THERMALITY – The Final Hours

RELEASE YEAR: 2024

BAND URL: https://thermalitysweden.bandcamp.com/

I wonder if In Flames founders Anders Frieden and Björn Gelotte had been privy to listening to fellow Gothenburg melodeathsters Thermality’s independently released (3 years after formation) very good debut album Before I Get To Rest²⁰²³ when the former contemplated the direction of Foregone²⁰²³, which was released on that same day, February 24th. Interestingly, there’s not that much In Flames’ influence on that album but it may have inspired them to return to their roots, as Foregone²⁰²³ clearly showed. There’s already more In Flames on Thermality’s Tales From The North EP²⁰²³ but still not as much as on their 2nd full length The Final Hours²⁰²⁴ released via Black Lodge Records on August 16th. For that album, imagine In Flames’ first 4 albums with a bit of the Reroute To Remain²⁰⁰² and Soundtrack To Your Escape²⁰⁰⁴ thrown in, mixed very well in a common bowl and then given a light touch of originality. The obvious problem with that is that if someone played it to me and insisted it was new In Flames I would believe them, and it doesn’t help that it was stylishly produced and mixed by none other than Fredrik Nordström at Studio Fredman responsible for classic albums by the former. I even contemplated taking off 0.5 point for that but, on the strength of the excellent and engaging songwriting, I decided to just score it on its own merits, while making a note in my review.

The change in sound, which, in both 2023 releases, used to have a lot of metalcore a’la Unearth and Trivium influence in it (both heavily influenced by In Flames to begin with,) could not have anything to do with the change of lineup, as it consisted of founding guitarist Walter Hamilton and drummer Hampus Sätterlund (both also members of a parody raw black metal act wonderfully named Satan Is Retard) as well as Ludvig Sommar (2021-vocals), Noel Hoflund Jonsson (2021-guitars) and Ture Skarfstad Stål (2022-bass) before the debut release. But the songwriting got a lot better, more interesting and intricate for the 2nd full length and we simply don’t know why, other than as a result of natural progress. This is hardly unusual, as the case of Trivium, for instance, shows, Ascendancy²⁰⁰⁵ superior to Ember To Inferno²⁰⁰³ or God Forbid’s excellent Determination²⁰⁰¹ to the mediocre Reject The Sickness²⁰⁰⁰.

Whatever the reason for the heavier In Flames influence, The Final Hours²⁰²⁴ opens up in a spectacular fashion, first with an instrumental (MMXXIV) recalling early Opeth as well as In Flames’ legendary 2nd album The Jester Race¹⁹⁹⁶ only to fashion the acoustic riff into a bridge to the perfect “Weeping Angels”, an instant favorite taking me back to 1996-2000 era of Gothenburg melodeath, but the genre perfections keep rolling with Colony¹⁹⁹⁹-like “Thorns of Salem”, “Fire Will Reign” and, especially, “Stranger” which makes me miss early Soilwork. Of equal consideration are the Trivium-ish “Nightfall” as well as, the second favorite, the infectious “The Guardian”, and, mind you, 6 perfect tracks out of 12 on a band’s 2nd full length is amazing, especially, since “Clones”, both parts of “Divinity” closing the album and the Dark Tranquillity meets early Sentenced “Forsaken” are very short of perfection, that last one literally too short for it.

Indeed, the only two tracks that are just very good are the power metallic Children Of Bodom Hatebreeder¹⁹⁹⁹-like (complete with gang shouts) “The Hunter & The Nightmare”, a little too pretensious with its mimicking of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony and the groovy Clayman²⁰⁰⁰ In Flames “Windigo”, that last one likely not as impressive because it’s outshined by its predecessor “Stranger” which actually stops the flow of perfect tracks from the 1st, noticeably superior half (5.9 v. 5.5.)

The Final Hours²⁰²⁴ is a fantastic release from a 4 year old band barely on their 2nd full length, whose output averaging an album a year recalls similar feats by their older city brothers In Flames, Dark Tranquillity or Soilwork, so, it comes highly recommended if you’re into those. The aforementioned similarity to In Flames (complete with three-styled, <growl, clean, murmuring whispers> vocals heavily recalling Anders’ Frieden antics) may be off – putting to some but it’s forgiven on the sophomore album, however, I do expect Thermality to grow a more original sound on their next releases.