Meta-Critique

My analysis has been a multi-leveled approach to understanding the significance of Meshuggah's "New Millennium Cyanide Christ."  The most useful tool for analysis was the relationship of phenomenological sound and the lyrical and musical representative significance to form a developing onto-historical world.

The phenomenological analysis was particularly difficult for me, I think because as a longtime listener of Meshuggah and given the radical, technical nature of their oeuvre, it has become a habit to incorporate my understanding of the work with syntactical analysis.  However initially unlikely, attempting to bracket out my prior biases was influenced by my presentation to the class, particularly the comment that it sounded like a "jackhammer"; the class helped me attempt re-view what was right in front of me--the exhilaration of hearing Meshuggah for the first time was renewed by the reactions of classmates (from amused to appalled).  Engaging works directly as sound is something that must be practiced in order to successfully overcome the programming provided by a society in which music theory is the top educational priority.

The implications of our technological age account for the onto-historical discoveries of this work; Meshuggah has shaped their work according to a culturally perceived conflict, and the turmoil of our world is apparent.

The greatest strength of this analysis is the format as a blog, because it allows one to constantly modify previous efforts based on further investigation; thus I am dynamically engaged with the work on a higher level due to the ability to constantly amend or re-think my discoveries.  This may also be seen as a weak point however, because the interpretations or evaluations made at any certain point are not necessarily more correct than previous assertions; I have therefore amended sections by adding things onto the end, leaving the previous investigation untouched.