Lunar Strain is the debut full-length release by Swedish pioneering melodic death metal act In Flames. The album was published on April 1st, 1994 through Wrong Again Records. It was recorded, mixed and mastered between Autumn and Winter of 1993 by Staffan Olofsson and Fredrik Nordström, respectively. This release is noted it for its raw vocals, which were provided by peer Dark Tranquillity frontman Mikael Stanne, who was a session musician for In Flames at the time. He had sung with this band previously on Demo '93. This record is also famous of its folkish elements, as it features the inclusion of violins and acoustic guitars between segments of each track, as well tracks being played entirely on acoustic. Tracks "Behind Space" and "Clad in Shadows" were then again recorded with what would be the future lineup of 1999 release Colony, although both titles were renamed with an '99 at the end of each. Both tracks ended up on different version of said release, with "Behind Space '99" on the standard issue, while "Clad in Shadows '99" on the reissue. "Clad in Shadows '99" was also released on another reissue of this bands' future album, 2000's Whoracle.