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.
Erroneous Manipulation
Meshuggah Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
is washing my stomach
I can't stop thinking about my tonsils
how they are pendulating between my toes
slowly suffering from liberty
I'm naked on a TV-set and it's running wild,
fast, sweet and heavy penetrating in to my
grandparents pupils out of reach but with a
Allright I can admit it now
I was a screaming and lying stoneoperation
who searched his way through carparts
afraid to be recognized by a spoon
Birds with empty refridgerators heated up the
children's chairsweat
There was no chance to drive the table without
a blue sock cause my mistakes rolled down above
the forest of investigation
As soon as I heard my neighbor bend his arm
with a submarine the milk was hot and dangerous
like a bed
Nobody understands how wipewashers can breathe cows
Farting magazines are wading in waxed scarecrows
Falling flesh punched me in my bathsuit look alike neck
which controls universe with an irongrip of umbrellas
I'm wiping away some mirrors from the snakes
without drinking any busstations
Sorry, I'm in love with a door
The song "Erroneous Manipulation" by Meshuggah contains a series of nonsensical, surreal and seemingly disjointed lyrics, which create an atmosphere of confusion, discomfort and even absurdity. The lyrics appear to be a collage of unrelated images, thoughts and sensations, blended together in a stream-of-consciousness style. This technique may reflect the band's intention to convey a sense of disorientation and fragmentation that characterizes modern life.
In the first stanza, the imagery is particularly bizarre and grotesque, describing an "inwrought irksome rabbit" washing the singer's stomach and his tonsils "pendulating between [his] toes", while he is exposed naked on a television set. The feeling of exposure and vulnerability is reinforced by the allusions to the grandparents' eyes, which seem to penetrate the singer with a "canoes evil emotion". Such references to bodily functions, vulnerability and distortion may suggest a critique of consumer society, media saturation and the superficiality of popular culture.
The second stanza continues the surrealistic and fragmented style of the lyrics, using seemingly random images and metaphors to conjure up a sense of dislocation and confusion. The line "I'm wiping away some mirrors from the snakes without drinking any busstations" is a good example of the illogical combinations of words that characterize the song. The lyrics may also suggest a commentary on the absurdity of everyday life, cultural conformity and the dehumanizing effects of technology.
Line by Line Meaning
An inwrought irksome rabbit
I am experiencing an annoying sensation inside my body, like a rabbit that is causing me discomfort.
is washing my stomach
It feels as if there is something unpleasant washing or stirring inside my stomach.
I can't stop thinking about my tonsils
My thoughts are consumed with the idea of my tonsils and how they are behaving in a peculiar way.
how they are pendulating between my toes
I have a strange sensation in my body, as if my tonsils are moving and swinging between my toes.
slowly suffering from liberty
I am experiencing a sense of discomfort, like I am suffering from the effects of my own freedom.
I'm naked on a TV-set and it's running wild,
I feel vulnerable and exposed, as if I am naked on a TV set that is out of control.
fast, sweet and heavy penetrating in to my grandparents pupils out of reach but with a canoes evil emotion
Some sort of overwhelming and intense emotion is affecting me, even though it is beyond the reach of my grandparents.
Allright I can admit it now
I am finally able to confess something I have been hiding.
I was a screaming and lying stoneoperation
I was once dishonest and deceitful, and perhaps even reckless.
who searched his way through carparts
I was exploring different paths and options, like someone searching their way through the different parts of a car.
afraid to be recognized by a spoon
I have experienced fear or anxiety about being recognized or caught in some way.
Birds with empty refridgerators heated up the children's chairsweat
There is some kind of chaotic situation unfolding, with birds and children's chairs and sweaty conditions.
There was no chance to drive the table without a blue sock cause my mistakes rolled down above the forest of investigation
It feels like I made a bad decision or mistake that had consequences, but it was beyond my control and has led to further complications.
As soon as I heard my neighbor bend his arm with a submarine the milk was hot and dangerous like a bed
Some kind of unusual or unexpected event happened, and it created a sense of danger or heat.
Nobody understands how wipewashers can breathe cows
There is some kind of mystery or confusion about how certain things work or are connected.
Farting magazines are wading in waxed scarecrows
There is a sense of absurdity or confusion, with farting magazines and waxed scarecrows somehow involved.
Falling flesh punched me in my bathsuit look alike neck
Something violent or jarring happened, like falling flesh punching me in the neck.
which controls universe with an irongrip of umbrellas
There is a sense of power or control that is somehow linked to umbrellas and the universe itself.
I'm wiping away some mirrors from the snakes without drinking any busstations
I am trying to get rid of or cleanse something harmful, even though it is not clear how to do so effectively.
Sorry, I'm in love with a door
I have a strange and perhaps irrational affection for a door or doorway.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: FREDRIK THORDENDAL, JENS KIDMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind