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.
Do Not Look Down
Meshuggah Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Become the essence of your goals
Hereditary dream
Pray that you may attain that destiny
Fall into the coveted line
Where life is but a theme
Of pretense in lustrous guise
Charts of means and status
Plaques to show your strife
Do your neighbour clones approve
Picture perfect illustration
Imitation of life
Where the path is evened out
All obstructions removed
Great viable citizen
Are you happy now?
Then praise your God and bow
Shimmering surface
The gleam of blinding lies
Become the product
The thing you so desire
To what length would you go to reach your goals?
What mantra will you use to justify your means?
Who will you betray to secure your dream?
What sins will you commit to avoid your sins be seen?
Do not look down
Do not look down
Or the abysmal beast of non-conformity
Might stare some unpleasant truth
Into your desensitized mind
Shimmering surface
The gleam of blinding lies
Become the product
The thing you so desire
In "Do Not Look Down," Meshuggah uses vivid and powerful lyrics to present a critique of societal pressures to conform and succeed at all costs. The opening lines, "Strive, strive, surmount the obstacles / Become the essence of your goals," encourage the listener to push themselves to achieve their dreams. However, as the song progresses, the lyrics become more cynical about the nature of success and the means by which it is achieved. The line "Where life is but a theme / Of pretense in lustrous guise" suggests that the pursuit of success often leads people to present a false image of themselves in order to fit in with societal expectations.
The middle section of the song is particularly cutting in its satire of the various forms of validation that people seek in their pursuit of success. The lines "Claims and values / Charts of means and status / Plaques to show your strife" depict a culture in which material possessions and social status are prized above all else, while the question "Do your neighbour clones approve" suggests that many people are so concerned with fitting in that they are almost indistinguishable from one another.
The final verse of the song directly confronts the listener with a series of provocative questions. The lines "To what length would you go to reach your goals? / What mantra will you use to justify your means? / Who will you betray to secure your dream? / What sins will you commit to avoid your sins be seen?" force the listener to confront the possibility that their own pursuit of success may involve compromising their values or harming others.
Overall, "Do Not Look Down" is a powerful commentary on the high-pressure culture of success that pervades modern society, and encourages listeners to question their own values and priorities in the pursuit of their dreams.
Line by Line Meaning
Strive, strive, surmount the obstacles
Keep trying, overcoming all challenges in your path
Become the essence of your goals
Transform into the very core of what you aim to achieve
Hereditary dream
Something passed down in your family for generations
Pray that you may attain that destiny
Hope and wish for your ultimate fate to be reached
Fall into the coveted line
Join the elite status quo and their way of life
Where life is but a theme
Existence is just a backdrop for what really matters
Of pretense in lustrous guise
A facade of brightness masking deceit and dishonesty
Claims and values
Beliefs and principles that one stands by
Charts of means and status
Records of achievements and position in society
Plaques to show your strife
Tangible objects demonstrating one's hard work and struggle
Do your neighbour clones approve
Do the people around you who share your views agree with your decisions
Picture perfect illustration
An exact representation of how things should look
Imitation of life
Copying what others are doing to make it appear as if you're living similarly
Where the path is evened out
Where every step taken is made as easy as possible
All obstructions removed
Anything that could get in the way of your goal has been eliminated
Great viable citizen
An exceptional member of society
Are you happy now?
Are you truly happy with what you have achieved
Then praise your God and bow
Thank a higher power for your success and display reverence
Shimmering surface
A bright, reflective exterior
The gleam of blinding lies
The shine of falsehood that is overpowering and overwhelming
Become the product
Transform into the outcome desired and sought after
The thing you so desire
What you want more than anything else
To what length would you go to reach your goals?
How much are you willing to do to accomplish what you want
What mantra will you use to justify your means?
What phrase will you use to excuse the methods you use
Who will you betray to secure your dream?
Who will you deceive to make your dream come true
What sins will you commit to avoid your sins be seen?
What wrongdoings will you do to not have your immoralities exposed
Do not look down
Do not question the path you've taken
Or the abysmal beast of non-conformity
A terrible monster of going against the norm
Might stare some unpleasant truth
Could force you to see a reality you don't want to acknowledge
Into your desensitized mind
Critical thinking and feeling has been dulled
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DICK AUGUST L�VGREN, DICK AUGUST LOEVGREN, FREDRIK THORDENDAL, JENS KIDMAN, MAARTEN HAGSTROEM, M�RTEN HAGSTR�M, TOMAS HAAKE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@UnNicknameOriginale
I haven't seen my feet since this song was relased
@josiahhamilton9161
Best comment goes to... PigsFactory
@whatisahandleplz
Lucky you, unfortunately I haven't been able to see my penis since. Not because of the song title I'm just fat.
@nihilanth_mudrarakshas
@@whatisahandleplz that made me laugh harder than it should have
@BlackestSheepBobBarker
Nice lol
@rodpadgett415
Yeah, I haven't seen any of my turds in the crapper since I heard this tunage.
@metalcovers9974
Wtf are you doing it the comments? Didn't jens just fucking tell you "don't look down"?
@swamdono
Oh yea? And what abou- GOD DAMMIT
@tensevo
ALSO TO NOT BELIEVE ANYBODY WHAT THEY TELL YOU, SO LOOK DOWN, DONT LOOK DOWN, DO WHAT YOU WANT.
@davecrupel2817
Jokes on you.
I flipped my phone upside down. So now i have to look up at the comments.
Ho HOH!