The mighty MESHUGGAH and the Axe FX!

I've been a fan since around the time of DEI. Personally, I think the albums from DEI to Obzen all have their own personalities. They're similar in that it's heavy music with crazy rhythms and screaming, but I think they have subtleties (an odd word to use when referring to Meshuggah's music!). To me, Obzen and Koloss are pretty similar, although I prefer Obzen (although it definitely has some duds on it). Alex C's flowchart above is pretty right on.

My favorites by them are Catch33 and I.

EDIT: None deserves a mention too. I think it marks their movement away from the thrash style to their newer more advanced approach. I probably like None as much as, if not more than, DEI.

That said, I like Fredrik's Sol Niger Within most of all. It has more of a fusion focus and is generally more advanced musically. He really has a beautiful sense of harmony and melody. I always thought it'd've made the perfect soundtrack for Event Horizon. For those unfamiliar with it, I highly recommend checking it out. Here's a track from it, "Missing Time" (although it's really a track from another session that was originally released on its own and later included as a bonus track on the second release of SNW).

Seems he has a follow-up in the works (whoa - just notice Fredrik took the videos down from the recording sessions with Morgan and Dirk). Definitely looking forward to it.
 
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Chris@KatsuKuriMedia said:
hmm... it's definitely not straight ahead metal. many people (subconsciously) don't like the odd meters and polyrhythms. they can't "feel" the music; they try to tap their foot along or something and just can't feel the flow.

some of my personal favorite songs are on this spotify playlist. haha i made a "meshuggah for beginners" list haha!

Meshuggah for Beginners on Spotify
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I listened to that whole thing and there's definitely some interesting things going on rhythmically. The leads have some jazz influence, but the vocals are just... Bad. They clutter up the mix and don't add anything valuable, IMO.

In this style, vocals are generally another texture on top of what else is going on, but it would appear that the guitars are operating with the same purpose, so there's no contrast.

This is just not for me.
 
You don't like the rhythmic contrast the vocal line provides juxtaposed over the polyrhythms and groupings? It's kinda the thread that links things together in addition to the 4/4 backbeat of the snare in most songs. For me anyway.
 
Chris@KatsuKuriMedia said:
You don't like the rhythmic contrast the vocal line provides juxtaposed over the polyrhythms and groupings? It's kinda the thread that links things together in addition to the 4/4 backbeat of the snare in most songs. For me anyway.
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What he said!
The vocals have a very important role in their music.
The lyrics, the rhythm, the intensity!
The lyrics even add grooves of their own to the music.
My favorite lyrics are from 'Do not look down' and I love the groove and intensity in the song 'I am colossus'.
 
Chris@KatsuKuriMedia said:
a lot of people who think meshuggah is a mediocre band just have no idea what is actually going on musically.
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And the emperor's new clothes are aaaaaamazing!

(As a note, they are, by no means, mediocre. I do, however, think that their focus on coming up with music that is a polyrhythmic exercise has led to them crafting music that doesn't really come across as "songs." Which is fine; I just can't listen to more than a couple tracks from them in a sitting because of it, personally)
 
Ben.Last said:
And the emperor's new clothes are aaaaaamazing!

(As a note, they are, by no means, mediocre. I do, however, think that their focus on coming up with music that is a polyrhythmic exercise has led to them crafting music that doesn't really come across as "songs." Which is fine; I just can't listen to more than a couple tracks from them in a sitting because of it, personally)
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sure, i completely understand why some people don't prefer to listen to their music. it's the same reason some people don't listen to celine dion or michael bolton. it's just not their preference or their mood at the time.

though i will say, meshuggah does take some understanding, or at least recognition, of some advanced music and composition concepts. if those aren't at least recognized, the band can just seem like "noise." this is in contrast to other music that is performed sloppy or composition that is truly random; that is definitely not on the same level as meshuggah even if it may sound similar.

for example, there's a section in "I" where the drums seem to do some random out of time beat. the snare is just all over the place and doesn't fit at first (or first 100) listen.

what's going on though is a 4:3 polyrhythm of the crash ride pattern against the snare. once i realized that, WOW that section becomes much more intense, more musical tension, when that resolve comes around, WOW. crazy stuff!

again if you're not into that kinda stuff (i really don't care if you understand what's going on, just recognize it), then yeah, you may not like listening to it. no prob.

is it music just to exhibit skill? could it be viewed as "excercises"? yeah i guess. but to some of us, the musical and emotional qualities of those songs are only heightened by the complexity and genius compositions.

it's like the first time you learned what a diminished chord really is and where it goes. before that it was just that 7th chord in a diatonic scale. but then you learned what it was compared to a 1/2 diminished chord, and how those 2 have completely different sounds, feelings and uses. then whenever one comes around in that cover band of yours, you LOVE it!

