MESHUGGAH Guitarist: JAMES HETFIELD's 'Rhythm Chops Are Incredible'

Ultimate-Guitar.com recently conducted an interview with MESHUGGAH guitarist Mrten Hagstrm. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow:

Ultimate-Guitar.com: Which guitarists influenced your style the most when you first started playing guitar?

Mrten Hagstrm: I first started playing, at least seriously, when I was 12 years old. Alex Lifeson from RUSH was huge for me. He played really interesting things melodically and put all kinds of cool things in his arrangements but it never sounded bloated. He approached it from a songwriting standpoint and that's what I loved about him. James Hetfield was another guy I admired. His rhythm chops are incredible.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: In the mid-'80s, ultra-technical, speedy guitar guitarists were all the rage. Why did you decide to concentrate on rhythm guitar instead of going the lead route?

Mrten Hagstrm: First off, I'm allergic to major conformity. A lot of those guitarists could play a million notes a second but what did it matter? They couldn't write a fucking song! I didn't give a shit about being some kind of "guitar hero" or whatever. I was aiming to be a songwriter who played guitar and not the other way around. I think a lot of those people who tried to follow the trend back then didn't get it. There were guys like Eddie Van Halen who were the exception but it was rare. Some of these guys could play so fast and play all of these complicated scales but you put them on stage and they can't play a fucking simple blues!

Ultimate-Guitar.com: Which rhythm guys did you look up to the most?

Mrten Hagstrm: I think James Hetfield is one of the best in terms of the metal world. His precision is untouchable. Scott Ian is another fantastic rhythm guitarist! A lot of the Bay Area thrash (VIO-LENCE, TESTAMENT etc.) guys were very good with their rhythms too. But one that most people don't talk about Devin Townsend (STRAPPING YOUNG LAD) who I think is one of the best rhythm players around today. He's killer!

Ultimate-Guitar.com: MESHUGGAH is known for your complex time signatures and tricky arrangements. Do you ever long to play in a straight-up, 4/4 style metal?

Mrten Hagstrm: Yes and no actually. Since 1995, only a few songs of ours aren't in 4/4. It's just that we shift things around tempo-wise and it throws people off. That is one of the things people always talk about when they mention our band but most of our material is in 4/4. I do write stuff on my own that is a little more traditional.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: Is it "traditional" in the DIO sense or something all-together different?

Mrten Hagstrm: Haha! I wouldn't say it was like DIO but it was definitely more classic sounding. But it isn't too-rudimentary or anything.

Read the entire interview at Ultimate-Guitar.com.