In Flames

In Flames began in Gothenburg in 1990 as a side project of guitarist Jesper Strömblad. The first official line-up came together in 1993, and the debut Lunar Strain (1994) was sung by Dark Tranquillity’s Mikael Stanne, who stepped in as a session vocalist.

Anders Fridén joined as the permanent singer in 1995, and Björn Gelotte took over the drums, which let Strömblad move to guitar. The Jester Race (1996) and Whoracle (1997) put twin-guitar harmonies borrowed from classic heavy metal at the heart of death metal, and together with At the Gates and Dark Tranquillity the band became the face of the Gothenburg scene. The Jester Head mascot, created during the Jester Race sessions, has been their symbol ever since.

In 1998 Daniel Svensson joined on drums and Gelotte moved to lead guitar. With Peter Iwers on bass, this line-up made Colony (1999) and Clayman (2000). Reroute to Remain (2002) and Soundtrack to Your Escape (2004) brought in clean vocals, electronics and tighter song structures, which divided older fans but opened the band to a much wider audience. Come Clarity (2006) became their first number one album in Sweden, and A Sense of Purpose followed in 2008.

Strömblad left the band in February 2010. Sounds of a Playground Fading (2011), Siren Charms (2014) and Battles (2016) pushed further in a melodic, alternative direction, while I, the Mask (2019) and above all Foregone (2023) brought back the harder riffs and much of the old melodic death metal fire. Foregone won a Swedish Grammis award, one of seven the band has collected over its career. In February 2026 In Flames started recording their fifteenth studio album.

Current line-up: Anders Fridén (vocals), Björn Gelotte (guitars), Chris Broderick (guitars), Liam Wilson (bass), Jon Rice (drums).