Meshuggah

Sophomore effort Destroy Erase Improve and its centrepiece, the monstrously heavy "Future Breed Machine," remain the yardsticks by which Meshuggah's subsequent career is still measured in the eyes of many. Their lower profile debut, Contradictions Collapse, is receiving another reissue via Nuclear Blast for those who missed it the first time around, featuring the same bonus tracks as the prior digipak edition. Those expecting the well-oiled, untouchable colossus of chaos that is their recent work will be quite surprised at their earlier approach, which is best described as "Metallica gone prog fusion, with the aggression turned up a few notches." Lacking the mechanical, polyrhythmic brutality of the last few albums, Contradictions is more straightforward, faster and quite a bit more dated than what came later. While still head-and-shoulders above the majority of thrash being released at the time technically and creatively, the songs occasionally lack direction and the album suffers from a vocal-heavy mix that sounds strangely lopsided and uneven. Nonetheless, fans of the group would likely enjoy hearing for themselves where the masters initially got their start, and the included None EP gives a clearer idea of where they would wind up a couple of years down the line. Not a good starting point for the uninitiated but definitely worth a peek for enthusiasts.