iSound

Meshuggah was formed in 1987 in Umeå, Sweden. I do not know anything about the personnel of that time, but guitarist Fredrik Thordendal, bassist Peter Nordin and vocalist Jens Kidman all played on their debut EP of 1989. At that time, Jens Kidman played the guitar as well. Umeå has a healthy scene, and a lot of people are involved in rock music. According to Jens Kidman there are a lot of good bands from Umeå, "probably because there is not a lot to do". The fact that there is a university in Umeå might also strengthen the rock scene. A lot of people play in bands, but few of these are known outside the town. The majority of the musicians wanting to get anywhere with their music leave town. Many of the session musicians in Stockholm are from Umeå, according to Mårten Hagström. It is quite easy to hear some of Meshuggah's early influences on their first release, "Psykisk Testbild" from 1989. (The title translates to something like "Psychological Test-Picture...