ISIS RETURN WITH CONFUSING RESULTS ON “WAVERING RADIANT”
Thursday, April 2nd, 2009 at 1:00pm by Sammy O'Hagar
The stuttering riff that opens both “Hall of the Dead” and Isis’ new album Wavering Radiant recalls the openers of the band’s two best tracks: Celestial’s title track and Oceanic’s “The Beginning and The End.” And yet, in true Isis fashion, once the riff and song itself slowly unravel, “Hall of the Dead” establishes a personality of its own, somehow both a return to form after the misstep of 2006’s In the Absence of Truth and a unique statement in itself. It has the Isis hallmarks – Aaron Turner’s gruff bark (and droning clean vocals), Aaron Harris’ sturdy yet subtly inventive drumming, reverb-drenched guitars either filling up the room with expansive post-rock riffs or obliterating it with a battering ram of down tuned sludge, busy bass lines crab-walking underneath it all, and a buildup that brilliantly segues into a beautiful wave of guitars – but has new elements as well: the keyboards have never been this present (usually used for just a blanket of ambience, they’re a central instrument all over Wavering Radiant), and there’s a new sense of focus that holds the song together.
That sense of focus dulls one of Isis’ other trademarks, though: the feeling that the band would drop off the map entirely during one of their dalliances, seemingly drowning itself in atmosphere and stoned wanking when in fact they were planning on coming back 20 times stronger, rewarding you for your patience. The peak that comes 5 ½ minutes into “Hall of the Dead” is good, but Isis have done better jobs of setting you up and knocking you down in the past; it doesn’t feel as exciting this time around. And yet, you don’t feel as bored as parts of In the Absence of Truth may have led you to feel. The song perfectly establishes the rest of Wavering Radiant: this is a new chapter in the history of Isis, but it’s hard to determine whether the band have moved too far from what initially made them moving and unique, or if they’re moving to where the band have been moving all along, another brilliant step outward by a band who have been challenging the boundaries of metal for more than a decade.
Whatever you think of it, it’s hard to argue that it isn’t different from Isis’ other full lengths. Though it is similar in many regards to In the Absence of Truth (itself a profound departure from where the band had been heading on Oceanic and Panopticon), it fills in all the holes that that album was full of. Though Truth did admittedly have a bona fide classic in its ranks (the lush and beautiful “Dulcinea”), the rest of the record meandered about, each song essentially a variation of the one before it, leading to a gray mush of interesting-but-repetitive post-metal exercises. And while the sense of focus on Wavering Radiant definitely makes it an improvement over their blasé previous record, the album feels almost too focused at times.
Though it yields some excellent songs, it lacks much of what made Isis’ classic material great. It doesn’t have the massive, sludgy heaviness of Celestial; the bold, beautiful, transcendent beauty of Oceanic; or the complicated landscape of Panopticon. Its focus and attention to songcraft sets itself apart from those records, which is a good thing. But Isis’ deliberateness wasn’t as direct in the past as it is here, and part of the genius of those classic records was that once had to dig under the surface to see that the band meant every note of every trip they took into outer space, that their intention was to build you up, follow wherever they’d lead you, and when they arrived at their point, whether it took two or ten minutes to reach to do so, you’d be there with them, breathless and dumbstruck. That’s mostly absent here. Wavering Radiant is half good songs and half great songs, but no perfect songs. For most bands, this would be a minor complaint; for a band with such a mighty back catalog, it’s a significant and somewhat saddening flaw.
However, in the interest of full disclosure, this is probably an album I’ve listened to more than I have for any other I’ve reviewed for MetalSucks so far. I usually give a CD a few spins to try and soak up as much as I can (or as much as I should); I’ve given Wavering Radiant about a dozen thus far. And I can say, though the album doesn’t have the majesty or life-altering beauty that some of their past works have, I have yet to be bored by it. The songs, though not as expansive and exciting, are all remarkably solid, and hold up really well after multiple listens. The keyboards can occasionally be a bit much, but they also add a new dimension to the band, whether providing quirky atmosphere (the almost “Dream Weaver”-y opening of “Ghost Key”) or a sturdy ground for the guitars to jump from (the closing third of “Threshold of Transformation”). And while Wavering Radiant certainly isn’t my favorite (or even second favorite) Isis album, it’s got something to it that still makes it rewarding upon return, and is unique within the Isis catalog. Perhaps its greatest strength and weakness is that its flipped the band’s purpose completely: whereas Isis were once a band that fiddled with song structure by way of seemingly unending detours into post-rock, they’re now a band that fiddles with post-rock detours by way of song structure. They’ve returned with a new sense of purpose, which in many ways partially undoes what I loved most about the band. But the results of that sense of purpose are still intriguing and mystifying in their own way. Wavering Radiant is a great record but merely a good Isis record. What that means in the scheme of the band remains to be seen. In the meantime, it provides for an interesting curve in Isis’ long and interesting path.
