Meshuggah - Break those bones whose sinews gave it motion (video)

Meshuggah now have an official video for the tune "Break those bones whose sinews gave it motion".

Meshuggah - I am colossus

Though I'm wary of such blatant corporate sponsorship in music, there's a new Meshuggah tune being given away via Scion: http://www.scionav.com/collection/918/Meshuggah---I-Am-Colossus

Meshuggah - Do not look down

A 2nd tune from the new Meshuggah album "Koloss" has appeared online: http://soundcloud.com/nuclearblastrecords/meshuggah-do-not-look-down/s-hlFcg

New Meshuggah sample online

Not sure how long this will stick around, but here's a new Meshuggah song for y'all to check out: http://www.metalinjection.net/latest-news/stop-what-youre-doing-and-listen-to-this-messhugah-song

Meshuggah coming in May

Meshuggah will be touring the US in May to support the release of their new album "Koloss".

MP3: Dödsvarg - En väldig kropp av hat

Apparently it now takes me a full week to dig out of the hole I got myself into by taking time off in December. So while it might not feel quite so timely anymore, I'm going to try and take the time to highlight a few of my top 10 mentions over the next little while before getting back into the Sisyphean task of keeping up with what's new. First: Dödsvarg. The band initially spurred my curiosity because they/he is ex-Detektivbyrån, but when you combine that with the descriptor "a mixture of Meshuggah and Skitsystem," I knew I absolutely needed to hear it. The album "Livet är en dödsorsak" doesn't disappoint either -- the music is crusty, mathy and totally pissed, but they missed one very important note of reference: besides Skitsystem and Meshuggah, Dödsvarg also reminds me a lot of "It's me god"-era Breach. This is not just a good thing, it's a great thing. Don't let Dödsvarg stay overlooked and underappreciated!

Dödsvarg - En väldig kropp av hat

New Meshuggah in March

Meshuggah has announced that their new as-yet-untitled album will be released on March 27.

Next Life
Artificial divinity
Fysisk Format

Meshuggah djentiness + Genghis Tron Commodore-64iness – vox = Next Life.
The above equation is all you need in order to understand what "Artificial divinity" sounds like. For the purposes of review, however, I suppose I should give you an idea of its listenability. Well, it's alright; there's a bit of piddling about with sounds on a couple of tracks here, the results of which touch on a dark ambient sentiment more than any hint of conventional metal. Not that conventional really applies anywhere on "Artificial divinity", mind. Those tracks works very well as they stand on the album. The big let down on something that would be an otherwise killer album, though, is that the other tracks -- the metal stuff -- could really do with vocals of some sort. This style of metal just doesn't lend itself that well to instrumentalism, despite what the Norwegian trio might think. It has to be said, though, that even though Steve Wiebe doesn't really look like he's into metal, if he is, he's probably into this sort of stuff. Twelve songs in just over 20 minutes. Mental bunch of bastards!
- John Norby

Mr. Death
Descending through ashes
Agonia Records

There's something intriguing about Sweden's Mr. Death that makes you want to come back for more even though you're not quite sure if you're that into their new album. Historically, that has been the mark of a damn good recording for me, with case in point being "Contradictions collapse". When Meshuggah released their debut back in '91 I had the same feeling; I wasn't quite sure if I liked it, but I kept coming back for more. Now it's one of my all-time favorite albums. I sincerely doubt that I'll be singing the praises of "Descending through the ashes" in 20 years time, but it definitely has something special for now. It's a combination of that odd sound -- like a mix of the American and Swedish deathgrinders from back in the day -- and a unique songwriting technique that's simple, yet very effective. On every listen I'm wondering if the songwriting is actually any good and I still can't put my finger on it. That it has me returning to it on a regular basis speaks volumes. It's old-school Swedish/American death metal with a production that would make Satan shit himself. Good enough for me!
- John Norby

Listen to Dödsvarg!

Suicide Records has posted an unmastered sample clip of tunes from the upcoming Dödsvarg record "Livet är en dödsorsak": http://www.dodsvarg.se/dodsvarg_sample.mp3
Turns out that the Skitsystem and Meshuggah comparisons weren't far off the mark at all, despite the Detektivbyrån connection.

Suicide Records signs Dödsvarg (ex-Detektivbyrån)

Suicide Records has announced the signing of Dödsvarg, a new act featuring ex-member(s?) of Detektivbyrån that they describe as "a mixture of Meshuggah and Skitsystem," so uh, yeah -- don't go expecting anything like what came before.

Meshuggah discuss their next album

Decibel did a video interview with two of the dudes from Meshuggah discussing their upcoming album which will be out later this year: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3JT7ivNIvM

Sweden United - Open your eyes

An all-star anti-bullying campaign headed by Scarpoint featuring guest vocals from Jens Kidman (Meshuggah), Jimmie Strimmel (Dead by April), Anette Olzon (Nightwish), Björn Strid (Soilwork), Zak Tell (Clawfinger), Martin Westertrand (Lillasyster), Tom Englund (Evergrey) and Peter Tägtgren (Pain, Hypocrisy). Direct link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fK7V9UBfJ8
More info/background/interviews here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC0h0rZFlxY

Special defects II in the making

Meshuggah guitarist Fredrik Thordendal recently spent a few days in the studio with drummer Morgan Ågren (Mats/Morgan Band, etc.) working on a sequel to Thordendal's legendary solo album "Special defects: Sol niger within" from way back in '97. No word yet on what form it will take or when we'll get to hear it, but supposedly "hours" of material has been recorded and I'll be sure to keep you posted if I hear anything further.

This week's top 20 Swedish album chart

This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. The Playtones - Rock'n roll dance party
02. Björn Skifs - Da capo
03. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
04. Torgny Melin - Dansbandsnatt
05. Zekes - En sån natt
06. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
07. Nordman - Korsväg
08. Freda' - Ett mysterium
09. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
10. Kent - Röd
11. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
12. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
13. Willy Clay Band - Blue
14. Divine - Divine
15. Mando Diao - Give me fire!
16. Zillah och Totte - Totte (g)apar igen
17. Date - Här och nu!
18. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling
19. Meshuggah - Alive
20. Hästpojken - Från där jag ropar