Isis

Isis (stylized as ISIS) were a Los Angeles, California-based band, founded in Boston, Massachusetts, with a career spanning from 1997 to 2010. They borrowed from and helped to evolve a sound pioneered by the likes of Neurosis ^{Neurosis (band)} and Godflesh, creating heavy music ^{heavy metal music} consisting of lengthy songs that focus on repetition and evolution of structure.

The band's last album, Wavering Radiant, was released on May 5, 2009. The band decided to break up after their final tour ended in late June 2010.

 
Formation and early releases (1997–2001)

Several sessions of experimentation in Boston, Massachusetts led friends Aaron Turner (guitar/vocals; also the owner of Hydra Head Records and its subsidiary, HH Noise Industries), Jeff Caxide (bass guitar), Chris Mereschuk (electronics/vocals) and Aaron Harris ^{Aaron Harris (Isis drummer)} (drums ^{Drum kit} ) to form Isis in late 1997. As Turner states, "Isis formed as a result of the dissatisfaction with past bands of the founding members. None of us were happy with what we were doing musically at the time, two of us lived together, we had similar tastes and similar record collections." Isis released a demo and their first EP ^{extended play} , Mosquito Control, in 1998, with this line-up. After an East Coast ^{East Coast of the United States} tour in the summer of 1998 where they were joined by Randy Larsen of Cable ^{Cable (American band)} on guitar, Mereschuk left the band. Jay Randall (now of Agoraphobic Nosebleed) soon replaced him, working on Red Sea ^{Red Sea (album)} (1999). However, his stay would not last; this ultimately led to the addition of Bryant Clifford Meyer of The Gersch as well as former Cast Iron Hike guitarist Michael Gallagher ^{Michael Gallagher (Isis guitarist)} in 1999. After releasing their debut full-length entitled Celestial ^{Celestial (Isis album)} and its sister EP, SGNL>05 ^{SGNL 05} (on Neurot Recordings), in 2000, Isis gained national underground attention in the metal ^{Metal music} /hardcore ^{Hardcore punk} scene through tours with Cave In and Neurosis ^{Neurosis (band)} . Isis remains with this lineup to date.

For the SGNL>05 ^{SGNL 05} EP, they contacted Justin Broadrick (then of Godflesh) through their friends in Neurosis ^{Neurosis (band)} to remix the title track from Celestial, which they used as the EP's closer. Following SGNL>05, Isis signed with Mike Patton's label, Ipecac Recordings, who have issued the band's subsequent studio albums.


Oceanic (2002–2004)

Whereas Celestial was still deeply rooted in metal ^{Metal music} and hardcore ^{Hardcore punk} , 2002's follow-up, Oceanic ^{Oceanic (Isis album)} , saw the band acquire new characteristics comparable to post-rock and ambient music, significantly aiding in the birth of the genre of post-metal in what many saw as a logical progression. While much of the material on the album retained the band's former "metallic" intensity, this departure saw the band appeal to a far wider audience; as a result, Oceanic may be the group's most noted album to date, and is widely considered a turning-point in the history of the band. Turner himself describes it as their "quintessential album". It was at the time their most successful release, receiving album-of-the-year accolades from Rock Sound and Terrorizer ^{Terrorizer (magazine)} in 2002, In October 2003, Isis relocated to Los Angeles.

The distinctive tone of material since and including Oceanic had a noticeable impact on avant-garde metal, helping develop the sound of several contemporaries; Cult of Luna, Pelican ^{Pelican (band)} , Tides ^{Tides (band)} , Rosetta ^{Rosetta (band)} , and Russian Circles all cite Isis as an influence. This underground success attracted the attention of the likes of Mogwai, with whom they have toured on numerous occasions.

Oceanic Remixes and Reinterpretations was released in 2004, featuring reinterpretations of songs from Oceanic by a number of influential artists requested by the band. Both Oceanic and Oceanic Remixes feature female vocals by Maria Christopher of the band 27 ^{27 (band)} . The album featured another remix by Justin Broadrick, who has supported Isis on tours with his band, Jesu ^{Jesu (band)} , which is signed to Hydra Head Records.


Panopticon (2004–2006)

2004 saw the release of Isis' third album, Panopticon ^{Panopticon (album)} . It signified a further progression many had predicted since Oceanic, with a more advanced post-rock feel to the music both structurally and in terms of sound. Justin Chancellor of Tool ^{Tool (band)} makes an appearance on the track, "Altered Course". Overall, it was a very well received album, being awarded 'album of the year' accolades from Rock Sound and reaching #47 on Billboard's ^{Billboard (magazine)} Top Independent Albums charts; their first entry into any mainstream charts. Before touring the USA, the band performed a free concert at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, a manifestation of the widespread recognition the band had acquired in artistic circles since the release of Oceanic. Reacting to the impact of Oceanic and Panopticon, Revolver ^{Revolver (magazine)} named Isis the twelfth heaviest band of all time in December 2004. On 23 July 2006, they performed Oceanic in full at KOKO ^{KOKO (venue)} in London as part of All Tomorrow's Parties ^{All Tomorrow's Parties (music festival)} Don't Look Back season.

