A wonderfully heavy and deep album

I do sometimes find myself wondering why bands choose certain titles for their albums. Often they are named after the title track, or form an elaborate pun on lyrical themes. Sometimes the album art seems to dictate what is going on. In this case, Isis wanted to convey the sense of scale and depth of their music. 

I remember when I heard about this for the first time; it was in the magazine Terrorizer where they gave this album a review in an end-of-year listing that was so glowing you would have thought it was a lump of uranium. So I bought it. Simpler times; these days nothing is actually bought but somehow Spotify channels some pounds the artists' way, I hope. Arrived. Listened. 

It took me a few goes to completely get this album but it is an absolute stone cold classic that spawned a hundred imitations. Stylistically it is a cross of post-rock and metal but it's hard to stress just how engrossing the work is. Songs build up in layers, like the accumulation of an incoming tide, the wavering ebbs and flows progresing relentlessly towards climaxes, a masterclass in structure and progression. The elements are simple but they are blended together so well that it produces something really special. The production is really good (perhaps a bit too compressed) but the feel is organic and crystal clear, letting you focus on the music. Vocals are hardcore style which puts much of the listening public off but, well, I like metal so the vocals are fine. There is some kind of story in the lyrics that ties all the tracks together. But this is not about the tale of a man facing the sea it is about losing an hour to the delicious textures and soundscapes this album produces. 

Naming yourself after the oceans would normally be pretentious but in this case it delivers. An excellent and classic album.