(4 out of 5 horns)
-SO
What do I have to do to get on this advance copy mailing list you guys are on? Hook a brother up!
Torrents…, But I plan on getting the vinyl upon release. I think the album is great from start to finish.
I’m very confused..it sounds like I should spend my money on some weed, make my friend download the album so he can burn me a copy? Is that what you’re saying here?
..Because I swear on my shoes thats what i’ll do
…probably what I was gonna do anyways.
Come see me if anyone wants to share a few special brownies before their show at Iriving…i’ll be the really really stoned guy.
The really stoned guy at an Isis show…yeah, you’ll be REALLY easy to spot.
Damn, gotta been more on the ball for those torrent uploads. It’s not like that for every album MS reviews though.
PS. Beat you guys to the Mastodon review (click on my name)
get the album the day it comes out and listen to it sober
@Kevin:
“really stoned guy” = 84% of other attendees.
“really REALLY” stoned guy = me…the shnozberries taste like shnozberries and whatnot.
@Another Oppinion:
Yes, it’s important to support bands you believe in…even if your just supporting habbits. I don’t know if from what I’ve heard so far would drive me to make a physical purchase, rather an itunes download.
After In the Absence of Truth (which I liked just as much as the rest) your complaint for this album is that it’s too direct? That’s a new one. And where’s the mention of the harmonies? They’re all over the place!
Solid review though, it’s good to see what non-fanboys think of the new album. As a fan I can’t rate this album above or below any of the other albums, and I don’t think comparing albums to their previous works well in the reviewing medium (if only people would stop doing that!) Good job, it’s nice not having to hear how you “don’t get” Isis.
Thanks for the tip Mike
Ghost Key is a cool track
I find this review quite interesting.
I think the assertion of “great album, but only good ISIS album” is pretty accurate. By any other band this would have been huge. But as I said to a friend, ISIS have set a bar that even they can’t top anymore.
And I get why MS wouldn’t like in Absense, but it’s my second favourite next to Oceanic. Oh, and you can officially say you’ve met an ISIS fan who isn’t a stoner. I’ve never been high in my life, and ISIS are my absolutely favourite band. This album is a bit disappointing but not terrible.
amen Adamn E.
i was dissapointed,
but had it been any other badns record i would think their amazing
after albums like panopticon
ive come expect much from isis
still a great record.
this album makes me think of like, cool stuff, man.
Quit putting them on such a pedestal and enjoy the music, is that so hard? I just listened to the whole thing and enjoyed it and that’s enough for me. Thanks to Isis for helping transition my day :)
Great review! I agree almost 0.
100%
i’ll see em live, but their recordings put me to sleep
The new album is great, i really enjoyed it. It does seem kind of repetitive to certain parts from songs in Oceanic and In The Absence of Truth but eventually those parts become the last thing on your mind when you get into the record. Gret stuff, keep it up Isis see you at the Toronto gig.
this review fucking blows.
The review is good, and honest. However, I personally disagree with all opinions about In the Absence…that album is like The Who’s “Who’s Next”, it’s complete and solid with a few classics in Dulcinea, Holy Tears, Garden of Light, and 1000 Shards.
Also, the reviewer writes “but it’s hard to determine whether the band have moved too far from what initially made them moving and unique, or if they’re moving to where the band have been moving all along, another brilliant step outward by a band who have been challenging the boundaries of metal for more than a decade.”
So what?! Who cares if they’ve moved away what from their initial sound and purpose? People change, people grow. I want their art to change and grow with them. I don’t want every album to sound the same. That’s when a band is over, when it sounds the same again and again.
After some time away from this album ive ended up coming back to it a lot recently. I think the music reflects a more peaceful state of mind on the part of the band in that its not as overtly, stiflingly depressive as some of their earlier stuff. Its still as heavy as anything they have made, if just in a different sense than Oceanic was heavy.
In my opinion this is their best album; though i came to that realization after probably thirty to forty full spins. The drumming is just fantastic and the tone really has a huge range that is pretty exciting for an isis album. The best way for me to explain it, though, is that after trailing isis while stuck in their current, sucked towards the floor and crushed under massive pressure, and repeatedly tossed over waterfalls; we have finally emerged from the waves and soaring into the stratosphere, occasionally encountering dense fog and storms, but for the most part just feeling the great vibrations that come with gliding through the sky.
Thats some magazine blurb shit right there, but its true. Music is good.