Originally set for release on August 22, 2006, Clearing the Eye, the band's first DVD, documenting performances over the past five years throughout the world, was put on indefinite hold due to issues involving their label, Ipecac Recordings. It was eventually released on September 26, 2006. Also in September 2006, a collaboration with Aereogramme entitled In the Fishtank 14 was released as part of a project of Dutch label Konkurrent in which two artists are given two days' studio time to write and record their work.


In the Absence of Truth (2006–2008)


The band finished recording their fourth full-length album, In the Absence of Truth, on July 9, 2006. It was released on October 31, 2006 on Ipecac. The record sees the band again evolving in a manner similar to Oceanic and Panopticon, this time adding new elements of electronics, song structure, drumming complexity, and vocal techniques. It sees the emergence of a more melodic sound than before, and leanings away from previous "drone" inclinations and towards more traditional metal elements, predominantly in the heavier sections. It was also their most commercially successful release, peaking at #6 on Billboard's ^{Billboard (magazine)} Top Heatseekers chart. and confesses: "[Fans] taking a deeply personal interest in who I am, it *** freaks me out. And I really do feel like sometimes when I get approached, I’m retreating into my shell." and there is also a possibility of a collaboration with Tim Hecker, as Turner said in an MTV interview: "We've been recording everything that we've been playing together. It was all largely improvised but based on some really basic premises and parameters. That might actually end up turning into another record for us."


Wavering Radiant and break up (2009–2010)

The band's fifth studio album, Wavering Radiant, was released by Ipecac Recordings on CD on May 5, 2009 and in a limited vinyl edition (Light Blue 100 copies, Dark Blue 400 copies, Yellow 900 copies) on April 29, 2009. The album features Adam Jones ^{Adam Jones (musician)} of Tool ^{Tool (band)} .

In April 2009, the band won in the category "Best Underground Metal Act" at Revolver ^{Revolver (magazine)} 's 'Golden Gods' awards ceremony.

The band played at the 2010 Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee.

On 18 May 2010, Isis announced their decision to break up following their final tour, with their final show to be in Montreal - the location of the band's very first show - on June 23, 2010. Isis collectively stated they have "done everything we wanted to do, said everything we wanted to say," and, as part of an agreement made by the band at its formation, it did not wish to be faced with the possibility that it would "push past the point of a dignified death."
The band's final show was played on June 23rd in Montreal, the first city they ever played in. The final song of the set was So Did We, but the band came out for an encore and performed The Beginning and the End. Aaron Turner threw the plush cat that had been taken on every Isis tour into the crowd before walking off stage.Turner cites Swans ^{Swans (band)} , Melvins, Godflesh, and Neurosis ^{Neurosis (band)} as influences to Isis' sound, saying "those bands laid the groundwork for us [...] we're part of a recognizable lineage." Early releases were derided as imitative of predecessors Neurosis, and he admits that the comparisons weren't "completely unjustified". However, material since (and including) Oceanic has not been so often likened to Neurosis; in fact, it has become the case that it is Isis who are being imitated in a burgeoning post-metal scene.

In terms of categorisation, Isis have been described as post-rock, a genre which leans away from the traditional elements of choruses, verses, repetitive vocals, or fast riffs—what Turner calls "guitar theatrics." However, post-rock has what is essentially a halcyon ^{wikt:halcyon#Adjective} sound: one devoid of aggressive vocals and distorted guitars. Isis, however, have hardcore ^{hardcore punk} /sludge ^{sludge metal} origins (especially in their pre-Celestial era) and hardcore-like vocals. Their music includes elements of hardcore, drone ^{drone music} , sludge, indie ^{indie (music)} , ambient music, and post-rock; yet none of these labels defines their sound fully. Critic Dan Epstein notes that "though [Isis were] originally lumped in with the hardcore and doom-metal scenes, the band has long since transcended the musical boundaries of those genres".

