MESHUGGAH

MESHUGGAH is one of the most important and pivotal bands in the history of heavy music. Full stop. This is simply irrefutable. Following their much more thrash metal informed origins bookmarked by their early recorded work from 1989 through 1991, their 1994 EP "None" signaled a new path for heavy music, one that paved the way for the djent subgenre — essentially pure MESHUGGAH worship — through prog metal as well as strands of extreme metal. Phoenix Music is breathing new life into their classic sophomore full-length that immediately followed "None", as well as another classic effort, with the release of newly remastered anniversary editions: "Destroy Erase Improve: 30th Anniversary Edition" and "Catch Thirtythree: 20th Anniversary Edition".

While "None" was the birth of the Swedes' infamous polyrhythmic, unspeakably heavy approach, 1995's Destroy Erase Improve" would flesh out their new body much more so, further fine-tuned on 1998's "Chaosphere" and 2002's "Nothing". A few years after the latter release, "Catch Thirtythree" came in 2005, flooring the metal world with its continuous, 47-minute-long assault divided into 13 parts, and imbued with a hypnotic quality derived from repetition.

It's mind-blowing that "Destroy Erase Improve" remains as overwhelmingly intense, fresh and vital as it was back then. It was an interesting time when MESHUGGAH was still discovering its true self, and its attack has never been as frantic and rabid as it was back then. The classic "Future Breed Machine" is full tilt, constantly growing toward greater heights of brutality. "Transfixion" and "Beneath" showcase the band's earliest moments of groove that could even inspire the most po-faced, arms-crossed black metal fans to nod their heads. "Sublevels" rounds things out with Jens Kidman's eerie spoken word delivery atop jazzy movements tied to the band's characteristic low-end sound.

The remastered take on "Catch Thirtythree" proves to be likably much more biting and sharp. The band's choice to use programmed drums obviously raised eyebrows, but it was an understandable route — purportedly, anyway — since they were constantly re-writing guitar parts and wanted to avoid the hurdles of having Tomas Haake repeatedly re-record his drum parts. The result is suitable considering the cold, mechanical and industrial feel throughout. "The Paradoxical Spiral" stands out not just because the tempo is dialed back. This is MESHUGGAH at its most malevolent, grinding out a jagged, crawling delivery that's almost pseudo industrial black metal at times in a way that might have made France's BLUT AUS NORD jealous.

MESHUGGAH has continued to produce elite heavy, progressive music through 2022's "Immutable". Like many long-running bands, however, things have become relatively formulaic since 2008's "obZen". But with that said and to reiterate, MESHUGGAH has been one of metal's greatest gamechangers. The band that began its journey nearly 40 years ago in the small Northeastern Swedish city Umeå has turned heavy metal upside down, and they continue to violate eardrums with their own music and via their profound influence upon notable heavy hitters as varied as GOJIRA and VEIL OF MAYA. This duo of remastered re-releases serves to remind how remarkable MESHUGGAH truly is.