didn't change that much; it's Bjrn and I writing instead of three of us. We've been doing it since 'The Jester Race'. It was really bad the way everything ended, but it's not musically as big of a deal as some people have suggested. The way we were (previously) doing it (was) as a unit, but the problem was the unit didn't work anymore and we had to make a change. He had a problem with alcohol and that affected all of us. You have to be able to trust each other if you do what we do, touring all the time and being in a band. He's still a good guy I played him some new tracks a few weeks ago I think that was difficult for him. We didn't part ways because of musical differences or being enemies, it was because of addiction. I wish him the best, and I want him to get better. It can be really tough It's a disease and if you have to treat it or it goes to hell."

On the new album title:

"It started on a program I saw on television. It was about that we're running out of places that are untouched by man. We're running out. In the Western world, we just take, take, take until we can't take no more, and then we move on to the next place. At some point, we will be wiped off this earth because of the way we act. How will that change our behavior now? That was one of the main inspirations for the lyrics. Who am I to say how things should be (though)? It mainly poses a lot of questions; asking the questions that somebody needs to answer or people need to discuss. The title fit very well with the lyrics. It's written in a way that it has meaning for me, but it's open for interpretation. It's always been that way; it's never wrong if it means something to you. It's written for me, but if it touches someone's heart, that's great."

Read more from Loud magazine.