... you do know what a diminished chord is, right? ;)


i remember when i first started playing electric guitar when i was 10 or something. i didn't hear a difference between the neck and bridge pickup. could have been the rp20 i was using, could have been the crappy speaker i was using. definitely was my lack of experience.

i heard no difference.

then one day, i played guitar like normal and there it was. i heard it. it had been happening all the time, i just didn't recognize it. thousands of guitarists knew about it and used it to affect their sound, but i didn't hear it at all. then i suddenly did.

to me at the time, the pickups were the emperor's new clothes. yeah right, there's a difference, you're full of it... until i somehow acquired the skill to hear it. then i realized what i'd been missing for so long.
 
Chris@KatsuKuriMedia said:
sure, i completely understand why some people don't prefer to listen to their music. it's the same reason some people don't listen to celine dion or michael bolton. it's just not their preference or their mood at the time.

though i will say, meshuggah does take some understanding, or at least recognition, of some advanced music and composition concepts. if those aren't at least recognized, the band can just seem like "noise." this is in contrast to other music that is performed sloppy or composition that is truly random; that is definitely not on the same level as meshuggah even if it may sound similar.

for example, there's a section in "I" where the drums seem to do some random out of time beat. the snare is just all over the place and doesn't fit at first (or first 100) listen.

what's going on though is a 4:3 polyrhythm of the crash ride pattern against the snare. once i realized that, WOW that section becomes much more intense, more musical tension, when that resolve comes around, WOW. crazy stuff!

again if you're not into that kinda stuff (i really don't care if you understand what's going on, just recognize it), then yeah, you may not like listening to it. no prob.

is it music just to exhibit skill? could it be viewed as "excercises"? yeah i guess. but to some of us, the musical and emotional qualities of those songs are only heightened by the complexity and genius compositions.

it's like the first time you learned what a diminished chord really is and where it goes. before that it was just that 7th chord in a diatonic scale. but then you learned what it was compared to a 1/2 diminished chord, and how those 2 have completely different sounds, feelings and uses. then whenever one comes around in that cover band of yours, you LOVE it!

... you do know what a diminished chord is, right? ;)


i remember when i first started playing electric guitar when i was 10 or something. i didn't hear a difference between the neck and bridge pickup. could have been the rp20 i was using, could have been the crappy speaker i was using. definitely was my lack of experience.

i heard no difference.

then one day, i played guitar like normal and there it was. i heard it. it had been happening all the time, i just didn't recognize it. thousands of guitarists knew about it and used it to affect their sound, but i didn't hear it at all. then i suddenly did.

to me at the time, the pickups were the emperor's new clothes. yeah right, there's a difference, you're full of it... until i somehow acquired the skill to hear it. then i realized what i'd been missing for so long.
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Oh, I know what they're doing (and, in most instances, it's nowhere near as complicated as people seem to think). It's not the complex nature of their music that makes me not want to listen to them for extended periods. It's the sameness of so much of it. I am not saying that they need to change what they're doing; it just doesn't do as much for me as it seems to be doing for other people right now.

Telling someone "you don't like it so you must just not get it" is not the same thing as not knowing the effect of different pickups. I've seen people do that crap for years now. I'm a big Tool fan, and that is THE most annoying thing about other Tool fans. I've never felt the need to tell someone they "must not get it" just because they don't like a band that I happen to enjoy. It is possible to understand something and just not feel that it offers much for you.

In summation: I'm fine with Meshuggah. I enjoy them in small doses. I like what they're doing. I don't think that it takes being oblivious to the intricacies of their schtick to not be a fan of them.
 
sure, i completely understand why some people don't prefer to listen to their music. it's the same reason some people don't listen to celine dion or michael bolton. it's just not their preference or their mood at the time.
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i also said this... :)

that other stuff wasn't a blanket statement, but it's happened many, many times is all.
 
Just got the OT blu ray - did you guys notice the video was shot in the US and Europe but all the audio comes from Europe? So I guess some of it is sort of "air guitared" - I mean, it's still live, but what we're seeing may or may not directly correlate to what we're hearing. I'm sure it's not even noticeable. Still, kind of odd.
 
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