Isis: Panopticon (2004)
Panopticon (noun) pan·op·ti·con pə-ˈnäp-ti-ˌkän:
an optical instrument combining the telescope and microscope;
a circular prison (*) built with cells arranged radially so that a guard at a central position can see all the prisoner
These definitions, supported by thought-provoking quotes (**) and illustrated by wrap-around CD artwork (***), provide the conceptual framework for Isis' third long-player, which considered the pervasive increase of surveillance technology in modern society.
And good thing they did, because, as with many Isis LPs, Panopticon takes a minimalist approach to lyrics, usually casting just a few scattered verses of evocative but highly subjective imagery into vast, deliberate, atmospheric post-metal epics.
Think I'm exaggerating?
Well, I'm not; here's all the verbal context you get from the seven-and-half-minute "So Did We":
"Our skin worn thin; Our bones exposed; Life reduced to ticks.
From forest caves and azure skies; We crashed upon this earth; The years they passed and so did we; But resistance would be brought."
Or this, from the eight-and-a-half-minutes of "Grinning Mouths":
"Magistrates dream of plague; Tongues loll in anticipation; You are awake in their darker visions; Drool slips from grinning mouths.
The plague is forced on us all; Is it there? Are they there? Shouts of fact abound; But whispers of truth burn through.
Is it there? Are they there? Is it there? Are they there?"
But that's OK, because this apparent, almost monastic calling to take a vow of silence was already manifesting (and would continue to do so) in countless, fully instrumental post-metal ensembles, so Isis, by comparison, actually still had a lot to say.
After all, "Altered Course" is the only true instrumental here (the striking "Wills Dissolve" might as well be), and it earns that right with a slow-morphing, cinematic array of melodies, riffs, and rhythms -- plus a guest appearance from Tool bassist Justin Chancellor.
Anyway, when it came to its sonics, Panopticon only differed from the band's preceding commercial and critical breakthrough, 2002's Oceanic, in that it sacrificed some of its root hardcore-rawness and sludge-distortion for a smoother, more compressed, but still very forceful production.
The end results, while thoroughly engrossing, lead me to borrow jargon from the streaming world when I say that Oceanic, and even more so Isis' 2000 debut, Celestial, felt like a lean-forward listening experiences, while Panopticon invites listeners to lean back and let its dense, protracted sonics sweep over and envelop them.
In fact, I do believe the alternating power chord tsunamis and aqueous melodies of "In Fiction," "Backlit," and "Syndic Calls" owe a sizable inspirational debt to mysterious Dutch ensemble 35007 (****) and 2002's incredible Liquid ... go listen for yourself.
Nevertheless, Panopticon was a phenomenal record by any measure that, like all Isis' efforts, helped define post-metal trends for years to come, and its thematic warnings about the dangers of a surveillance society are obviously still relevant, 20 years on.
* See diagram above.
** From philosophers, technologists, and futurists like Michel Foucault, Jeremy Bentham, Howard Rheingold, and Alex Steffen.
*** Which turned the hazy but expansive eye-in-the-sky cover image into a contiguous landscape, and was sadly technically impossible to replicate for this vinyl reissue.
**** Upside-down for 'Loose,' in calculator spelling, a.k.a. Beghilos.
More Isis: The Red Sea EP, Oceanic, In the Absence of Truth, Wavering Radiant.
