MESHUGGAH

9. In Death Is Death follows, like the title, lower than Hell there is; the jerky rhythm coming out of a 40 howitzer sows discord, Jens is more understandable at this moment, Mårten and Fredrik attack each other with ropes; the sound becomes clearer, the lava tide solidifies, the rhythm becomes syncopated; 4'30 and Zappian break, memory of a funfair that goes wrong, the prog is there, reminiscence of Between The Buried And Me, yes you have to know how to wait to get the real meat out of it; reminder of 'Red' and these saturated guitars which required rehearsals to accept this avant-garde sound; drops of soot falling from the alabaster now, the prog blood branches out, becomes bright, ah this bass; the variation starts with dark, electrified post rock, a memory of the work of Fripp and Eno, striking, also bordering on cold wave; that it was good to have stayed the course at the start, yes extreme prog also knows how to make itself desired, and too bad for prog in too much of a hurry; agonizing metronomic finale 10. Shed...yes from the Meshuggah again the one who scares; no, the growl voice just becomes abysmal and accompanies the dynamited air 11. Personae Non Gratae anyone who has not made the effort is not wanted here... that's good the gradual break seems to be ending, the incandescent lava flood has started again with a vengeance 12. Dehumanization follows, ah a tad stronger and more extreme; like the feeling of running in a minefield, it screams, it runs, it becomes murky, sticky, the revolt is there, we are in madness with the bass and the guitars more djent here, it flows down the hill 13. Sum as the terminus of this singular moment, between a flood of fire, wandering from the hell, visiting the depths and contemplation of today's unlivable life; 2'30 and the ambient, minimalist, archaic break; a strange sound that can make you think, but if there were more of these sounds...The question would lead to more listening and less dropout? A bit like Opeth was able for a time to reject the proguous in need of plenary listening?

Although Meshuggah have a core sound that they haven't deviated much from since "Chaosphere" (1998), they have always challenged themselves and their audience with little changes and experiments on each new release and that trend is continued on "Immutable". "Immutable" however presents one of the more significant changes in sound Meshuggah have produced in a number of years incorporating more atmospheric sections, more melody, an element of minimalism, and even an acoustic intro to the 9:35 minutes long instrumental centerpiece track "They Move Below". Parts of the album are even bordering accessible, which is a word I have never before used to describe Meshuggah. So while "Immutable" certainly still features its fair share of odd-metered heavy riffs and rhythms, alien sounding jazz/fusion influenced leads, and Jens Kidman's angry shouting vocals in front, the album is ultimately not quite as relentlessly uncompromising as their last many preceding releases. While I have always hailed the uncompromising nature of their past releases, it's actually nice to hear Meshuggah deliver a more accessible and compositionally varied release.

Other than "They Move Below", Meshuggah have opted to put two more instrumentals on "Immutable". "Black Cathedral" is a mid-album breather track (not that it's a mellow track), which is quite different from the tracks surrounding it, and then "Past Tense" which closes the album. "Past Tense" is a beautiful, minimalistic, atmospheric, and melancholic clean guitar track, which closes the album in great style. After being pummeled and beaten by Meshuggah for over an hour before that (with only a few atmospheric and melodic moments to break the violent and relentless heaviness and aggression), it's perfect with a mellow, atmospheric, and melancholic sounding closing track.

The remaining part of the album is a punishing and demanding listen (which isn't surprising considering the sound and style of the previous releases by Meshuggah), and like on most preceding releases not all tracks stand out equally much, but I'll mention "Broken Cog" and "Ligature Marks" as some of the standout tracks on the album. They are both some of the tracks on the album where you can hear that Meshuggah have evolved and that they are still willing to try new things. Listen to the last minute of "Ligature Marks" for proof of that...eh there's even a harmony guitar part...

"Immutable" is packed in a clear, heavy, meaty, and detailed sounding production, which suits the material perfectly and upon conclusion it is another high quality release from Meshuggah. I'd even go as far as to call the album a standout release in the band's discography. Like most Meshuggah releases, the relentless aggression and the difficulty to tell songs apart are also minor issues on "Immutable", but that's nothing new in the world of Meshuggah, and if you haven't gotten used to it by now, chances are you never well. A 4.5 star (90%) rating is deserved.

(Originally posted on Metal Music Archives)

While Meshuggah at first wasn't all that special to me, mostly due to me getting introduced to the band through their 21 minute song EP of I, which at the time, around late 2022, was kind of a disappointment as I thought it was simply just the same technical riffs over and over again, that was a while ago, and sooner before I knew it, I realized that Meshuggah is more than just a band that can do technical riffs, they can do a lot more, but I think if you have been in the prog metal fish tank for quite some time you might already know that, so let me skip the sentimental words and get into the real stuff.

