2008 marked a watershed for Swedish metal band Meshuggah.  It saw the release of critically accliamed 6th album obZen, the return of drummer Tomas Haake after his omission from 2005s Catch 33 and a foray into new waters with their first Australian tour since their formation over 23 years ago.  One tour every quarter-century is a huge wait for those of us who like a bit of math with our metal. According to the band, this is something they hope to set right with their second Australian visit in less than 2 years.

Fans rejoiced with the announcement of the bands addition to the 2010 Soundwave lineup, a venerable whos who of metal, rock and alternative acts that has seen the likes of Alice in Chains, Nine Inch Nails, Deftones and The Dillinger Escape Plan doing their thing for thousands of punters for the last 3 years.  Speaking from his native country, drummer Tomas Haake filled me in on their general vibe in the Meshuggah camp. "Were all really looking forward to the festival, definitely. Its something were all very excited about. Last time we played Australia nearly 2 years ago, it was very rushed. We only got, like, one day in New Zealand. After we wrapped up in Perth we flew directly to Japan and did the same thing all over again."

Notorious for their brief tours spaced sometimes years apart, trekking the globe is something the band are still getting used to. "Were kind of used to flying West and doing Europe and America,"Haake explained. "But flying East has been killing us. Especially flying almost directly south into Australia. The first stop was Auckland and we'd literally stepped off the plane and went to sound check. I'm still amazed I managed to get through that set."

When asked about the 23 year wait for the southern hemisphere fans, Haake was quick to point out it wasn't by choice. "We dont come by ourselves," he said. "We have an entire crew and roadies and instruments, you know? It costs a lot, the offers before now just havent been good enough. We'd be losing money. 2008 was the first time the figures added up and we could actually do it."

Being one of the few countries the band didn't visit each tour, I was eager to hear Haakes initial thoughts on Australia. "We all loved Australia. It's such a contrast to Sweden, and even a lot of the other places we've been. It has a huge amount of exotic appeal for all of us, which is why it sucked we didn't get more time to see it properly. It's totally unlike anywhere else."

With the Soundwave festival reducing the stress of touring, bands will have plenty of time to see the sights but will also find themselves faced with a demographic they aren't neccasarily used to. "We've done festivals before but not in Australia. The lineup is heavy but really mixed. There are some big names there." The band will be rubbing shoulders with the likes of Isis, Anhrax, H.I.M and Placebo as well as over thirty more acts from around the world. The highlight of the festival, for punters and performers alike, would have to be the reformation of co-headliners Faith No More and Janes Addiction. "It's going to draw a really mixed crowd," Haake admitted. "There will be a lot of people here just for those guys, or just for this one other band.

When asked if the mixed audience would see a tailored set to draw in new faces, Haake was quick to point out that Meshuggah had nothing to sell. "Were not going to try and be something were not, well just get out there and do our thing. Well have a few people show up who might not have heard us before and they might like it which is cool, or they might not and that's cool to. We'll just do our thing." The thing Haake refers to is, of course, the brutally heavy and impenetrable metal that belongs to no one sub-genre. The style has been labeled doom-metal, math-metal and thrash depending on the sound of the respective album. The one thread that ties the works together is the rhythmic riffs and guttural drumming densely layered behind Jens Kidman's animalistic growl. "There's a reason our albums all use the same techniques," he said. "We intentionally do that. Like you said it's a very guttural and organic sound. We like that, we aim for it. We're continuously trying to refine it and we keep getting better at it."

Then what about the band's signature calling card, the complex poly-metric time signatures that have even the most hardened metal veterans reaching for a calculator? "That's just something we developed,"Haake explained. "It's just something we know now. We dont really intend to be weird or hard to listen to; we just kind of do it subconsciously. We definitely don't aim to weird people out or to stand out or anything like that. It just keeps it all interesting, makes it fun to write, you know?

Sixth album obZen sees the return of Meshuggah's trademark time changes and rhythm - but used in a new way. From the first few notes of opening track Combustion, its apparent that the band are trying new territory. Even the artwork, an androgynous four-armed naked figure twisted  into the full lotus position and covered in blood, is a different look to what fans may be used to. "We got an outsider artist to take care of it this time. I mean, we already knew what we wanted. We were very specific. Ive taken care of the art since Chaosphere (1998) but I just dont have much of a mouse arm. I can't sit in front of Photoshop for ten hours at a time." Having always had so much control over every aspect of Meshuggah as a whole, using an outside artist was a big step. "There was a lot of skepticism about using someone else," Haake relented. "But it turned out amazing. We're all really happy with the final product. Like you just said, it's a really interesting mix of beauty and the macabre, I'd strongly agree with that. It's really eerie."

Haakes sound of relief that an idea came to fruition begs the question, is there often ideas that dont work out? "Our songs are always really difficult to capture. You hear them in your head and they very rarely sound like that on the CD but eventually you have to be happy with what you have. obZen especially was hard, we didnt know if a lot of it would even work but it turned out really great." Haake elaborates on his favorite parts of album like a proud father. "Bleed was insane. Im really incredibly proud of how that came out, but it was one of the hardest tracks weve ever done.  Or at least it was for me. I was not very well shortly before we started the recording for the album. I had a herniated disk in my spine and it was pressing on a sciatic nerve, made drumming really hard. That nerve runs straight down your back and into your feet, some songs are still really hard. But with Bleed it was a type of drumming Ive never done. It was like tap-dancing on the bass pedals. Totally different. We really didnt know how that one would go until it was mastered but it turned out perfect, exactly how we imagined.

With Soundwave fast approaching and fans salivating at the prospect of seeing the band again so soon, Haake voices his amazement at Meshuggah's reception last time around. "As we'd never been to Australia, we really werent sure how it would go. It was pretty nerve-racking. The shows were amazing though, it blew us away how much Australians loved the shows and how much energy they have. This is why we cant wait to get there again." With the amount of interviews the band have been doing since obZen's release in 2008, surely by now there is some stone left unturned or misconception that Meshuggah just cant shake? "Yeah I think the biggest view people have of us, especially musicians, as that we are five separate people. Drummers watch me and my technique and comment on it just as guitarists do with Marten or Jens," Haake said. "There is too much focus on the individual. I guess it comes with the territory of having all these different beats and time signatures; each instrument is playing almost a separate song. People forget we are a band, we've been together a long time as a band. It always seems to be about one of us and forget the other four. It's good to have an interview that focuses on Meshuggah, not part of the whole."

With the 20 minute interview time disappearing faster than I care to mention, it was time to say tusen-takk to Haake. "No problem man, thanks a lot hey. Can't wait to get down there again, see all you guys real soon!"

Meshuggah will perform at the following venues:

February 20 - Soundwave Festival, Brisbane

February 21 - Soundwave Festival, Sydney

February 26 - Soundwave Festival, Melboune

February 27 - Soundwave Festival, Adelaide

March 1 - Soundwave Festival, Perth

By Levi Dobbie