Even early on in their career the Swedes from Meshuggah were ahead of their time. While their debut ‘Contradictions Collapse’ (1991) was basically a thrash album with some progressive tendencies mixed in, their sophomore effort was fuelled by an innovative fusion of death metal, thrash and progressive metal. Subsequent recordings have been more groove-oriented and therefore slower paced but touches of other genres are always present. The individual members are all consummate musicians in their own right but as a unit, these djent pioneers and tech metal luminaries cannot be described in terms of labels as no two records sound the same. If you’re new to Meshuggah then try their celebrated seventh CD ‘Koloss’ (2012) as it offers a great summary of the band’s catalogue up until that point. If you’re into groovy, complex, masterfully performed yet accessible metal then Meshuggah will definitely float your boat. Their latest slab ‘Immutable’ (2022), their longest ever at over one hour of run time, finds them in excellent form: Jens Kidman’s barks still packs a serious bite and the downtuned guitars that make them instantly recognisable are still a big part of their sound. #GMM23