Catch 33 is the band's fifth studio release, and here is when you can really tell the band took their sound to the extremes, creating a 47 minute song that is split in 13 different parts, kinda like the 43 minute track of Sol Niger Within by Fredrik Thorndal's Special Defects, though that album is split into 29 parts (but only on physical releases, on streaming it is just one big track). I feel like in Meshuggah's style, and compared to their other long track of I, Catch 33 is a really strong rendezvous through a mechanical labyrinth of brutal riffs, strong hooks, and a busy and existential atmosphere that goes through most of the album seamlessly.

What I really love about this album is how the band managed to make all the riffs after those from the first three sections feel like one big conglomerate, going from a very intense riff from Autonomy Lost, to this big and hypnotic melody at the end with Sum. I really like it when a band seems to create this melody throughout their playing, straying from the path occasionally, but always retaining that same familiar tune. That is why I really love prog epics like Tarkus or Supper's Ready, but here with Catch 33 they take it to a radical extreme, one that I can definitely appreciate and groove too.

I also will say that I really like the whole tempo and swing this album gives me. As stated from PopMatters review on this album,it is "Neither fast nor slow". While the sections are mostly 1-3 minutes at a time, with the exception of In Death - Is Death, it does take its time in establishing these hooks and series of events that, while relatively quick, feels like an entire experience feels like one giant sum, and I think that is really special. Even the minute and 40 second long opening track of Autonomy Lost is an amazing song that feels great to listen to for me.

I will say that this album can sometimes get boring, and on certain occasions it does. The entirety of Mind's Mirror and the last half of In Death - Is Death and Sum are honestly very weak compared to the rest of the album. I get giving the listener a breather, but I think there could be better ways at doing that then having these quiet and very nothing moments that honestly kinda break the album a bit for me. I think with bands like Between The Buried and Me and The Mars Volta, both equally technical proggy bands from around the same time, they managed to create these interesting softer moments that do not quite break the mold. But Meshuggah cannot make an interesting, more toned down movement, which I think is a shame, though I doubt that is what appeals people to Meshuggah in the first place.

I also feel like the bass doesn't quite get as much love here as opposed to other Meshuggah albums. It is there, and it is still really good when it shows itself, but I think the vocals, guitars, and drums just get a lot more love here instead of the bass, which is sad to me since I think Meshuggah with a strong bass can go a really long way. I think if they made the quieter moments on here more interesting, and made the bass more prominent, we might have one of the best Meshuggah records.

Catch 33 is a very good djent endeavor. It has most of the right gears in place, and compared to other great Meshuggah releases it is definitely a high tier listen despite its occasional hiccups. I recommend checking it out, though start with ObZen and Nothing (2006) before jumping into this album, as those are the Meshuggah releases that'll get you into this band, trust me.

They have been following this particular style for some time now, and the question must be asked are they now solely going through the motions? Their wall of sound approach has been perfected, they have had remarkable consistency in their line-up (their last change was in 2004 when bassist Dick Lövgren joined), with the result being they are an incredibly tight outfit. However, this also means they can come across as almost mechanical as opposed to being delivered by sweaty humans as there are times when it feels quite metronomical and artificial. Certainly, this album has not had nearly the same impact on me as their last one, and by the end I was looking for something with more heart and soul.

Having caught the world off guard with its violent new concoction of metal madness MESHUGGAH has sailed through the decades with one album after another showcasing its bizarre and surreal form of musical aggression abut hasn't been heard from for six years. Following in the footsteps of 2016's "The Violent Sleep of Reason," longterm members guitarist Fredrik Thordendal and head screamer Jens Kidman are back the band's tenth studio album IMMUTABLE which showcases yet another chapter of this unique band's idiosyncratic approach to some of the most demanding metal music there is to be experienced.

It's been almost twenty years now that the band has featured the same stable lineup since bassist Dick Lövgren joined ranks in 2004 therefore it's fair to say that MESHUGGAH has become a well-oiled machine of metal in how it continues to craft variations on its crushing caustic technical workouts and with IMMUTABLE the band offers a slightly more refined and dare i say even accessible step with its progressively infused groovy djent metal. With 13 tracks including three instrumentals, IMMUTABLE is a lengthy beast of an album coming close to 67 minutes of MESHUGGAH madness that features all those classic musical traits and a few surprises.

It doesn't take long for the band to offer something new as the mechanical atonalities of guitar stomps jackhammer their way into your consciousness and then without warning Jens Kidman eschews the screaming until your lungs fall out but rather offers a spoken word intro that slowly brings in the more familiar uncompromising technical workouts of the MESHUGGAH machine. With many of the tracks written by drummer Tomas Haake, IMMUTABLE features a thundering roar of crazy technical percussive gymnastics as the primary instrumentation that the guitars and bass find themselves performing circus acts around. To smooth things out there are plenty of ghostly atmospheric moments to act a touch of eeriness to the brutal crushing percussion-rich rampages. Only Thordendal seems to be missing from the songwriting credits as all the other members contributed.

For a 67-minute album MESHUGGAH has taken a huge risk by offering too much of a good thing (or bad for those who haven't acquired a taste for this eclectic avant-metal) however the band cleverly inserts the 9 1/2 minute instrumental "They Move Below" which is probably the most accessible thing the band has ever released after its Metallica worship early years. This lengthy track pretty much jettisons the bizarre technicalities and syncopations from hell in order to craft an atmospheric grunge styled instrument that features melodic guitar counterpoints sailing away into the skies. Of course it's followed by the business-as-usual furor of "Kaleidoscope" but curiously that is followed by yet another instrumental in the form of "Black Cathedral" but this lil shorty is more of an aggressive tribute to reverb and feedback.

As "I Am That Thirst" gets back to chugging duties the album continues in a familiar comfort zone before the album ends with the final instrumental "Past Tense," another atmospheric chill out number that features clean guitars, slow tempos and absolutely no percussion to be heard. Overall MESHUGGAH has delivered another competent slice of djent infused avant-metal and are in no danger of burning out any time soon but having said that despite the small shifts away from their established stylistic approach, this is a MESHUGGAH album through and through and the album sort of fizzles out by the eighth track as the it all starts to sound as if it's on auto-pilot. The instrumentals offer a respite from the otherwise frenetic pace of the album but as i suspected, a 67-minute album of this intensity is a lot to swallow. Basically those already indoctrinated into the cult will find plenty to love on IMMUTABLE but for all the haters out there, there is nothing on this one that will win you over. While MESSHUGAH has found new elements to stitch into its musical fabric, in the end IMMUTABLE sounds like just another MESHUGGAH album for most of its run.

3.5 rounded down

I is a completely randomized polyrhythm ocean that drowns you with countless riffs and complex structures that barely anyone could possible play [not even the band itself can play it live (although they probably can, but it would take them some time to learn every polyrhythm present in the song)!], and that achievement by itself makes me give it five stars.

This is a way too complex song to review but basically it's like if you compressed the entire Catch Thirtythree album (which is already amazing) into just twenty minutes. Like I said before, it's filled with hundreds of polyrhythms, riffs, growling... An all-around frenzy of the main Death Metal properties combined with sheer complexity. A must have for people that enjoy death/tech/progressive metal.

Five stars!

Nothing has two versions: A remaster that had rerecorded guitars and drums, as well as altered vocals and some changes to songs. There is also the original, with the original guitars and drums. These versions have different album art, with the original being orange and the remaster being blue. I listened to the remaster (blue) because I always prefer remasters over the original as the sound quality might be better and more pleasing to the ear. On both versions is very, very heavy riffs and technical songs with poetic lyrics and impressive playing by all the band members.

Nothing isn't my favorite album by Meshuggah, that would be obZen. This one is still very good though, and it's really a definitive Meshuggah album. I love Meshuggah, so should you. Meshuggah needs some more love on this website because they really are one of the best heavier progressive metal bands out there. Nothing is a mandatory listen for the heavy progressive metalhead; Meshuggah as a band is a mandatory listen.

It is a brutal, melody-less, technical, complex, 47-Minute mass of pure tech metal, and I have always said, since this was released, that this is Meshuggah's very best work, it's un-toppable!

If you're a fan of classic prog that can't stand music without melody the don't try to listen to this album because you probably won't like it.

Catch Thirtythree sounds like if you took your typical Djent album and removed every single chorus, all clean vocals, each random guitar solo... And then grabbed every single riff in the album and amalgamated it into a single track.

There's a few chill moments in the album but they're mainly atmospheric and serve mostly as a transition to the next section (and to build up some tension).

If you wanna know how to listen to this album in the best way: Wait for night, then close your eyes, and play this album from beginning to end, without any breaks in between. It will transport you to another realm! A realm of sheer complexity and brutality!

Musicality is at its peak (and the fact that Haake's drums sound so amazing even when played by a computer says how incredible he is), and the album has amazing build-ups all around the album that really make it a thrilling experience (I will admit that the first time I listened it, I got jump-scared a few times, those riffs start very suddenly!) that will keep you entertained for its entire run-time.

Five stars, without a doubt. A must-have for any extreme metal fan.

The record is best described as distilled Meshuggah; the requisite components are all there but more friendly and accessible. The grooves are deep, but not mind-bending. Thordendal's guitar leads continue to generate ambiance but they stray from their typical dissonant spaciness and settle on something approaching standard voicings. For the old die-hards, it was easy to see why they would not value this record. But from the outside looking in, Koloss is a commendable album all around. By making this record, the band didn't just open themselves up to even greater mainstream appeal, they brought diversity to their sound thus sustaining their relevance even as the trend they helped established subsided.

With that all that said, from the "Spiteful Snake" until Pravus (tracks 6 through 9) the album does begin to drag. These songs are not bad, just a bit exhausting to listen to after the first 5 tracks. Ultimately, this stretch prevents me from giving it a 5/5.