17th March, 2022: Ison - Andromeda Skyline (dream pop/post-rock, 2018)
I give Ison a long rope because I honestly just really love that there is a band like them
out there. Dreamy ambient pop bands are everywhere at the moment, but I can’t think of any
that come to that from the same angle as these guys. This is essentially an album of metal
interlude tracks - with the aesthetics and sound design being as informed by black and gothic
metal as they are by dream pop and post-rock. It creates a really interesting product in the
end, between Cocteau Twins and Isis, as the guitars that float in the background bring in
occasional drops of grit, reminding you of the backgrounds of the musicians. Musically this
one isn’t as good as Cosmic Drone, and almost entirely holds its own on the basis of the
exquisite sound design, but when you’re making music this unique, I think you can be forgiven
for missing the mark on composition.
7.4 (5th listen)
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