Mark’s Review:

When I first watched the preview for Alive, I felt like it would definitely be a game-changer.  Disconnected and sporadic, it showed a strobe-lit and slow-motion shot of Tomas Haake drumming and Jens Kidman headbanging as their music rolled on underneath.  The clip really displayed the potential of how an expertly crafted and fresh combination of Meshuggah’s music with an intense video presentation could create a live DVD experience as unique as the band.  Unfortunately, the preview was just a teaser, and Meshuggah chose the safe route and made an impressive, yet overall dull DVD.

Like most modern concert DVDs, the camera work and audio are all crystal clear on Alive.  But, this high-quality capture is almost a negative because of the band’s ultra-tight live sound and improv-free set.  It’s a subjective issue, but you basically get the album version of these songs set into motion with none of the differences that can make live albums a bit more dynamic and fun.  The setlist is a bit heavy on Nothing songs, and while this is by no means a bad thing, since this is their first official live release, I would’ve liked more of a career retrospective and hear some stuff from Destroy Erase Improve.  This was filmed during the ObZen tour, but since it combines video from different nights, there’s really no reason why they couldn’t have added some songs to the set for certain shows and then cherry-picked a list that was representative of the band’s history.  The crowd at these shows also seems lifeless.  Maybe because much of it is filmed in Japan and Canada, but the guys in Meshuggah need to take a cue from Iron Maiden and see how an insane, European crowd can bring new life to a live recording.

There are many minor gripes with the overall DVD package that reek of laziness and haste.  First is the name; Alive.  Say what you want about KISS and how they’re cheesy, corporate shills and/or massive egomaniacs, but for live concert recordings, they own the title “Alive“.  Anthrax and Snot tried to use this title also, and everyone says the same thing: “I’m sure they’re going to get a call from Gene Simmons’ lawyer”.  C’mon guys, there wasn’t any other titles out there that would’ve captured the essence of the live show?  Also, the cover art is laughably bad, from the poor Photo-shopping, to the blatant ripoff of the Alien movie poster.  Seriously???  The band that has been so creatively involved in their mindfuck album art is using some graphic-design, student project as their first DVD cover?  They must’ve figured that it was going to be torrented all over the web anyway, so why bother sinking a bunch of dough into an original statement for the shelves at Best Buy.

Another thing that irritated me and ruined the “concert experience” of the DVD were the profile segments that interrupted the flow of the setlist.  Some concert DVDs do this and really for the life of me I don’t understand why.  Lamb of God’s Killadelphia, and Sepultura’s Under Seige: Live in Barcelona are two shining examples of incredible concerts that are marred by constant interruptions.  Sepultura’s concert was even worse because I had that on VHS tape, and you either had to sit through Paulo Jr. and Max talking in broken English about “growing up metal” in Brazil, or expertly time your fast-forwarding so as not to clip the first notes of Inner Self.  It’s interesting to follow the band and listen to their touring stories, but if you’re going to film these snippets, compile them in a way that makes sense and make it a bonus documentary at the end of the concert.  Opeth did this with Lamentations and it’s perfect.  You can watch either an awesome concert straight through or an awesome documentary and nothing is awkwardly crammed together.

Meshuggah’s Alive isn’t a bad DVD, but it is an ordinary one.  All the promise I saw in that preview became a missed opportunity and the fantastic performances are lost within many cut corners as far as package design, overall editing and presentation.  Maybe next time, but until then, I’ll stick to the albums.

Mark’s Rating:

King says: “I promise my animated Melissa DVD will feature more than this”

Justin’s Review:

Rather than bore you with a written review, I present my DVD live blogging session… “Thoughts Pulled at Random” (wocka wocka)

• This DVD cover walks the fine line between clever and stupid.
• Nuclear Blast probably spent a lot of money on their promotional intro clip… not worth it.
• I realize this is the same clip from the trailer, but this slow-motion footage is amazing.
• No surprise here… this kicks the shit out of that hyper-edited crap they released on the Nothing reissue.
• What’s up with the pixelization every time there’s a full-color wash on screen?
• Jesus… Japan has a lot of Meshuggah fans.
• The “full-body-bang” still cracks me up.
• Meshuggah really need to do something different with their stage setup… I’m thinking levels.
• Getting tired of Jens Kidman’s “creepy face” already.
• This whole DVD should’ve been in B&W… would’ve been way cooler.
• What? No one knows how “I” goes?
• The point of the split-screen is sort of lost when you’re showing the same dude on both sides.
• The mix is pretty good actually.
• These vignettes are more interesting than the concert footage itself.
• Flashing lights get annoying after awhile… just turn all the lights on and be done with it.
• Need more “drummer cam”!
• Seriously… why do people bother taking camera phone photos at concerts?
• When did Larry Charles start doing live sound?
• Ahhhh… Tomas Haake’s cousin is their lighting guy… that explains that.
• The snare sound at the beginning of Combustion is ridiculous.
• Why do metal frontmen insist on calling their audience “fuckers”?
• You call that “Bonus Footage”? Give me a break.
• Meh.

Justin’s Rating:

King says: “Not bad for your first attempt, but maybe you should try calling Darren Aronofsky to direct the next one.”

Meshuggah – “Alive” Trailer