OBZEN

The sixth album from Meshuggah, obZen, is another curious experience. After the experimental Catch 33, the boys decided to to do somenting slightly more accessible, but this does not mean that they "sold out". The album is still crushingly heavy and somewhat experimental.

The music here is like a combination of all the old stuff, but still creating something new. There is alot more prog metal influences here, like Tool for example. If you listen to it many times you will probably find new stuff all the time.

I read an interview where Tomas said that they tried to make every track on the record different from the othes, and I think they succeeded well. The tracks are very varied but still form an convincing entirety. The highlights of the album are the dynamics in Electric Red, the epicness Dancers to a Discordant System, the odd time signatures of Pravus and of course Bleed, one of the heaviest tracks Meshuggah has ever put to record.

The production is clear and professional, as they apparently have a studio of their own they (mostly Fredrik) have become great producers. You can hear all the guitars, the bass, and even Tomas' ghost notes in Bleed, if you listen carefully. In conclusion: this is another masterful piece of rhythm and melody from Meshuggah, and probably a good starting point for new listeners. 4 stars because it's not as good as other Meshuggah's, eg I, Catch 33 etc. VERY good though.