Meshuggah release 'Pitch Black' as free download

Meshuggah take so much time between albums that if you're lucky enough to get a stopgap release, you savor it. Fans of the Swedish band will be thrilled to know that they've not only gotten such a gift from the band, but the new two-song digital Pitch Black EP has been made available as a free download courtesy Scion A/V.

Originally recorded in July 2003, right around the time the band was recording their masterful I EP, "Pitch Black" is an oddly intriguing little track that starts off with the band's trademark polyrhythms and burping rhythm riffs underneath Fredrik Thordendal's delicately picked notes - that sounds a lot more like drummer Tomas Haake on lead vocals than Jens Kidman - and then it suddenly shifts into a surreal section that incorporates jazz and funk more than you might have expected from the band ten years ago. 

Backing up "Pitch Black" is a live performance of the epic "Dancers to a Discordant System", from the band's 2008 album obZen and recorded in Eindhoven, Netherlands in 2012, on which all the band's best characteristics - intricacy, power, delicacy - are on full display.

If you're interested in daring music regardless of genre, this is worth investigating. If you're a longtime fan of Meshuggah, however, you need this. 

For those interested, Pitch Black will also be available on 10" vinyl on the band's upcoming tour.