Riff Analysis 021 - Vildhjarta "Längstmedån"

I've got a Patreon now! If you're feeling supportive, check it out! That's also where I'll post any transcriptions and diagrams I make for these videos.
/ metalmusictheory
I mostly used the GP tab by cruzisluislopez for this, but did some visual cleaning up, translated it to 8-string in standard, and re-transcribed that third riff that I play.
Justin London's attack on polymeter is in Hearing In Time (2007). Galen DeGraf's good counterarguments are in his dissertation, "Navigating Musical Periodicities" (2018).

[@TheApostleofRock]

"Not that crazy as an idea" Uses Car Bomb for reference

[@metalmusictheory5401]

lmao I realized how funny that was after I finished the video

[@lamondsutherland4581]

The dry nonchalant humor in this is on another level :p

[@GreatBeardofWisdom]

To everyone just discovering Vildhjarta through this video: Welcome! It's great on this side of the abyss, and the coffee is some of the darkest and best you'll ever taste.

[@KalebBirdsong]

Super hard to articulate how their riffs "repeat" but don't at the same time. Great job!!!

[@hecksnek6158]

Never heard of vildhjarta, but they sound fascinating. It's hypnotic like meshuggah but for very different reasons.

[@thomas8019]

oh man you're in for a treat ! their album masstaden is a masterpiece

[@jbasti227]

HIGHLY recommend checking them out. They only have an album and 2 EPs and it's all so good. I especially recommend their album Masstaden

[@Jzphh]

keep an eye out for their next album "kaos 2" that's supposed to be coming out

[@blaeser13]

+1 for Måsstaden

[@motorax11]

Enjoy the loss of your Vildhjartity. So terrible.

[@KillinSmallz]

I've been waiting for someone to make this video for 8 years.

[@stcmattb]

Right?!

[@BentDoorFrame]

Hey that's how long I've been waiting for a new Vildhjarta album!

[@KillinSmallz]

@@BentDoorFrame it must take a long time to write this music properly.

[@BentDoorFrame]

@@KillinSmallz I'm not rushing them, just waiting. I'm sure it willl be worth it.

[@KillinSmallz]

@@BentDoorFrame i'm sure it will be THALL

[@Observer_Band]

T H A L L

[@morbida]

thall

[@ken20banks]

thall

[@undeadmach1ne]

another solid (thallid) analysis of a complex topic in a niche genre that is rarely covered at all, let alone in depth. next time someone tells me 'metal is just a bunch of guys screaming and banging guitars' ill send them here 🎶

[@4Pssf2w]

I love your shit, dude. The breadth of your knowledge and presentation kills it with the deadpan delivery.

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Thanks so much!

[@growlandroll]

I want a shirt with the phrase 'Unendliche Djentigkeit' on it. Really insightful and enjoyable video, as usual, thanks!

[@YavorArseniev]

Never heard of them but immediately clicked, as I know your channel to be an absolute treasure trove.

[@PedroFinGuitar]

Yeah, prbbly most of this audience is just looking for music lol

[@josephrosenbaum3343]

you have been shown the light of t h a l l. May the gods bless you

[@jg_yro5845]

Could you possibly make a video on their use of dissonance? Their melodies (if that’s what you want to call them) are so unique. I’ve never personally heard band use dissonance quite how they do. HLB kind of does, but they’re also basically Vildjharta lol Love the content!

[@metalheadblues]

HLB is basically Vildjharta + a whammy pedal

[@jg_yro5845]

@@metalheadblues You’re right on. Stylistic differences a bit but general same kind of sound. Big fan of both!

[@metalheadblues]

@@jg_yro5845 gotta shout out buster!

[@630171official]

In my opinion a lot of the melodic elements get clearer if you listen to Black Metal, or mor specifically build a bridge with Calles project stoort neer between Vildhjartas use of melody and chromatizism infused minor chord progressions in black metal

[@jg_yro5845]

@@630171official love stoort ne’er for sure, you have any black metal band recommendations related to this sound?

[@jonathanerving8974]

Been listening to vildhjarta for about a year but this video made me appreciate them so much more I listen to them differently now

[@masterchain3335]

"If I look uncontrollably excited to you"

[@drifter61]

Vildhjarta does it so well man. First and second albums are a huge influence on how I play, mixed with styling from bands like animosity and the faceless. Im kinda going for a djenty wes hauch sound.... or something. Either way very informative video and has helped me understand the way I write a bit better as well as understanding what I'm actually doing instead of "idk. I'm just jamming til I find "it"."

