06.11.2004 
Ivar Bjørnson - guitar
Grutle Kjellson - vocal & bass
Cato Bekkevold - drums
Arve
Isdal - lead guitar Herbrand Larsen -keyboard & vocal
A Division of Tuba Records AS
release date Europe 08. 11. 04
promoted in Switzerland by Irascible Distribution - in Germany by Franziska Schöttner (Spine promotion)
recorded in in Grieghallen Studio, mixed y in Duper
Studios . Production team: Jørgen "Sir Duperman" Træen,
Eirik "Pytten" Hundvin and Enslaved.
preview- review by Artur
Felicijan____ 
| Psychedelic streams of Black Metal |
If
you ask me, Enslaved mostly has little to do musically with Viking Metal
these days. They got really weird after releasing Blodhemn, flowing into
more psychedelic streams of black metal. This direction seemed to be
present with each release Enslaved put out, including their latest,
"ISA".
Although,
I would label this album as their finest in the terms of production, I
wouldn't hail the songwriting on "ISA" with complete
confidence. The progression from their previous albums is obvious, but
there's this mellow feeling that creeps throughout the whole album and
it makes it really hard to listen, placing it among those albums that
need a few runs before the ears get used to it. There're no catchy
riffs, the number of memorable patterns is low, although, I guess, the
guys wanted it that way. Enslaved made this album a neverending
drowning in the countless moods that are all but positive. Each song
follows as a swansong to it's previous, making this album a complete
psychedelic Norse drama.
Performing
is good however. The black vocals are sharp and ambiental and the clean
ones are Grutle's best so far. Guitar work and drums sound clear
and the whole production sound is quite solid and very natural. They
made a clear old-school performance, apart from digitalizing and
synthetics, which is good in their case.
| Enslaved had not gone out of their true stream of playing music |
Psychedelia,
strange shit or whatever... No matter what, this
still is Black Metal of it's best breed! Enslaved had not gone
out of their true stream of playing music, as there
are clear fragments that reflect their musical past . It is a
continuation of their previous releases. This release won't break
the Billboard chart, yet it's a must for any Enslaved fan or a liker of
quality Black Metal.
Best
track: Return to Yggdrasil
rating: 7.5/10
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