Agree Skolnick is a top bloke, follow him on Facebook, and a great musician, his jazz stuff is also excellent.
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Think this may have been mentioned already but itās worth bringing up again. Iām really liking this album.
Am I alone in finding Meshuggah weirdly relaxing? I just get into that underlying groove as sporadic and syncopated as it may be and end bobbing my head along with my eyes closed. Donāt fight it and just let it flowā¦Very chill lol. Maybe Iāve lost it 
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Haha not sure about ārelaxingā, but their latest offering is amazing for sure.
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Iām not alone! I totally find metal relaxing for some reason. Maybe because itās the genre iāve listened to most of my life, but I find it soothing. I forgot that album was out, thanks for the reminder, Iām listening to it now 
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Metal isnāt the most disruptive, per my work background music habits. The worst for me by far is jazz, as its varying time signatures and random solos interrupt whatever else is going on. The second worst is orchestral classical, as shifting from a flute solo to 80 musicians is frustrating.
Most metal has regular rhythm and compressed range (mostly similar volume) in the studio. It often has fewer surprises, with ragged treble being the worst.
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I tend to find singer/songwriter and folk most disruptive, as the dynamic range and production quality is usually very good, which draws me in, and the lyrical content tends to be more involving. Jazz/Blues can be as well when hitting on all cylinders. Anytime I hear I Aināt Drunk, or Damn Right Iāve Got the Blues, I have to stop and listen. Something about blues guitar just hits for me.
Now the MOST disruptive, and embarrassing, thing about headphone listening at work is when a track on Tidal plays low and soft, and Iām in the zone working, and then the next track starts and itās loud and hits hard to start, and I visibly flinch haha. Itās happened too many times to count. Even better is when your coworkers see it and think youāre insaneā¦
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Yes. Thatās the same problem as orchestral. For that reason I tend to listen to albums (with music that I know), or create playlists with a shared atmospheric theme. There are a few albums with problem tracks that Iāll delete in a playlist (e.g., Pink Floydās Dark Side of the Moon alarm clock song).
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For those who like solo guitarists like Buckethead, check out John 5 if you havenāt. Dude can shred!
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Agreed. I can fall asleep (sober) to most metal. Jazz, particularly acoustic combos of 3 to 6 people can be so engaging that there is nothing you can do except listen. Same thing with classical combos, from duets to sextets and small chamber. I can work to older baroque to ancient music, fewer unexpected chord changes, and if itās pre-counterpoint, it is quite suitable as background music.
I find it hard to work to any clear vocals in either English or Spanish, Italian, or Portuguese. I only know Spanish well, of the latter three, but I can almost always understand enough of Italian or Portuguese to tease my mind. Other world music is great to work to.
How are you working to Indian classical? The time sigs and solos in a traditional ragas can be quite riveting.
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I can fall asleep listening to anything. Itās a real talent, I know. 
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After going through all the 80s-era Iron Maiden albums recently, Iāve been pretty much listening to this on repeat for the last month.
Before Iād really only listed to āThe Trooperā and āFlight of Icarusā, but this is a great album as a whole.
Also includes the hilarious opening line for the song āQuest for Fireā: āIn a time when dinosaurs walked the earthā¦ā (about cavemen.)
And a song, āTo Tame a Landā, about Dune ~ for all the Dune fans.
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I went through that awhile back with Maidenās catalog. I would basically listen to the Live after Death tracks on the original releases, but little else. But after forcing myself to listen to each album from front to back, I really appreciate what they were doing. Some killer stuff that most casual fans skip over.
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Been listening to that all morning Great album overall. Gets a bit repetitive, but still a high quality album from the thrash greats.
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I enjoyed it, they donāt reinvent or do much to surprise but they still know how to write a good thrash song.
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Same! In fact, it was the perfect workout album when I took my lunch break at the gym today. As others have said, nothing new or revolutionary here - just the solid melodic thrash that Kreator is known for. I still need time to digest before making a decision on itās ranking, though.
Iām really excited for the newly announced Amon Amarth album; itās due out on August 5th. The new single is below:
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Me too, I love Amon Amarth! I had a feeling something was coming but good to see a date on it. Unusual video/theme though for the Viking lords! Would have expected some Thor vs Sutr haha.
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Agreed. I read they wrote the song for a pro wrestler friend and he now uses it as his walk-out music. Definitely something different from them.
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