Panopticon (album)
| Panopticon | ||||
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| Studio album by ISIS | ||||
| Released | October 19, 2004 | |||
| Recorded | Paramount Studios, Los Angeles, California, June–July 2004 | |||
| Genre | Post-metal, sludge metal, progressive metal | |||
| Length | 59:01 | |||
| Label |
Ipecac (CD) (IPC-057) Trust No One (vinyl) (TNO027) (Europe) Robotic Empire (vinyl) (ROBO 041) (US) Daymare Recordings (CD) (PTCD-1012) (Japan) |
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| Producer | Isis, Matt Bayles | |||
| ISIS chronology | ||||
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| Vinyl edition cover | ||||
The cover of Robotic Empire's vinyl edition.
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| Austin Chronicle |  |
| CMJ | Positive |
| Decibel | (Positive) |
| Drowned in Sound |  |
| Pitchfork Media | (8.4/10) |
| Punknews | |
| Tiny Mix Tapes | |
| Uncut | |
Panopticon is the third full-length album by Los Angeles, California based post-metal band ISIS, released by Ipecac Recordings in 2004. The album's title is derived from philosopher Jeremy Bentham's panopticon prison ideal and philosopher/historian Michel Foucault's later allegorical appropriation of the concept. The liner notes also include quotes from technology writer Howard Rheingold and futurist Alex Steffen; as a concept album, Panopticon's focus is on the proliferation of surveillance technologies throughout modern society and the government's role in that spread.
Critical response to Panopticon was generally very warm; as it followed 2002's critically acclaimed Oceanic, many reviewers were quick to hold the two in comparison. The consensus was that Panopticon represented a progression, of sorts. The album's sound continued Isis' departure from the strictures of sludge and metal – which had been the hallmarks of their earlier material – and continued along the trajectory of post-metal, achieved by heightened use of melody and clean vocals.
On April 29, 2014 a deluxe version of Panopticon, remastered by Mika Jussila, was released by Ipecac Recordings. It contains extra music in the transitions to and from "Wills Dissolve," adding 10 seconds to the overall running time of the album.
Writing for the record began in September 2003, soon after Isis had relocated from Boston to Los Angeles. According to guitarist Mike Gallagher, “we started working on ideas for songs and sounds as individuals, in pairs or as a whole group until we were able to shape the ideas into songs that we were all happy with and could stand behind”. Whilst some tracks originated from "little jams" the band would do at sound check, the majority of the album was created in time dedicated to writing new material. Gallagher adds that “[m]usically speaking, Panopticon came out a couple of ideas that had been kicking around in our heads for some time, but the bulk of it was composed after we decided that it was time to do a new record. The writing process consisted mostly of an individual starting the core of an idea for a song at home then either pairing off with someone else or bringing it to everyone where it was worked on and refined until everyone was satisfied”. According to Jeff Caxide, this process was significantly different from that of previous Isis albums, as “everyone wrote a lot on this record. There is not one song that could be credited to one person”.
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Wikipedia