Isis – Clearing the Eye
Ipecac Recordings – IPC80 – September 26th, 2006
By Jason Jordan
The subtitle of
Clearing the Eye is fairly accurate –
Visual/Aural Fragments and Excerpts 2001-2005 – but they should’ve changed the dash to an ampersand because, aside from a few photographs, you won’t be seeing anything from 2002, 2003, or 2004. Nevertheless, the live footage they have compiled is interesting, and for exact dates, locations, and set lists, scroll to the bottom of this review.
On the DVD in question,
Isis properly sample all of their full-length records (
Celestial,
Oceanic, and
Panopticon) by playing numbers from each without concentrating solely on one, or, alternatively, leaving one out of the mix entirely. Though it’s nice to see videos from as early as 2001, the rule of thumb regarding live recordings can be applied in this particular case: the older the footage, the worse the quality. Ranging from handheld to professional overall, the camera work circa 2005 is usually excellent and the performances of
Isis themselves are great, too.
The two main problems, however, are the lack of focus on the audience on the part of the film crew, and the fact that there are no documentaries, band-made footage, or interviews to complement the live portion. Since bands and audiences feed off one another, it’s troubling not being able to ever see the reaction of Australian fans during
Isis’s continental debut. Even more troubling is that, by the end, we still know nothing about the members’ personalities or personal lives.
Perhaps as expected, though,
Clearing the Eye’s packaging is way above par, and the accompanying booklet contains brilliant photographs, lyrics, and song explanations in which
Isis are honest but too self-deprecating. The gallery is worth a once-over, as is the discography and “In Fiction” video, but the real treat is hearing tunes like “So Did We” and others in a live setting when you’ve never had the pleasure of experiencing
Isis in person. Good, but by no means a comprehensive look at a group I’d like to know more about.
DVD
Glisten / 11.05.2005 / The Troubadour, Los Angeles, CA
Weight / 11.05.2005 / The Troubadour, Los Angeles, CA
Celestial / 08.26.2001 / CBGB’s, New York, NY
Collapse and Crush / 08.26.2001 / CBGB’s, New York, NY
Grinning Mouths / 02.05.2005 / Club Quattro, Tokyo, Japan
CFT / 06.03.2001 / CBGB’s, New York, NY
Gentle Time / 06.03.2001 / CBGB’s, New York, NY
Full Performance (70+ minutes) / 02.11.2005 / Annandale, Sydney, Australia
- So Did We
- Backlit
- The Beginning and the End
- In Fiction
- Walls Dissolve
- Grinning Mouths
- Altered Course
- From Sinking
7.5/10
UM’s Review Rating Scale
Official Isis Website
Official Ipecac Recordings Website
I think the photo sections give a little peak at them off stage as well.