[@Goodstuff12345666789]

I would really love to see you break down the riffs in Dimman från lützen. The intro riff, the way it slows down just to hit you right in the face with one of the greatest riffs I’ve ever heard at 1:55. I love your videos, although sometimes I’m having a hard time understanding what’s going on theoretically 🖤

[@peaceindarkness.darknessis3494]

I can't believe how long they been out And this is first I'm hearing of them. Thanks again friend on another great vid as well as band introduction

[@BookofCommonTerror]

I colothally appreciate the work you put into this.

[@CaptnShred]

OH BOY. This is going to be great.

[@mateuszt661]

A video about Vildhjarta that popped up on recommended? Nice, subbed. One of my favorite bands. Great video, loved tha(ll)t humor. Will watch other videos in upcoming week

[@AustinJSchaeffer]

Super interesting! I'm a big Vildhjarta fan and have recently been exploring the technical side of songwriting more lately as I try to expand my own songs so this was a really cool piece of insight.

[@GremlinGatbuger]

This vid is treasure for vildhjarta fans wich wanna now more about tech sides of their songs. liked and subscribed dude!

[@nihilisticinquisition7150]

I will from now on use the word Djentigkeit in every possible situation! Thank you! (Great analysis, as THALLways!)

[@FusionAmoeba]

I appreciate t'hall for doing this

[@kevindangelo1091]

More people need to see this channel. Keep em coming

[@pietandersen6120]

I think theres an argument to be made for you completing the scandinavian djenthallogy to do a video covering Humanity`s Last Breath and CABAL too. Great video as always. Vildhjarta has always been a band whose musical tricks I could never wrap my head around, their stramge ability to have a coherent composition while barely ever repeating a section is astounding. Edit: I would like to add that you can in fact now do a thall band from each scandinavian country after discovering Frostbitt, a Norwegian band and Indistinct, a Finnish band

[@xavierouellet3748]

Man ! I don't know how to explain but your channel is the best channel I've ever found on youtube!!! I almost have my jazz degres from school and I u derstand every concept you talk In your video and it really help to understand more how I see music that I daily listen too!! Keep it up dude your video are amazing!!!

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Awesome, and thank you!

[@weirdozoidtheta]

This is by far the best channel on youtube lately. Love your work. Hope you show Mitochondrion some love sometime soon. Parasignosis is a badass album and the guitar work is wicked.

[@megleyd]

dude you are awesome!! keep making these please

[@SoldierOfSodom]

Yea, some Vildhjarta finally. Thanks for giving us an idea on how the stuff they do works. I think the idea of endless melody really fits how I have always heard their music. Always feeling like no riff comes back a second time, but still with this familiarity. Here's hoping we get a follow up to Den Helige Anden soon :D I would love a video about the music of Mizmor (You had that shirt on once) or perhaps Hell. Their music of course doesn't have the same complexity in comparison to a lot of stuff you talk about. But I would be really interested to see what you would have to say about their music.

[@moonboogien8908]

The T H V L L puns are what made me sub. Edit: although, I think you missed an opportunity for THALLymeter.

[@pugdog1107]

Damn this guy deserves more subs, so helpful

[@heyimdalton1]

This is great content man! Keep it up.

[@MegaLaban12345]

Great band, great video, incredible t-shirt

[@chinuppollywog]

If you haven't already, you should check out JUTE GYTE. I think you'd find the compositions, meter/hyper-meter choice, and micro-tonality very interesting.

[@indridcold777]

Adam Kalmbach is a nut. And for that I love him.

[@Maldito011316]

Thanks for introducing me to this band. I've been slowly digesting it and just these past weeks I've got to listen to their albums multiple times. My biggest gripe is that the song titles are not in english so I have trouble memorizing which song is which.

[@TheR00ler]

Phenomethall analysis and puns.

[@42k78]

This was amazing. I hope you're right about more metal bands that rapidly change Tempos like Car Bomb and Vildhjarta. Those bands have ruined my ear and now when I go back to albums I used to love, they sound extremely linear and boring to be honest. Would love more bands that do "Through composing" like Vildhjarta. That style writing is for me, 100%.

