[Demoniac]

and holy fucking SHIT they're awesome I wish i had heard more of their stuff earlier!! So now i have obZen and Destroy Erase Improve... both mighty impressive albums. I gotta admit though, i am honestly enjoying obZen more.

Now that im in the spirit, what are some other awesome bands of a similar-ish style?

[Harry]

I only just got into them a few weeks ago.
I first heard them a few years ago.. didn't like it.
Gave them another chance recently, and now they are one of my favorite bands.
Chaosphere is just insanely good.

[DavyH]

That's what comes from being (nearly) at the arse end of creation - similar to identical out here, the only way you get to hear of these insanely good bands is through sites like this (thanks everyone for all the recommendations).

Okay, colonials may be late starters but we're enthusiastic. Just ask your northern hemisphere rugby teams.

Demoniac, try Catch 33 and Nothing as well - they're more in the Obzen space. The Nothing reissue has some DVD content as well. Second thoughts, just get them all.

I'm not allowed to play them when the missis is home. Bugger.

Similar-ish style? Dunno - who's volunteering?

[thesimo]

I didn't really like them until I heard obzen, its a little easier to digest for a polyrhythmic newbie

[Lankles]

- I -

[Naren]

In general, I don't like them. I find them pretty boring with almost every song sounding the same. HOWEVER, I think that what they are doing is very interesting from a music theory perspective. And there are some songs from them that I like. I think the song Bleed is their best song ever. I also really like Rational Gaze just for how insanely jarring it sounds. Their first album was the most listenable in my opinion, but their albums after that are very interesting from a theory perspective, but pretty boring as music to listen to.

And before anyone says "you should give them another chance," I've already given them over a hundred chances. I don't think I could listen to an entire Meshuggah album, but I could enjoy a song or two every now and then.

Just my personal opinion.

[Demoniac]

hehe, yeah they do sound similar, i agree. BUT, the time signatures and beats are just so interesting!! seriously LOVING obZen tho.. amazing songs.

[canuck brian]

I think everything on Destroy Erase Improve is truly unique. It's the only Meshuggah album I can actually listen to start to finish.

I'm listening to "Beneath" right now and I just want to grab someone and shake them senseless while headbanging.

[FortePenance]

Obzen is great. I was like you, Demoniac, in like January 06 or something. I heard Shed or something and thought "wtf is this shit, it rocks" and bought Catch 33 which is, not their best >_> but it was enough to get me into checking them out and now they're my favourite band.

[Daggorath]

Awesome band, most original shit I've heard in years - and they're ridiculously tight live.

[NixerX]

Mind Mirrors and Straws Pulled at Random are my favorite songs by these dudes. They can get mind numbing after a few hours of straight listening. But who other than me is going to do that?

[Mattayus]

Originally Posted by Naren

In general, I don't like them. I find them pretty boring with almost every song sounding the same. HOWEVER, I think that what they are doing is very interesting from a music theory perspective. And there are some songs from them that I like. I think the song Bleed is their best song ever. I also really like Rational Gaze just for how insanely jarring it sounds. Their first album was the most listenable in my opinion, but their albums after that are very interesting from a theory perspective, but pretty boring as music to listen to.

And before anyone says "you should give them another chance," I've already given them over a hundred chances. I don't think I could listen to an entire Meshuggah album, but I could enjoy a song or two every now and then.

Just my personal opinion.

Haha man, I couldn't put it better if I tried. I put them off for years and years, then I discovered Rational Gaze on some compilation, and I absolutely fell in love with the groove of it. But when I went on to checking out more of their stuff I was deeply disappointed, but impressed nonetheless.

I bought ObZen when it came out though, and i felt that it was a much more musical effort, and way more listenable. But even so i still can't listen to it all the way through

[Demoniac]

Haha. I kept hearing the name thrown around on here, and when I bought my randall, the guy who was trying to explain the sound to me named Meshuggah as a similar sound to it as well (i cannot emphasize how right he was now lol)... so i figured, 'who the hell are these people??' and have not got a couple of albums

[auxioluck]

Destroy Erase Improve is by far my favorite.

Similar bands....hard to say. I always thought A Life Once Lost had some Meshuggah-eque riffs...Veil of Maya definitely has some good polyrhythm breakdowns too.

[Stealthtastic]

I love meshuggah, they sound so mechanic, its awesome.

