Isis - In the Absence of Truth
Rating
RIYL
ToolNeurosis
Russian Circles
Pelican
Tracklist
1. Wrists of Kings2. Not in Rivers, But in Drops
3. Dulcinea
4. Over Root and Thorn
5. 1, 000 Shards
6. All out of Time, All into Space
7. Holy Tears
8. Firdous E Bareen
9. Garden of Light
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With their latest release, In the Absence of Truth, progressive metal gods Isis have worked out still more of the tiny chinks in their formidable armor. Each release has seen the band develop an aspect of their sound that could use some fine-tuning. In the Absence of Truth finds vocalist Aaron Turner with a voice that almost begs to be listened to instead of his former penchant for forcing the listener to tune him out. Within the next two to three albums, Turner could actually proved to be downright listenable and may be featured more prevalently throughout each track, but for now, a more satisfying presence is more than most Isis fans could ever ask for.
Turner's vocal changes aren't the only things Isis has turned around for the better. Their songs seem more fully-formed than on their previous albums, as well. While that may not necessarily be true, something has to account for the relative brevity of this album, even as it runs to typical Isis-ian length. It still clocks in at "way fucking longer than most other albums," but it plays like a sturdy fifty-minute LP instead of the monolith of sound its true length implies. Instead of tending towards droning into oblivion, Isis holds the listener in rapt attention the whole time. That's a large step forward, as it should help to draw those on the outskirts of Isis fan-dom to finally break the line.
Of course, accessibility has never been a goal for the band, so, as I tend to do with all things Isis and Neurosis related, I may be missing the point here. I'm sure the band read some really weighty scientific research and decided to write an album around the awesome and life-changing viewpoints it's opened them to, but I, for one, could give two shits about where a band is coming from, whether they break away from vapid lyricism or choose to write songs about how their mom told them they'd amount to nothing. I don't care that this album is twenty times more interesting when you know what the lyrics are about. For fuck's sake, you can barely make intelligible the roars of one Aaron Turner.
Thankfully, for all the thought the band puts into coming up with ideas for the music, the music itself does not seem obtusely self-indulgent or over-thought and never loses the more emotional edge that is so pertinent to the band's stranglehold on the listener. Isis never really gets caught up in its own intelligence, never comes across as pretentious, when recording their albums and, for that, I think them, as too many bands too often become too self-absorbed by their brilliance to write a song anyone else would actually desire to hear.
The simple fact is this: In the Absence of Truth is, musically speaking, Isis's most compelling work to date and that is saying something for a band that's never truly disappointed in the musical arena. All their work in other projects has also finally seeped into the band's sound, making them a much more intriguing band and opening new avenues in which the band can further explore their musical thoughts and views. With these newfound sources for channeling their creativity, Isis will surely continue to be a force to be reckoned with for years to come.
While I may not care what gives this band inspiration, what they have done so far is worthy of note and has worked thus far. In that respect, I hope they never lose that interest in things I have no interest in, so that they may continue to make records that astound me, as well as their many listeners worldwide. If you're as heady as Isis, I'm sure that makes you doubly as excited for future efforts. There really is no wrong answer as long as you find yourself captivated by Isis's remarkable performances thus far.
--Ben Rice
Comments
AZ
if you are out of your depths, why are you writing this review? This deserves 5 stars
www.myspace.com/arcoftheaurora
The Great North Woods
Darla Farmer
RIYL:
the Beatles
Tom Waits
Murder By Death
A Whisper in the Noise
the Blood Brothers
It's blowin' cool outside today...
Anytown USA
Then why did you go out of your way to read the review, then comment about it?
You play to win the game.
Obviously I care what he has to say about the album, otherwise I wouldn't have read the review. I was just responding to the specific instance where he arrogantly dismissed the significance of facets outside of the music, which I think is ignorant of a reviwer. It's one thing to focus primarily on the music, but to announce a negative value judgement of everything else without giving justification, and do so in a presumtuous manner is, well, dumb.
It's blowin' cool outside today...
St. Louis, MO
4 stars from Ben is like 5 and a half from almost anyone else on this site.
~Tom
The Silent Ballet: The very best in instrumental and post-rock reviews and coverage.