[@marcomoscoso7402]

I kinda suspected all of this additional songwriting trickery when I tried to learn Vildhjarta songs on guitar but they resulted more confusing than learning some meshuggah ones.

[@dylansalcedo2797]

Love your videos man

[@jamiefitzpatrick3377]

Would love to see a video analysing the compositional style of the new album, tons of stuff in there to talk about both melodically and otherwise

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Just gave a little taste on this in the last Rapid Fire Riffs vid, will do more eventually!

[@KadeKalka]

These puns are too much, I love it.

[@broncoxy]

just love how excited and energetic you are in this video, I would, however, sometimes dial it back a little, especially with the rapid movements, as it could distract the viewer

[@VitrificationOfBlood]

Hey man I love your videos, super in-depth! Also, I see you’re wearing a primitive man shirt. Could you maybe do a video on them. For instance, the way the bass carries the riff while the noise goes wild would be interesting. But keep up the great work anyway!

[@Samplelord]

Once again a great video and rockin a Primitive Man shirt....Caustic still is a beast of an album. Would love to hear your take on them. Stay save Doc.

[@Luemm3l]

i am awaiting the day that you do not write papers, but papers are written about your channel man... as an example on how to provide some of the best infotainment in niche music genres there is out today!

[@Cruzbotix]

I thought I recognized that tab! Great stuff here man

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Thanks for your work! Saved me a ton of time!

[@kiwitogrape]

My favorite music theory channel AND my favorite Vildhjarta song? Fuck yeah!

[@ashtonmoore9924]

Awesome video man! So glad I found your channel. A suggestion I don't think I've seen anyone make yet: In Death - Is Death by Meshuggah off Catch33. That third riff kicked my ass when learning the album on guitar and I always regarded that specific riff as "pure entropy". I'd love to be proven wrong!

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Got some Catch 33 stuff coming very soon!

[@Reavan1000]

How do you keep a straight face with all the Thall jokes? Hahaha, great as always.

[@matthewpowell2527]

I love thall of your videos

[@wujBat]

GREAT channel!

[@nanthilrodriguez]

THALL you got on Vildhjarta!? Great job!

[@rollpoze]

Bro, I subbed. Good stuff

[@drewbairdummel]

Love this episode

[@juanpabloperez6754]

thanks bro, you are the best master

[@jbasti227]

I'm loving thall the puns in this video. Thanks for another solid upload, haven't listened to them in a while but I think I'll be revisiting them. One of my favorites when it comes to that Meshuggah-influenced style. Btw, are you using a Strandberg in this video?

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Yep! Strandberg metal 8 from around 2016!

[@jbasti227]

@@metalmusictheory5401 Awesome! How do you like it? I’ve been considering getting one for a while. Plan to buy one someday.

[@metalmusictheory5401]

@@jbasti227 I like it a lot! I haven't played a ton of 8-strings but this is by far the nicest I've played

[@nicolaskienberg9540]

This is actually my favourite Song from them.

[@rayparker4768]

THALL Bröther (edit) In all honesty I've learned a lot about harmony(harm minor) from vildhjarta. Their cleans have a strong hirajoshi sound, Dimman is such a cool song. Love ur vids btw, I feel different approaches to dissecting\analyzing different genres or bands is necessary to aptly learn from them. Western theory can be limiting in perspective. ps. ur the best

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Thanks so much!

[@theFriendlyGhst]

7:30 that took me a second 🤣

[@Cmac0099]

That is a lightning quick noise gate! Sounds good.

[@mustbewasabi]

great! you should do an analysis on one of the newer riffs too :)

[@quantum_beeb]

I’d love to see an episode on Reflections-Cicada ft. Calle. More like his work with Humanity’s Last Breath than Vildjarta. But I don’t know how they got that track to sound so brutal.

[@willh9104]

Incredible video, love Vildjharta and you did such a good job explaining them. Loved that you mentioned Car Bomb, would love a video on them at some point. Where can we read your paper on them?

[@drumkidstu]

Here you go kzbin.info/www/bejne/mHKZdJpsltd4mJY

[@ionatana59]

Nice analysis.

[@TheDjfranco100]

Great analysis! It's a shame that the tabs are bad write, but i will really excited if you make a full/general analysis when Kaos 2 will release. Thall

[@Martymilner_]

They have a new album coming this year. It's likely to be about an hour and a half long according to their Instagram story.

