Meshuggah is widely acknowledged as an influence on many modern metal bands from Textures to Tool. They are regarded as pioneers by critics and musicians alike.
Discography
Psykisk Testbild (EP, 1989)
Contradictions Collapse (1991)
None (EP, 1994)
Selfcaged (1995)
Destroy Erase Improve (1995)
The True Human Design (1997)
Chaosphere (1998)
Contradictions Collapse and None (1999)
Rare Trax (2001)
Nothing (2002)
I (EP, 2004)
Catch Thirty-Three (2005)
Nothing (Re-Release With DVD) (2006)
obZen (2008)
Alive (2010)
Koloss (2012)
Pitch Black (2013)
The Violent Sleep Of Reason (2016)
Immutable (2022)
Band history
Meshuggah was formed in Umeå in 1987; two years later, the band released their first record, an EP entitled Psykisk Testbild (which can be roughly translated as "Psychological test image". This recording displayed a straightforward thrash metal influenced sound, with some strains along the lines of Metallica's concurrent releases. There were also hints of more complex music in the songwriting. As the group grew older, they further refined the technicality of their musicianship and songwriting. This led to a harsher sound, utilizing strong seven string guitar (and later eight string guitar) rhythms, manic sounding vocals, and a combination of jazz fusion elements as well. This caused the band's style to border on the lines of an esoteric feel. This style has shown to be hard to appreciate by some but it is widely embraced by Meshuggah fans.
While the band's music is extremely intense and aggressive, the members often demonstrate a strong sense of humour: their video for "New Millennium Cyanide Christ" consisted of the five band members sitting inside their tour bus headbanging and air guitaring to the song. Promotional photos of the band often include comical grimacing.
In late 2005, Meshuggah were nominated for a Swedish Grammy for the album Catch Thirty-Three.
Bands such as Dream Theater, God Forbid, Deftones, Textures , Lamb of God, The Safety Fire and Tool have cited Meshuggah as an influence.
Style
Among the band's most recognizable qualities are lead guitar player Fredrik Thordendal's abrasive, chaotic and dischordant solos, singer Jens Kidman's vocals, which resemble manic screams and shouts; the churning, dissonant rhythm guitars and the polymetric drum beats. In a typical Meshuggah song, drummer Tomas Haake plays two separate rhythms: a standard 4/4 beat with his hands, and a completely different metrical subdivision with his feet. The guitars mostly follow the bass drum work, creating an awkwardly pulsating rhythmic pattern to work as the basis of the song.
To give an example, the main riff of the song "New Millennium Cyanide Christ" from their 1998 album Chaosphere follows the aforementioned blueprint. Haake beats a rather slow 4/4 rhythm with his hands, while the bass drums and guitars play a repetitive 23/16 rhythm pattern on top of it. As the subdivided pattern is repeated, the pattern's accents shift to different beats on each repetition. After repeating the 23/16 pattern five times, a shorter 13/16 pattern is played once. These patterns sum up to 128 16th notes, which equals exactly 8 measures in 4/4 meter.
The band has evolved through a number of stylisitic periods. Contradictions Collapse and None have a sound similar to Metallica's concurrent albums. Destroy Erase Improve and Chaosphere have a more distinct off-time influence along with the thrash metal sound. Nothing and Catch Thirty-Three have a sound close to the vein of groove metal, consisting of droning and slow grooves.
While live drums were obviously not abandoned, a unique decision was made to use programmed drum patterns using Toontrack's "Drumkit From Hell" (developed in co-operation with Tomas Haake and Morgan Ågren) sample library on the latest album Catch Thirty-Three, not only providing a more precise and mechanized drumscape, but also making drum beat creativity a more collaborative effort amongst all of the band members. It cemented the album as one of the band's most complex works to date. The band members have, however, stated in several interviews that the decision to use programmed drums was due to the lack of time given by their label to produce the record.
