Meshuggah

Among the most influential headbangers of their generation, Meshuggah made it cool for extreme metal bands to be as complex, weird and uncategorisable as they want. The Swedes’ history dates back to 1987 when singer Jens Kidman crossed paths with fellow Umeå resident and guitarist Fredrik Thordendal. Initially grounded in death metal and thrash, Meshuggah wound up subverting both with their progressive compositions, idiosyncratic syncopation and daring twists, like the jazz-informed interplay scattered across their second record, 1995’s Destroy Erase Improve. International recognition arrived two albums later, with 2002’s Nothing. The music’s tense balance of technical precision with primal grooves would inspire countless extreme-metal musicians. Particularly influential has been Thordendal’s palm-muted riffage, which spawned outfits associated with the pervasive djent movement, like Periphery and Animals As Leaders. Despite so many followers nipping at their heels, Meshuggah have had no problem staying ahead of the pack. Capping off a phenomenal three-album run that also includes Koloss and The Violent Sleep of Reason, 2022’s Immutable is an ambitious examination of dystopia proving that the band’s restless exploration is built for the long haul.