The Thinking Man has found a really fascinating gem that I’m excited to share with you all for this week. We’re going to be checking out the new track, “Heathens”, from Somerville, MA’s very own ISA.
For those unaware, everything within ISA is all done by Dan Curhan, who also happens to be working towards his debut record, Chimera.
The track displays some pretty superb composition, given that is balances its overall droning presence with plenty of variety. With touches of black metal via the grueling vocals, the material flows with an extra layer of murkiness.
While tempo and pitch exhibit various inflections, it’s how Curhan meshes so many styles into one seamless flow; the overall quality is mesmerizing, that when there is a switch in tone, it comes naturally.
Curhan presents fluctuating tempos with both the drums and bass. But what allows the work to shine is the guitar work. The overall mellow flow is soothing and welcoming, lulling the listener into a serene trance. In this trance is when Curhan takes the opportunity to change up pace, pitch, and tempo with his guitar sounds. What starts as a calming rhythm, ends up becoming a playful flourishing of trickling notation. The dreamy composition weaves in bouts of heavy instrumentation, making for a wonderful surprises. It makes me think of such acts as Gorguts, Artificial Brain, and Ne Obliviscaris.
You can listen to “Heathens” below, and follow ISA via Facebook. Hopefully we’ll be seeing the debut record soon! Thanks for tuning into the Thinking Man, and see you all next week.
