bartosso What a humbly titled record from the Swedes. Don't let it delude you though, it is not nothing and what's more, it definitely is something! It's a fourth album from Meshuggah, extreme/prog/avant-garde metal band, whose previous record, Chaosphere was a revelation that threw metal world into turmoil.

Is NOTHING another revelation? I'm afraid it's not. NOTHING is a next step to an uncompromising, cold and technical style which was introduced with the previous album. Whereas Chaosphere is darker and faster, in NOTHING pieces are even more calculated and complicated but many of them, unfortunately, less interesting. They lack this incredible inhuman atmosphere of CHAOSPHERE which takes breath away with every listen. There is just no balance between rhythmical experiments and the concept.

Not all of the songs deserve 4-stars rating. The album as a whole deserves them though, mostly because of 5 star-songs: Rational Gaze, Straws Pulled at Random and Spasm. The songs are difficult to describe to someone not familiarized with Meshuggah. It's enough to say, that these pieces, especially in term of rhythm, make my mind melting. Moreover, I would even venture that Straws Pulled at Random has some kind of melody which is... very nice! And fantastic solo there, as a bonus.

Recommended to fans of rhythmical experiments, uncompromising heaviness and otherworldly atmosphere. Still, if you're more into atmosphere I recommend CATCH 33, CHAOSPHERE or I, since these are extremely dark releases.

idiotPrayer This was a big turning point in Meshuggah's carees. This LP is very different from the last one, the chaotic and fast-paced Chaosphere. On Nothing Meshuggah have tuned the guitars even further down, and slowed down the tempos beyond anything they've ever done. The result is a crushingly heavy, devastating unique piece of music and rhytm.

The album opens with permanent live number Stengah. The track demonstrates the new direction, featuring slow, seemingly simple downtuned riffs. The album continues with fan favourites Rational Gaze and Perpetual Black Second. The sound is generally very cold and so heavy that you will fall down to the floor while listening, but at times also emotional and beautiful, trippy and psychadelic. At track 9 (Nebulous) the album hits a new height in experimentalism. This is incredibly slow and hypnotic, complete with a trippy solo. The closer Obsidian could not be any better [except for maybe 10 minutes longer :)]. Consisting of two major parts, the first one is cool ambient and psychadelic guitar noodling, and when you least excpect it a super heavy Sunn O)))-ish part kicks in, that continues to tear apart your speakers in more than 5 minutes. The two last ones are my personal favourites (!).

If you do not own this extraordinary piece of art you should go straight to the local record shop, but before that consider the differences between the new and the old version. The old one has sh1ttier sound quality (some may prefer it) and a different versions of some tracks (Nebulous is faster, Obsidian is shorter). The new one has cleaner sound, but the drumming is programmed and lacks the feeling of the original because you can't hear ghost notes and stuff. However it comes with a DVD, featuring the bands Download 20065 performance (highlight In Death-Is Death/Is Life) and some videos, of which the hilarious "Mr. Kidman Delieium version of Rational Gaze is a highlight. Choose wisely (the old one may be har to find though).

In conclusion this is an incredibly unique piece of metal, made with ambition and passion for music (I guess). It stands alone from any metal I've ever heard, at times it's even close to the music of artist like Fear Falls Burning and Sunn O))). 4,5 very well deserved stars, because it's a masterpiece of experimental metal, but not as good as Catch 33 and I. You buy it!