- Country: Sweden
- Style: Progressive metal / Groove metal
- Label: Atomic Fire Records
- Release date: 1 April 2022
Meshuggah’s ninth album arrived six years after The Violent Sleep of Reason, and the gap shows mostly in the length. Thirteen tracks, recorded at Sweetspot Studios in Halmstad, and very few of them in a hurry.
The good news first. “Broken Cog” opens with a slow, grinding pulse that takes its time before the real weight drops, and it’s one of the most patient things they’ve done. “The Abysmal Eye” is classic Meshuggah, a polyrhythmic stomp with Jens Kidman barking over the top like a drill sergeant. “Ligature Marks” has the record’s best groove, a riff that seems to loop forever while Tomas Haake keeps shifting the ground under it.
Then there are the detours. “Phantoms” is fast and ugly in the best way, but the slower, more atmospheric pieces in the middle stretch the album thin. A tighter version of Immutable with three or four songs cut would have been a monster. This one is merely very, very heavy.
That still counts for a lot. Nobody else makes guitars sound like this, and the low end on these songs is enough to rattle a car’s doors off. Just don’t expect to love every minute.
Best tracks:
Broken Cog
The Abysmal Eye
Phantoms
Ligature Marks
Author’s rating: 8.3/10
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