ISIS – Wavering Radiant

I’ll be upfront about my exposure to bands that combine ambiance, metal and hardcore: I’ve always found the genre chaotic, boring, and messy.  Personally, I tend to prefer 12-15 song albums where each song is nicely contained within its own little microcosm of sound.  In other words, I find comfort in songs where the chorus, verse, and vocals are easily distinguished, and the lyrics are the driving force.  That being said, with such an attitude I’ve dismissed many an album by its association with the aforementioned genres – making my exposure minimal at best.  So when I realized I would be reviewing an album by ISIS, one of the most respected bands in this ambiguous genre, I thought if would be an ideal chance to put my predispositions behind me and approach the genre anew.

ISIS‘ latest effort is an atmospheric adventure known as Wavering Radiant.  The album starts with “Hall of the Dead,” which like the majority of ISIS‘ tracks, pushes well into the seven minute mark.  “Hall of the Dead” kicks off the journey with a pulsating, echoey backdrop of moody guitar distortion layered behind a barrage of heavy riffs.  Co-vocalist Aaron Turner ups the aggression level with his indecipherable, primitive growl – like something from one of Century Media’s many hardcore death metal bands – creating a striking contrast between vocals and instrumentation.  Just before the boisterous vocals become tiresome though, co-vocalist Bryant Clifford Meyer jumps in with his high, crisply defined style.  The track also introduces some very big drumbeats, and excellently placed synth tones that really match the track’s progression.  Had Turner’s vocals been the driving force behind the album I would have lost interest immediately – thankfully, vocals play a small part in the master plan.

After enjoying “Hall of the Dead” I was rather excited to dive into the six remaining tracks.  “Ghost Key” came next, featuring an extended opening with serene synth beats and a heightened sense of urgency.  Then, much like in the previous track, Turner commences his growly ways, morphing the mood into one of anger and aggression, eventually being followed with the soft-spoken Meyer to cool things off.  The song then pans out into familiar territory, with more moments of calm, only to be followed with instances of intense contrast.

With the exception of the title track – a two minute interlude of pure ambience – practically every song runs between seven and ten minutes.  While after the first song I thought I was in for quite the ride, it soon dawned upon me that ISIS likes repetition.  Song in and song out the album retains the same basic continuity, and while it is by no means formulaic in the sense of chorus and verse, the atmosphere and mood become very predictable.  By the fifth track, which is a solid 30 minutes in, my interest began waning and mind began to drift.  By no means did ISIS‘ fantastic musicianship ever cease – far from it, in many cases it becomes more complex and ambitious as Wavering Radiant crawls along – but the sense of immediacy established during the album’s onset just wasn’t present for me 30 minutes later, let alone at the end of it’s 54 minute run time.  For a band so talented at exploring emotion through sound, it would have been nice to see them push their boundaries and explore a broader spectrum of feelings.

The name of the final track, “The Threshold of Transformation,” pretty much describes my feelings towards Wavering Radiance.  The whole album feels as if it is on the verge of becoming something truly moving, but never fully realizes its potential.  However, despite finding myself at times feeling rather bored, at no point did I dislike what I was hearing.  ISIS knows how to develop atmospheric soundscapes, I think they simply need to make them feel livelier for more traditional listeners like myself.  But if you fancy yourself a fan of metal, ambience, or hardcore, then don’t let my negativity deter you – Wavering Radiant is a journey you’ll want to be a part of.