Dallas, Texas
And Stepo', I don't think there was anything 'arrogant' about it. He was just probably looking for a unique way to talk about this release. When you've been writing reviews for a long time non-stop, it because harder and harder not to repeat yourself.
I think Ben hit on probably the most important aspect of this release. The vocals.
Minnesota
Actually, I think it would be the other way around. Ben routinely gives out 4's. It's like his average score, so getting a 4/5 from Ben is like a 3/5 from anyone else.
Update: Ben's average review score is 3.69. That's a pretty high average.
Tucson, AZ
Los Angeles
postrockpaperscissors
Minnesota
Rice a Roni, hands down.
St. Louis, MO
Hm... I guess you're right. I was just thinking of how he used to say that no album ever deserves five stars unless it's a "certified classic," or something like that. In any case, Ben doesn't give out fives easily, even if he's apparently in love with the number four.
~Tom
The Silent Ballet: The very best in instrumental and post-rock reviews and coverage.
32210
ive never 'blocked out' aarons vocals on previous releases.
ive never lost attention (especially not on pantopticon or oceanic)
i agree with the score but in completely different way... i actually like this cd less than oceanic (which id probably give a certified classic: 5) and panopticon (which id probably give a 4.5 or 4)
its still a great cd i just dont keep going back for repeat listens as much as the previous
diff'rent strokes i guess.
Maine
:)
REWRITE!
M.J.,
I, too, love what I've heard of this album, particularly the last few minutes of "Garden of Light." I think you're right about his review's shortcomings not being a matter of arrogance, but...
Please no one think that I fancy myself some almighty reviewer, but I just felt this was a very complex, nuanced release that was not given its due concentration. Like the first person to respond said, if Ben is not up for actually "reviewing" the album, allow someone else the chance. Let me make it simple: it would be one thing if he examined the album but didn't go into much detail; but it's the fact that he acknowledged the fact that this release had a lot of effort put into it, said he didn't care about said effort, and then proceeded to act as if his half-ass review was a good analysis of the album. I don't care about the high score he gave the review. I would rather him give the album a low score and explain in depth--not length, mind you--why the record deserved it.
It's blowin' cool outside today...
Bayside,NY
Sacramento, CA
but still, i also think this review is lacking in a lot of areas.
I'm not here to make things better; only to observe and pass judgement.
Sacramento, CA
this statement was not to say i was out of my depth, it was to state that i don't like to spend a ton of time trying to see where a band is coming from. it may be laziness as either a listener or a review or it could just be that i don't like to get that wrapped up in a release. on the surface, isis is still a fantastic band, whereas neurosis constantly fails to gab my attention. i just wanted to clarify that i don't obsess over this fan like many of their fans obviously do.
I'm not here to make things better; only to observe and pass judgement.
Dude, don't worry about it; I've written plenty of bad reviews, although I'm not saying this review is bad, just not what I expected. I think with an in-depth analysis of a couple of tracks it would be quite solid. I totally agree with what you're saying about Isis being an intelligent yet non-pretentious band, and heavily thought out yet listenable.
It's blowin' cool outside today...
Same here. And I fucking love Isis.
We live as we dream- alone.
~Joseph Conrad
Sacramento, CA
I'm not here to make things better; only to observe and pass judgement.
Maine
Holland
easily isis's best album to date,
i think it's perfect.
...and the fact that it's about hassan i sabbah
makes it the coolest concept ever.
smoke a bowl and listen to it
you'll understand...
=]
...this is the end.
Cradle Of Filth
The Whip
Psyclon Nine
AFI
CKY
Madison, WI
My main complaint is about the vocals, or lack thereof. I like the clean vocals, don't get me wrong; that's not what I'm talking about. But I'm sick of hearing this great music, then being jolted by something that sounds like an evil version of the cookie monster becoming furious because he can't find his jar of cookies. The screaming/roaring needs to stop; singing loudly along with loud music provides a just as, or more, effective a climax as barking, and it doesn't make me want to stab my eardrums with a fork. Just shut the hell up and let me listen to the music already.
Garden of Light is the best song Isis has written and Wrists of Kings and Dulcinea are also some of my favorites.