On all records since Nothing, guitarists Thordendal and Hagström use custom-made Nevborn, and custom Ibanez eight string guitars. These guitars add two low strings to allow the crushing, heavy riffs to be played in even lower registers. They currently use Line 6's Vetta II Amps.
In regards to lyrics, the main lyricist of Meshuggah is drummer Tomas Haake, who uses complex, but precise, vocabulary and metaphorical styling. Through abstract descriptions, Haake's lyrics discuss such topics as the self, society, mendaciousness, and the human condition, all with an overarching theme that intertwines with metaphysical concepts relating to the psychedelic experience. While Haake tends to write the majority of the lyrics, guitarist Mårten Hagström also contributes to some songs.
Beneath
Meshuggah Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My morbid self beneath
A peril trip the last way out
I spin as I let go
In spirals down the narrow lines
Passing through my aura
Spit me out into my mind
A journey through disease
I'm behind my cynic eyes
That stare but can not see
The sickness in me... Beneath
I fall in untruthful me the essence of my thoughts
Swirling in a thousand vows endless truthless
What am I this me beneath
A vain organic lie
That rules me from inside
Immobile now I bow before reality itself
It's substance moving through my eyes
My life is transferred once suffused upon
My mind the view erases burns inside
And then another fall
I plunge into a well of lies a cold
Perennial flow the vortex of my soul
The lyrics of the song Beneath by Meshuggah describe a journey into the singer's own subconscious, where they confront their hidden fears, insecurities, and weaknesses. The singer describes the experience as a perilous trip, as if they are wandering through a labyrinth of their own psyche. The use of imagery, such as spiraling down narrow lines and falling into a well of lies, creates a sense of disorientation and confusion, emphasizing the sense of being lost within oneself. The lyrics are highly introspective and reveal the singer's struggle to come to terms with their own identity and the darker aspects of their personality.
The repeated phrase "beneath" is significant because it represents the hidden depths of the singer's mind, and the acknowledgement that what lies within is not always pleasant. The line "I'm behind my cynic eyes that stare but can not see" suggests that the singer is aware of their own cynicism and its limitations, but unable to escape it. The final lines, "the vortex of my soul", give a sense of the singer being sucked into a void of their own making, unable to resist the downward pull.
Line by Line Meaning
It's time to go into the me below
It's time to explore the darker, hidden parts of myself
My morbid self beneath
The unhealthy aspects of my personality that are buried deep inside
A peril trip the last way out
A dangerous journey towards self-discovery that may be necessary for my survival
I spin as I let go
I lose control as I delve deeper into my subconscious
In spirals down the narrow lines
I descend into a narrow, constricting place within myself
Passing through my aura
Experiencing the energy and emotions that surround me
Spit me out into my mind
I confront my own thoughts and beliefs
A journey through disease
A metaphorical journey through the unhealthy parts of myself
I'm behind my cynic eyes
I am hiding behind a façade of cynicism
That stare but can not see
My cynicism is preventing me from truly seeing and understanding things
The sickness in me... Beneath
Acknowledging that there are negative aspects of myself that are buried deep inside
I fall in untruthful me the essence of my thoughts
I am immersed in the falsehoods that I believe about myself and the world
Swirling in a thousand vows endless truthless
I am surrounded by lies and broken promises
What am I this me beneath
Who am I really, beneath the surface?
A vain organic lie
An empty, fake version of myself that is ruled by my biological impulses
That rules me from inside
My base desires and instincts are in control of my actions
Immobile now I bow before reality itself
I am forced to confront the harsh realities of the world
It's substance moving through my eyes
I am processing and trying to understand these harsh truths
My life is transferred once suffused upon
I am changed by this experience in a fundamental way
My mind the view erases burns inside
My perspective is forever altered, leaving an emotional impact
And then another fall
The cycle of self-discovery and growth repeats itself
I plunge into a well of lies a cold
I am once again confronted with the falsehoods and illusions that I believe
Perennial flow the vortex of my soul
The cycle of self-discovery and growth is a constant, never-ending process.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: FREDRIK THORDENDAL, TOMAS HAAKE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind