Panopticon

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Customer reviews

review by: Ted Maul date: 2007-02-25 rating:
Magical
Panopticon is a brilliant album that straddles three disparate strands of musical
genre-the lengthy instrumental sections favoured by Post-Rock acts such as Mogwai,
the experimental guitar sounds used by the more succesful shoegazing acts like
My Bloody Valentine,and also the more experimental metal sounds from bands like
Cult Of Luna or Pelican.Yet despite these and other more obvious influences
(Tool,Slayer)Isis transcend their fandom and emerge as a truly original band
that deserve to be heard.It is worth noting,however,that if you are new to Isis
then it may be advisable to start with Oceanic (which is worth more than 5 stars,if
possible),then buy this & In The Absence Of Truth afterwards (as they are only
worth five stars,stupid though that sounds).

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review by: northernmight date: 2006-12-30 rating:
Stunningly Beautiful
I bought this album after listening to lots of Cult of Luna and was advised to check out their material 'for fans of'.

Isis have developed a wonderfully beautiful and complex album which fuses simple slow melodic passages with crushingly powerful walls of sound. What really gives this album its creedence is the slow and complex evolution of the songs. Rather than simply slowing down and speed up over a period of time, the music develops - different sounds, chord progressions, harmonys and disharmonies all intertwine while the music builds up to its powerful climaxes and then eases to gentle echoes. The range of sounds and notes alter subtely but constantly during the 'songs' which gives a hypnotic whilst intriguing experience and prevents the music becoming overly repetative like some other bands of the genre.

If you are looking for a true musical work of art which can take you on a journey from the calm lagoons to the raging stormy depths, this is as good as it gets.

A mature, intelligent, creative and stunningly beautiful album. My deepest respect and thanks to the band.

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review by: date: 2006-06-02 rating:
Flawless
This album is quite simply sonic perfection. Every single note, every chord and every chime or beat on the drumkit rings out in utter ecstacy, and the instrumentalists are backed by one of the most powerful voices in modern music. Aaron Turner's vocals will either crush you (such is their intensity), or make you feel euphoric. The opening vocals on "So Did We" are a prime example of how uplifted this album can make you feel, and the driving distorted gutitars that open the album are a great example of the darker/heavier side of Isis.

The most amazing achievement is how these two parallels have been combined so cohesively into an album of monolithic proportions. Oceanic and Celestial were both excellent albums, but Panopticon has an 'edge', and a whole other dimension to it that leaves it standing head and shoulders above anything Isis (and most other bands) have ever produced.

Absolutely essential listening.

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review by: date: 2006-03-15 rating:
Why the growling? Your music is singing.
I bought this record based on the widespread glowing reviews it had received and the comparisons to bands like Mogwai and Godspeed. I was impressed by the instrumental snippets I heard but I have to emphasise that this record does feature some growling, that makes up a minor part 6 of 7 songs that all clock around 7-8 minutes. It’s a shame because with the exception of the singing this record is very impressive indeed. If the band are new to the genre of instrumental/atmospheric rock they certainly don’t show it as these are assured, spacious and at times breathtaking soundscapes that are every bit as grasping as the cover art would suggest. In seeking to carve a niche in the genre, where Isis find an edge on their counterparts is in their tight as a bull’s nads rhythm section; in each track the drums and bass lock together like armoured plates on a tank, forcefully directing the guitars to soar upwards like a second-row in a Rugby Union line out. I am frequently frustrated by the rather impoverished rhythm section of bands like Mogwai, and Isis create a kind of halfway house between the aforementioned bands foreboding mood and the rhythmical suppleness of a band like Explosions in the Sky.
At times the pay-off is exhilarating. On ‘So Did We’ the band drop into a sultry, chiming outro that the rippling drums eddy slowly forward, insisting that the guitars become gradually agitated; predictably, yet with great satisfaction, the layers of clean guitars and build-up bring a myriad of gorgeous melody to the surface to then spill; crashing into titanic, bludgeoning waves of distortion. Yet at all times there is that consummate, assured control of a band who know how to control their louder moments, and so you can relax as the brutal wall of sound cascades over you.
Similarly, on the standout track ‘In Fiction‘, the band begin with a sparse rhythm track that again demonstrates the band’s adept use of space in their instrumentation - each instrument is allowed to shine through individually, as in the background a quiet, fuzzed-out guitar strums plagently. Slowly building and bereft of vocals, the music can’t fail to grasp you and involve you in to its dramatic plot, helped by that insistent rhythm section. Here the vocals aren’t too bad when they finally come, but I wonder if Isis - particularly as the singer makes up one of the three guitarists - have thought about using samples, or better still bringing in guest singers. There just seems a disparity between the soaring ambition of the music and the growling, gritty vowels of the singer that occasionally feel like the sucking of a swamp drawing all the lovely verdant scene in with it. The vocals drop out, the music returns to the slow tempo, and Isis begin their course again: build the atmosphere patiently, ready for the knockout punch of the pulverising distortion and double-kick.
This is an interesting album for Isis and for listeners to post-rock. I think they are starting to break clear of the constraints of metal, but I think they need to loosen themselves from trying to satisfy the old fans by still including growling vocals; the band show they don’t need them, their music and poise do that alone. With their next album maybe they could experiment more with the vocal side of things and create a record that totally justifies itself as the first post-metal record.
There is so much like, from the rock-clasical scaling of 'Syndic Calls' with its squalls of layered delay, to the chilled out bliss of instrumental 'Altered Course' that is Slowdive crossing the atlantic in ribbons of fog, the vocals are just a tiny drawback occasionally surfacing from their ocean.


review by: date: 2006-01-10 rating:
AMAZING
As one reviewer has already said...simply the greatest Album ive ever heard.I put it on when im awake,i put it on when im going to sleep.I didnt think Isis could better Oceanic.They have.No one knows how to build a song like isis...how to set an atmosphere then just crush.Beautiful stuff.......

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