[Gilbucci]

Originally Posted by Naren

In general, I don't like them. I find them pretty boring with almost every song sounding the same. HOWEVER, I think that what they are doing is very interesting from a music theory perspective. And there are some songs from them that I like. I think the song Bleed is their best song ever. I also really like Rational Gaze just for how insanely jarring it sounds. Their first album was the most listenable in my opinion, but their albums after that are very interesting from a theory perspective, but pretty boring as music to listen to.

And before anyone says "you should give them another chance," I've already given them over a hundred chances. I don't think I could listen to an entire Meshuggah album, but I could enjoy a song or two every now and then.

Just my personal opinion.

That pretty much sums up my opinion on them.

[Triple-J]

In terms of sound theres only one Meshuggah although certain riffs by Lamb Of God and Dino Cazares remind me of them sometimes and rhythmically theres also a similaritity to African music.
Meshuggah are a unique sounding band and have forged a very progressive path and in my opinion thats a rare and valuable thing in music these days.

Ive been a fan since Chaosphere and I do agree that some of their latter day stuff does sound similar but the groove they have now is immense, I find it impossible to sit still when listening to Nothing or Catch33 I just HAVE to move!
The grooves so damn infectious to me my girlfriend says that whenever I have Meshuggah on the stereo and Im doing the dishes or vaccuming etc I actually start cleaning in time with the music!

Polyrhythmic housework FTW!

[Dendroaspis]

Mesh has transformed yet another soul by their greatness!

Originally Posted by canuck brian

I think everything on Destroy Erase Improve is truly unique. It's the only Meshuggah album I can actually listen to start to finish.

You're not into the 8-string stuff, Brian?! Hmmm...

[Stealthtastic]

Originally Posted by Dendroaspis

Mesh has transformed yet another soul by their greatness!




You're not into the 8-string stuff, Brian?! Hmmm...

You have such a sickass guitar.

[errnestoo]

Chaosphere man, its my end to end fav meshuggah album and full of some of their most insane riffage...go get it now!

[toolsound]

As far as other bands to check out, I'd recommend the following:

Periphery
Tesseract
Fell Silent
Sikth

Go to Meshuggah's myspace page and start looking around. If you look at their friends list, you'll start finding many bands that are equally awesome.

[oompa]

Originally Posted by Naren

In general, I don't like them. I find them pretty boring with almost every song sounding the same. HOWEVER, I think that what they are doing is very interesting from a music theory perspective. And there are some songs from them that I like. I think the song Bleed is their best song ever. I also really like Rational Gaze just for how insanely jarring it sounds. Their first album was the most listenable in my opinion, but their albums after that are very interesting from a theory perspective, but pretty boring as music to listen to.

And before anyone says "you should give them another chance," I've already given them over a hundred chances. I don't think I could listen to an entire Meshuggah album, but I could enjoy a song or two every now and then.

Just my personal opinion.

hey naren, give them another chance!

nah just kidding. but! i do want you to try one last thing tho: try checking out a couple of songs and read the lyrics while you listen to them. atleast dont turn me/them down until you did this with "The Mouth Licking What You've Bled" and say.."Concatenation" from Chaosphere.

those are songs where the stuff they do with the syllables connect to the music in what actually is another layer to their music in a strange way. even if i've been a sucker for them ever since i was a kid (saw them first in 96) i didnt really worship their poo until i did this. especially "The Mouth Licking What You've Bled". the first year chaosphere was out i saw this as the weakest track of the album, then i tried to once read the lyrics to it while listening, and now i think i find the first lines of the chorus to be probably the most adrenalinepumping seconds in the history of metal (or something).

i also recommend this to the rest of you!

[Trespass]

I love "In-Death - Is Life" and "In Death - Is Death". Catch 33 has some nice tunes. I like Electric Red and Bleed off oBzen.

I cannot stand their production. WAAAAY to undynamic, too compressed; it lacks the shades of complexity I know are there, its just that I have to untangle them from the mess of mud. I'm mainly comparing Catch 33 and Bulb tunes, I don't have any other album offhand to compare.

I think of their music like artistic steampunk pipelines intricately all entwined. A little more archaic than the imagery most people would associate with them, to be sure.

Seeing them live would be immense. Utterly, utterly immense

[noodleplugerine]

Originally Posted by toolsound

As far as other bands to check out, I'd recommend the following:

Periphery
Tesseract
Fell Silent
Sikth

Go to Meshuggah's myspace page and start looking around. If you look at their friends list, you'll start finding many bands that are equally awesome.

I'd say Sikth and Periphery are totally different personally. They may be influenced by Meshuggah, but as far as the music goes, totally different. Although I get what you mean about Tesseract.