ObZen [15th Anniversary Edition]

by Meshuggah

Overview

On first listen, the sound on Obzen, Meshuggah's sixth full-length, is startling, not for its trademark rapid-fire key and tempo changes, or for the intricate, insanely knotty riffs that careened over 2002's Nothing or 2005's Catch Thirty-Three. Instead, it is the rampaging charge that leads off the set on "Combustion," a balls-out sprint that recalls the band's earlier catalog albums like Contradictions Collapse, Destroy Erase Improve, and even Chaosphere. Power, focus and attention to the bone-crushing power are at the center of Obzen. That said, it loses nothing in terms of the band's keen focus of musical or technical innovation or drummer Tomas Haake's songwriting. What it does leave behind is some of the mathy quick-change-for-the-sake-of-it annoyances that were more a show-off of athletic prowess than actual compositional tropes. The melodic orchestration of Catch Thirty-Three has all but disappeared, and in its place is a direct, almost machine-like sense of communication. What's most remarkable is the live drum kit work by Haake. He's constant and startling -- the completely crazy bass pedal work on "Bleed" would leave most drummers in the dust. You have to wonder, since the last album featured so many triggered laptop tooled drums. Again: power, compositional ethics, and musical acumen are all tied to one thing, building a foundation that just gets wider, deeper, and more intense as the album wears on. Check the frenetic slash and burn ethos in "Pineal Gland Optics," where both guitars stagger their rhythmic attack keeping vocalist Jens Kidman on the money the whole time. It gives way to the unwound pummeling drum and guitar solo riff that introduces "Pravus," with its sense of taut dynamics, hair-trigger tensions, and an explosiveness that is literally unequaled. This is sheer attack metal, played by a band that has run from simplicity to excess and incorporated them both into a record that is on a level with anything else they've done, even if not all the elements marry perfectly yet. Just get it. ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	03/31/2023
Label:	Atomic Fire
UPC:	4251981703251
Rank:	5180

Tracks

1. Combustion
2. Electric Red
3. Bleed
4. Lethargica
5. ObZen
6. This Spiteful Snake
7. Pineal Gland Optics
8. Pravus
9. Dancers to a Discordant System

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Meshuggah   Primary Artist
Marten Hagstroem   Guitar
Jens Kidman   Vocals
Fredrik Thordendal   Guitar
Tomas Haake   Drums
Dick Loevgren   Bass

Technical Credits

Bjorn Engelmann   Mastering
Tomas Haake   Lyricist,Group Member,Cover Art Concept,Composer
Marten Hagstroem   Composer,Group Member
Jens Kidman   Group Member
Fredrik Thordendal   Mixing,Composer,Lyricist,Group Member
Meshuggah   Composer
Dick Loevgren   Group Member
Haake   Composer,Lyricist
Joachim Luetke   Cover Art,Photography