WAVERING RADIANT

Isis is a band that's constantly evolving. Starting out as a rough Sludge Metal band, they've moved towards a different sound. A more open sound perhaps. There still are the heavy riffs that are distinctive for Isis' sound, though they aren't as overwhelming as on an album like Oceanic. Instead, the music tends to focus more on creating a more atmospheric experience with a more progressive approach.

Still, Isis' sound is dominated by heavy guitars and pretty distinctive sounding drums. Also, the bass is a very important part of Isis' sound, contributing a lot to the heavy and thick sound that the band creates. Another important factor to the new Isis' sound are the very present keyboards, that produce some brooding atmosphere. Despite the album being very good overall, it tends to drag a bit. The music never quite reaches the heights of an album like for example Oceanic and while most of the songs contain some climaxes, those often don't sound all too dynamic and passionate as I suppose they could have been. Nevertheless, the vast majority of the music on the album is very enjoyable and songs like "Hall Of The Dead", "Ghost Key" and "Threshold Of Transformation" are just great.

Wavering Radiant doesn't quite reach the heights of some other Isis releases, but is a good album nevertheless. Therefore, three stars suit it very well I think. If you enjoy atmospheric yet heavy Post-Metal, you probably will enjoy this album.