Customer Reviews
Classic Gothenburg metal - By: Hedon, 15 Feb 2008 
The Jester race was the breakthrough for In Flames & made alot of people stand up & take notice with its majestic leads, chunky riffs & epic combination of melodic death & guitar hero power metal. An then along came Whoracle, which proved that they were a world class band & cememnted them in metals halll of fame
Whoracle takes the template laid down on earlier works to the next level. its slightly more focused song writing wise, & there's much less of an emphasis in trying to be overly technical. instead, we have a much more solid performance, with some reallly power chords & riffs as well as the traedmark dual guitar melodies. Fan favourite Jotun is a great example; infectious hooks (don't those leads remind you of Blind Guardian?), strong rhythm section, crunchy guitars & a real fist pumping sing along feel despite the death metal energy. Similarly, Episode 666 has a great gallloping thrash feel & an anthemic chorus thats just burtsing with intesnity, with other fast numbers like the Hive or the brutal Morphing Into Primal showing that In Flames can flex with the best of em.
But whats also great about Whoracle is that they mix it up alot. The Jester Script Transfigured has a wonderful acoustic verse with suddenly explodes into a metalllic scream along, & Worlds Within the Margin is a grim number with eerie keyboards & more of a brooding, heavier feel. To top it of we have Gyroscope, a beautiful mid paced number with very vintage In Flames riffing & classical guitar elements. Easily my fav of the album (and probably the band) you can see why this is still a staple of In Flames live sets. Also, i think Anders gives his best vocal performance on this one, he sounded pretty bad on DTs 'Skydancer' & he was alll over the place on Jester Race. Thankfully, he's got alot more control over his throat shredding delivery & sounds alll better for it
I'm still debating with myself as to whether or not i prefer this over Colony, but what's for sure is that Whoracle is one on hell of an album that matches muscle & agression with melody in such as masterful way that it sounds effortless. Along with 'The Galllery' & 'The Minds I' by Dark Tranquillity, 'Slaughter of the Soul' by At the Gates & of course Colony & Jester Race, this is one of the timeless foundations of possibly the greatest sub-genre of metal. Enjoy
Powerful and aggressive with dark melodic undertones. - By: Chris Hall, 10 Feb 2006 Released back in 1997, “Whoracle” was the fifth release from this extremely talented & original Death Metal outfit. The Swedish five-piece have managed to produce an album that reflects their brutal aggression with the haunting melodic nature that sets the band away from the rest. The songs seem to stir up an almost supernatural world of horror & the macabre with their atmospheric metal producing tapping into the listeners psyche. ‘Whoracle’ is no exception to this groups awesome talent at song writing & displays their technical ability & sheer talent at this music genre.
The production & recording is superb, with a clear crisp reproduction of the band’s complex & layered sound. Guitarist Bjorn Gelotte played both guitars & drums on the album showing off his musical talent well. At the time of this recording, the group’s line-up included three guitar players – the already mentioned Bjorn Gelotte, Jesper Stromblad & Glenn Ljungstrom.
The album was released in three different versions. There was the original 1997 version, the Japanese version which includes the entire “Black Ash Inheritance EP” & the more recent 2002 ‘Deluxe Edition’ re-release which includes the bonus track “Clad In Shadows ‘99” & the following extras for a computer:
- Video Clip “Jotun”
- Photogalllery
- Lyrics
- Winamp Skins
- Walllpapers
- Screensavers
The CD takes you through a weird world created through their inspirational death metal. It includes a cover version of the Depeche Mode song “Everything Counts” that is truly awesome. If you haven’t heard this album yet, I strongly recommend that you pick up a copy straight away. This is a work of genius by this long standing melodic death metal group.
Brilliant - By: , 03 Jan 2006 This has got to be In Flames' best album, & probably won't be beaten.
Most of the songs are memorable, & the few that are less so are still good songs. The production is sharp & full compared to the previous releases, & everything sounds better. Anders voice
You can hear the Metalllica influences, from the palm muted riffs of Food for the Gods & the descending harmonies in Jester Script, but In Flames take those influences & turn it into something original. For instance the solo in The Hive is a little like One, but the backing guitars make it sound so right & melodic. The combination of acoustic folk style parts with the heavy parts gives the album more character & melody, such as the tracks Gyroscope, Dialogue with the Stars & Whoracle. Gyroscope is one of the greatest songs I have heard from In Flames. Epidsode 666 is a fast & memorable riff that is great. The Opening riff on Jotun & Food for the Gods are powerful, & the mid sections are not repeated but built upon so they sound a little different to the the original theme. This is probably what makes the album listenable over & over again. As a guitar player, this album is also quite satisfying to play for the same reasons!
Overalll, this is an originallly outstanding & sometimes even beautiful album from those Swedes.
Whoracle - By: , 01 Oct 2005 This is a truly awesome album & definitely among In Flames' finest. Although it is a fine album & packed with great songs the best tracks are probably:
Jotun with its unforgettable intro melody & guitar harmony;
Gyroscope with an excellent mix of light & heavy;
the brutal Morphing Into Primal and, of course;
Episode 666 which features one of the best riffs you will EVER hear.
A brilliant album that any fan of melodic death metal will love.
Absolute genius - By: , 07 Jul 2005 It was this album in which In Flames reallly perfected their sound. Everything about this album is fantastic from the awesome melody introducing Jotun, to the wonderful album outro, Whoracle. Anders Friden moves away from the more American death metal voice that he used for The Jester Race & adopts a more distinctive one, & one which is fundamentallly flawless. The lead guitar on this album drives it with one memorable melody after another. From Jotun to Jester Script Transfigured to Everything Counts, this album is filled with incredible musicianship & heart. However, it seems that this album is missing one of the key elements which most albums of the 90's seem to contain; the album filler. Every track is magnificent, there is nothing missing from this classic & it should not be missing from anyone's CD collection.