Turner, when asked to define Isis, described their sound as "avant-garde, drone-oriented rock, but that doesn't completely cover the bases". At the same time, he is reticent about settling on one label exclusively, and steers away from the use of specific genre labels—"'heavy, atmospheric, droning, post-epic, post-metal, shoegazer blah blah blah.'" Likewise, he also describes their music using a slightly more open-ended tag: as "thinking man's metal";

The music of Isis is not suitable for mainstream release or commercial radio playtime due to extensive song length and niche appeal; as guitarist Michael Gallagher states, "we've never tried to be on the radio, and we've never tried to please others. We've simply done whatever we've wanted to do, and we've all decided to be happy with the results."Turner has gone on record saying "I like the idea of preserving at least a little shred of mystery and making the band to be more an entity—without hopefully sounding too pretentious — as a work of art [than a traditional rock band]". Turner has complained that "metal in general has long been unjustly maligned as solely the province of knuckle-dragging meatheads [...] That said, there's never been a group of musicians like there is now, who are helping to advance the form." Instead, any connections made are mainly conjecture, and the formation of a theme takes into account the album artwork, previous albums, track titles and the use of metaphor just as much as lyricism. For instance, there is a deeply developed extended metaphor linking water with the female character, obvious in the artwork of Red Sea, Oceanic and Panopticon. Oceanic tells a convoluted tale involving love, incest and suicide by drowning. This relates to the theme of the all-powerful female, present lyrically in every album except Panopticon. Turner does not explicitly acknowledge an "overtly feminine theme"; however, he does state: "I just think it's interesting to include that as part of what we do, simply because metal, especially, is considered to be this very male-oriented, testosterone-driven art form, and I feel like it's important to recognize the other side of our nature. As manly as we might or might not be, we have to acknowledge that there is a feminine part of our persona, and that the world isn't made up of absolutes. To achieve balance, you have to recognize every facet of yourself and everyone else around you." The other two ongoing motifs in the lyrics and artwork are that of towers and mosquitos; overall, the overarching feeling is one of being watched; of being overpowered and overwhelmed.

Panopticon was an overtly political release, and arguably the clearest statement made within their music as of yet. Quizzed on government conspiracies, Turner states: "I do believe that each and every day our government and the huge corporate entities of this country lie to us about numerous subjects. In this respect we are all victims of a huge conspiracy—most of those in power are only concerned with the advancement of their agendas and have no qualms about deceiving and hurting the American people."

After constantly explaining concepts and story outlines to interviewers and fans, Turner has chosen to keep the thematic basis of In the Absence of Truth quiet. "Through explaining the last two albums time and time again, I just started to become weary of the topic, and I started to feel like I was losing my connection to the music and the lyrics simply from having repeated it so many times, and for me, personally, it's really important to maintain that connection as much as possible. I feel there's a lot of emphasis these days placed on explaining everything in such a fashion that there's really nothing left for the listener or reader to explore themselves. It's all spelled out," Turner continues. "So it's interesting to leave some of that stuff open-ended so they have do to a little bit of legwork themselves."|right|thumb
|thumb

Current

*Jeff Caxide – bass ^{bass guitar}
*Michael Gallagher ^{Michael Gallagher (Isis guitarist)} – guitar ^{electric guitar}
*Aaron Harris ^{Aaron Harris (Isis drummer)} – drums ^{drum kit}
*Bryant Clifford Meyer – electronics, keyboards, guitar, vocals
*Aaron Turner – guitar, vocals ^singer


Past

*Chris Mereschuk – electronics, vocals (1998–1999)
*Jay Randall – electronics (1999–2000)


Collaborators

*Maria Christopher and Ayal Naor ^{Spore (band)} of 27 (both of whom contributed to Oceanic ^{Oceanic (Isis album)} )
*Justin Chancellor of Tool ^{Tool (band)} (who contributed to the song "Altered Course" on Panopticon ^{Panopticon (album)} )
*Agoraphobic Nosebleed (collaborated on a cover of Melvins' "Boris" for We Reach: The Music of The Melvins)
*Aereogramme (Collaborated on the Konkurrent ^{In the Fishtank} release In the Fishtank 14)
*Adam Jones ^{Adam Jones (musician)} of Tool ^{Tool (band)} (who contributed to the songs "Hall of the Dead" and "Wavering Radiant" on Wavering Radiant)


Side projects

*Old Man Gloom
*House of Low Culture
*Lotus Eaters ^{Lotus Eaters (band)}
*Red Sparowes
*Loga
*Windmills by the Ocean
*MGR
*The Gersch
*Mamiffer
*Taiga
*Spylacopa
*Greymachine
*Zozobra ^{Zozobra (band)}
*Twilight (band)
Studio albums




Chart positions

Billboard ^{Billboard magazine} (North America)* "In Fiction" [video edit, 5:37] from Panopticon ^{Panopticon (album)} (2004). Directed by Josh Graham.
* "Holy Tears" [video edit, 5:13] from In the Absence of Truth (2006). Directed by Dominic Hailstone.
* "Not in Rivers, but in Drops" from In the Absence of Truth (2006). Directed by Sera Timms.
* Clearing the Eye [DVD]. Features live songs (including an entire live performance), "In Fiction" music video, photo galleries, original artwork, lyrics and a complete discography. This release was postponed due to issues with material, sound quality, and the deadline, but has since been released in most regions.
*"20 Minutes/40 Years" from Wavering Radiant