Miscellaneous thoughts carried over from yesterday
Liz, two of her friends and I went out to dinner and then skating last night. It was fun. My dinner was delicious (though it is causing a stomach ache right now, since it was about twice as big as I needed it to be and was pretty greasy), and I managed not to fall over while skating (it's too early to call it something I know how to do!). Since my skates didn't quite fit, I had to take breaks very often to keep my feet from being too sore, so I might have to get some skates. I don't plan on leaving K-W any time soon, so given that there is a free public rink, it doesn't seem like it would be that bad an investment. (I'd be hesitant to make the investment immediately though, given that car + Xmas presents = lots of money spent recently!)
I managed to figure out what to get my family, so that was good. I have memories of being a kid and sitting around on Christmas day watching Bond films that had been taped off of TV. It's one of those things that even my extended family was happy to sit down and watch. The particular box set I got for them includes Dr. No and Octopussy, which are two of the films I specifically remember watching with my family. I also got them a Louis Armstrong pop song collection since they've always loved his voice but they've never owned any of his music. I think my gifts will make for a pleasant Christmas day.
I'll need a few more listens for the Isis album. From my first impressions, I'm finding that Panopticon is more subdued, but also more pure and focussed. In the Absence of Truth seems to me to be an album where Isis in pushing themselves. There appears to be a phasing in of specific new elements.
Just as Opeth does, Isis uses a defining "Isis beat" in a lot of their songs. They introduced another one that is exclusive to In the Absence of Truth. In fact, the album starts with it - it's a tribal-sounding beat played with the toms. It is used throughout the album in an attempt to pick up the pace. The odd thing is that this pace is counterbalanced by the use of much less intense vocals. I don't disagree with their use of vocals on principle, but I do think they could have done a better job of integrating them into their music. Isis has, for the past few albums, used vocals as an additional element in their sonic landscape rather than for any melody. Perhaps my issue is with the production, but I think they should have integrated the simple sustained vocal sounds a little more tightly with the ambient guitars.
It may seem like I'm complaining, but it's more that I hold Isis to a higher standard than most bands, so I want to see them meeting that standard. That being said, there are some tracks on the disc that present something new and engaging while still being "Isis". They have one track that integrates some hypnotic electronic percussion in all the right ways. It's very frustrating to me that many artists that use electronic elements don't pay enough attention to the timbre of those elements. Isis uses the elements in a way that is maximally pleasing to the ear, while leaving room for live drums to fit perfectly in with them. The music is arranged for both real and electronic elements, rather than having the latter thrown in on top. Very nice. :)
I managed to figure out what to get my family, so that was good. I have memories of being a kid and sitting around on Christmas day watching Bond films that had been taped off of TV. It's one of those things that even my extended family was happy to sit down and watch. The particular box set I got for them includes Dr. No and Octopussy, which are two of the films I specifically remember watching with my family. I also got them a Louis Armstrong pop song collection since they've always loved his voice but they've never owned any of his music. I think my gifts will make for a pleasant Christmas day.
I'll need a few more listens for the Isis album. From my first impressions, I'm finding that Panopticon is more subdued, but also more pure and focussed. In the Absence of Truth seems to me to be an album where Isis in pushing themselves. There appears to be a phasing in of specific new elements.
Just as Opeth does, Isis uses a defining "Isis beat" in a lot of their songs. They introduced another one that is exclusive to In the Absence of Truth. In fact, the album starts with it - it's a tribal-sounding beat played with the toms. It is used throughout the album in an attempt to pick up the pace. The odd thing is that this pace is counterbalanced by the use of much less intense vocals. I don't disagree with their use of vocals on principle, but I do think they could have done a better job of integrating them into their music. Isis has, for the past few albums, used vocals as an additional element in their sonic landscape rather than for any melody. Perhaps my issue is with the production, but I think they should have integrated the simple sustained vocal sounds a little more tightly with the ambient guitars.
It may seem like I'm complaining, but it's more that I hold Isis to a higher standard than most bands, so I want to see them meeting that standard. That being said, there are some tracks on the disc that present something new and engaging while still being "Isis". They have one track that integrates some hypnotic electronic percussion in all the right ways. It's very frustrating to me that many artists that use electronic elements don't pay enough attention to the timbre of those elements. Isis uses the elements in a way that is maximally pleasing to the ear, while leaving room for live drums to fit perfectly in with them. The music is arranged for both real and electronic elements, rather than having the latter thrown in on top. Very nice. :)