Genre : Math metal, Groove metal, Progressive metal, Djent
Released : April 1st, 2022
Label : Atomic Fire
FFO : Meshuggah
At this point in time, Meshuggah are one of those few bands that require no introduction and discussing their musical prowess with novelty is almost just as challenging as the music itself.
From the first few seconds of colossal-sounding album opener "Broken Cog", there is no mistake possible : You are listening to the band that was ahead of its time and waited at least a good decade before the metal scene started catching up and once it did, it spawned countless acts drawing direct influence from Meshuggah's pioneering style, and in doing so; transformed the landscape of technical metal music forever.
Roughly thirty years into their career, the accidental fathers of Djent show with ease that they have lost nothing of their ability to create mind-twisting tracks that are as crushing as they are sinuous and rhythmically intricate and equally disorientating.
Despite being imitated over and over again, "Immutable" makes it clear that Meshuggah will never be surpassed in what they do, regardless of how much time has passed.
That being said, "Immutable" seems to focus much more on organic, gargantuan grooves rather than sharp, almost inhumane mechanical precision and as such, is more reminiscent of albums like "None" and "Koloss" but perhaps with a more vibrant feel to the guitars and especially the bass, which plays a crucial part in "Immutable" 's sound and feel in my opinion.
Although "Immutable" is mostly Meshuggah doing what they do best, it feels more "malleable" than the rest of their discography and even allows space for things you wouldn't necessarily expect from them.
Indeed, there's quite a lot of instrumental moments on this record (most notably the almost ten minute long middle point that is "They Move Below") and not only that, but instrumental moments that allow pensive melodies to create a breathing space in between atonal solos and polyrythmic chug fests, which isn't the most common thing for Meshuggah.
Hell, there's even a percussionless black metal inspired instrumental interlude cheekily named "Black Cathedral" thrown in this hour long monolith of neck-snapping groovy goodness.
Overall, "Immutable" does not reinvent what Meshuggah are in the world of heavy music and quite frankly, that probably wasn't the intention.
I wouldn't necessarily count it among my favourite work from them but I think it is a fantastic and highly engaging statement regarding the nature of both mankind within the album's lyrical themes and Meshuggah's place as well as their legacy within heavy music, and how both these things are indeed, immutable.
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