[@robbledot7290]

YESSSSS MY FAVORITE SONG

[@vibingwithomar7121]

@5:40: it's THALL in THALL!! haha

[@OwenHoover]

The Adam Neely of thall. Thalldam Neely

[@deepfriedorange7101]

Great video, could you do an analysis on Ulcerate? Something like “There are no Saviors” or any of their songs?

[@goemaeregert]

Ricky Wagner, i giggled.

[@heavingearth9694]

Thanks

[@drewbairdummel]

THALL lot of passion

[@EmptyKingdoms]

If tempo variation is the new trend, then it's time repeating, as some 70s and 80s heavy music had it already.

[@thekellykellestine]

Sick Primitive Man shirt

[@FreepowerUG]

Awwwwwwwwwwwwww yissssss

[@jensmuller5931]

Is this a Grandmeister 40? Nice Video.

[@TheDjfranco100]

I share this video on a facebook group when Calle Thomer is a member, he says that he doesn't understand a thing 🤣🤣🤣

[@stephen6691]

Great video, as always! 5:40 Why is this an "abstract" take on Meshuggah's style? Is it less embodied? Less specific? More conceptual? Or just harder to learn/play?

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Great question! I guess I meant in the sense of a few steps removed but based on some deeper fundamental aesthetic - it’s like they take the spirit of Meshuggah’s music, but change a lot of the details. Not sure if abstract is quite the right word now that I think of it

[@wintermute9000]

That egg carton must be doing wonders for your sound isolation :D

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Lol made me chuckle (I use it as a marker holder)

[@wintermute9000]

@@metalmusictheory5401 I rate is highly as a pure sight gag for musicians/engineers. :)

[@Nac0589]

Nice strandberg! wich model is it? Got my eyes on a 8 strings strandberg too... i'll maybe try buying it this spring or summer. Would you recommend it? Impressive work as always too with this video! Thanks!

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Thanks! And this is the metal 8 from like 2016 (I think), and I love it! Makes playing an 8-string as easy as it ever will be.

[@InveterateMendaciousness]

Alright everyone listen up, 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡 is talking.

[@sammyb774]

you should do an analysis of the later half of the breakdown in pitch dark by chon

[@jmsilva81]

Thall class kids! Present!

[@fiasworkshop]

thall of their music is great yes it is lmao

[@ImmortallySpawned]

You need to do a video on Immolation!!!

[@atoma8921]

You should do a video on Onward to Golgotha by Incantation, or some Immolation songs like Christ's Cage or Close to a World Below. So much interesting stuff going on in those tracks Whenever I post links KZbin deletes my comment, but if you google 'Onward to Golgotha Intro Riff analysis' there is an article about that.

[@Dracula_sb]

Subbed. THALL

[@BezardGuitars]

THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL THALL

[@sou1daddy503]

It would be really helpful if you left your text comments on screen just a bit longer - I usually have to pause so that I can read them and still concentrate on what you're saying. And BTW: Vildhjarta🤘my favorite and totally underrated djent-lords!

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Thanks! Yeah I have a bad habit of getting carried away with the footnotes, I try to leave the important ones up for longer! But I’m trying to be better about having fewer unimportant ones lol.

[@sou1daddy503]

The comments are all good - important/unimportant/silly/serious/whatever - I just need a little more time to read them while other things are happening. Maybe I'm a bit slow 😄.

[@trowabarton222]

THALL!

[@quantum_beeb]

Will you do an analysis on a track off the new Ad Nauseam album? So much crazy stuff going on in there. Imperative Imperceptible Impulse

[@Alex-lc6jv]

in your opinion, do you think they're intentionally writing this way or just plugging away on a grid until it fits

[@dethronedemperor]

Any chance for a look at Timeghoul or Demilich?

[@BentDoorFrame]

Nice

[@drifter61]

Are those Lundgrens in your headless. If so they sound fantastic brother.

[@metalmusictheory5401]

Thanks! And no they're the stock Strandberg metal pickups!

[@ElonMuskIsSerbian]

Think you can do something by Teitanblood?

[@senorguap0]

Bro can you please send me whatever tabs you have ? I really need to learn this song asap. I’m kinda salty you didn’t show the very first riff tho the intro riff is Deadass my fav part. Any way you can send me tabs tho ? Like the full song