Isis’ Live VII (Ipecac Recordings) is the newest live offering (the 7th in a limited series) from the retired band originally from California, by way of Boston, MA. Technically, the show isn’t new, but the release on Ipecac Recordings is. Recorded on their “farewell tour in 2010, those that were holding their breath for a comeback since then can breathe a brief sigh of relief. Isis Live VII is all that an Isis fan would love and expect from them.
Much like everything the band did from 1997-2010, this collection is special. Appearing only as a limited worldwide release of 3000 CD copies, 2000 vinyl copies (vinyl will be available at a later date) with an additional 600 made available exclusively to indie retailers, the band still cares deeply about their presentation. Recorded on Feb. 25, 2010 (there’s the date in the title), at The Corner Hotel in Melbourne, Australia during the band’s stint on the Soundwave Festival. The band’s own Aaron Harris provided the mix on the album.
The disk starts off strong with the ethereally heavy ‘Hall of the Dead’. It awakens images of funeral dirges, black velvet curtains, chandeliers, and vampires. It’s trudgingly beautiful. It has the haunting Fields of the Nephilim vibe to it. The quality of the live album is amazing. There is scant crowd noise during the songs. So less so, you’d forget it’s a live album. Each instrument is strong in the mix and they coalesce into a strong tune. Live VII is the perfect turn on, tune in, and drop out album. ‘Hand of the Host’ is ten minutes of aural colour. That’s right, the sound creates colours in your head. It’s almost like a Stanley Kubrick 2001 Space Odyssey trip through the black obelisk.
Live VII is nine songs lasting an hour nineteen minutes. Much like all ISIS live outings when they were active, each song flows effortlessly into the next creating a tapestry of mind altering realities. The downside to Live VII is that it draws you in deep. By song six, ‘Wills Dissolve’, you have dissolved and become one with the album. Time flows differently as you listen to this progressive rock opus and you lose all perspective. You’ve truly just zoned out and let the music carry you away.
The album closes with the hypnotic fifteen-minute, twenty-second pièce de résistance ‘Celestial (The Tower)’. ‘Celestial’ whips you into a frenzy with its tribal and bombastic drumming. The vocals are more like primeval bellows. The song is cathartic. Isis’s performance is rank with blood, sweat, and tears. You come away from the album exhausted and pure. Live VII is an experience that you will not soon forget.
8.5 /10
VICTORIA ANDERSON