By no means am I a fan of metal. Outside of a few acts (a la softer Opeth or maudlin of the Well) I really don’t care much for the genre. Perhaps this makes me unqualified to do a metal review, but then again this is Isis. The first time crossing paths with the band was, of all places, on Pitchfork. Such a hipster indie publication giving a metal band such high ratings had me immediately intrigued. This was not your typical metal band, I immediately thought, and I was right. My main beef with most metal, outside of gutteral or screaming vocals, which I find ridiculous and frankly boring unless it’s used more as a texture (think The Manifold Curiosity), is the lack of strong song writing and emotion. For a genre that is so closely associated with evil, violence, hate, anger or whatever, the music always felt so cold. Too much focus on melting faces with fills and riffs; too little focus on interesting composition. Isis solve many of these problems that I have with metal (they still use the screaming vocals, but it is usually more of a texture beneath walls of guitars) which is why I can enjoy the band so much. Their songs and entire albums have breathing room and aren’t just a mechanical shell; these albums have a soul and the bands newest album
Wavering Radiant is no different.
Look no further then the end of album opener “Hall of Dead”. After an interesting keyboard motif rises out of the murky, layered guitar riffs, the song kicks into a major key transition before soaring vocals draw the song to an uplifting close. This type of shifting dynamic is probably the main reason why Isis are often given the tag of ‘post-metal’ as it is very much in line with a lot of post-rock bands (Godspeed You Black Emperor! comes to mind, especially the end of their song “Sleep”). The way Isis use their instrumentation also adds to the genre label of post-metal, as it is much more in line with the textural approach of post-rock. The reverb soaked guitar on “Hand of the Host” glistens beautifully overtop of droning guitar underpinnings. Reverting back to some of my issues with most of the metal genre; it’s enjoyable to listen to a metal act that does not overtly rely on continuous shredding and riffing to fill in an eight minute time frame. While the band does have the technical chops, as shown in the guitar solo near the end of the epic “Stone to Wake a Serpent”, they are just as likely to focus on creating an interesting atmosphere.
The near constant shifts in tone and dynamics is difficult to grasp at first, but these become more intrinsic with time. Soon one begins to relish the shifts from crushing heaviness to almost ethereal melody, perfectly embodied in the fantastic “20 Minutes/40 Years”. As familiarity grows, so does the enjoyment of the album. The one problem with
Wavering Radiant is that despite the abundance of interesting dynamic shifts, the album is still long. While not exactly redundant or ‘samey-sounding’, the album does begin to wear thin towards it’s latter stages. The last few songs are great in their own right, it’s almost like seeing the Grand Canyon near the end of a marathon. Still beautiful, but dimmed by fatigue. Luckily the last few minutes of album closer “Threshold of Transformation” are among the best on the album. The change in tempo and rhythm have a similar uplifting feel to the end of opener “Hall of Dead”, until this drops off and a gentle plucked guitar sparkles overtop a low humming drone that brings the album to a close.
Not being a fan of metal might lead some to think I have no business reviewing such an album as
Wavering Radiant. However, as I explained, this is no ordinary metal record from no ordinary metal band. The indie-kids will like the wall of sound guitar approach and overall sensibility and restraint the band hold. The post-rockers will love the general loud-soft dynamics, and heck there is even a certain shoegaziness to some of the songs. Overall though, this is still a metal record and one that will be enjoyed most by the metal community. But like underground gods maudlin of the Well, Isis have carved out a certain groove that transcends genre ties and is simply available to be loved by fans from across the musical spectrum. After all, can’t we all just get along?
