Oceanic

Welp the band name didn’t pan out long term. The album is pretty decent. Hardcore prog metal that’s kind of like a more intense tool. Worst part of this album was the singer with the intense yelling. If this is a full instrumental or he toned it down a little this album would have some good replay value but that’s not the case. Instead it’s an album that has its moments but not something I’d choose over some other prog rock metal bands. 6.4/10

I like post-metal from time to time. And so do I with this album.

When Oceanic came out in 2002, Isis weren’t yet at the level of their clear inspirations like Neurosis, but they were already pushing into something new. Alongside a handful of other bands, this album is one of the reasons post-metal became recognized as its own thing, rather than just an offshoot of sludge or doom. It's also why I think the submitter put this on the list. Listening back now, over 20 years later, you can hear both the growing pains and the ambition. What strikes me most is how clear the ocean theme runs through it. Tracks like “The Beginning and the End” and “Weight” are massive and atmospheric, with long stretches that rise and fall like tides. The interludes, though, don’t always hold up as well. Some of them drag and lose that intensity. Not every song is equally strong, and at nearly an hour it can feel longer than it needs to. But context matters. In 2002, this kind of expansive, cinematic heaviness was still carving out its own space. Isis weren’t just heavy; they were moody, conceptual, and willing to stretch songs into landscapes. You can hear how this set the stage for their later, stronger records like Panopticon or In The Essence Of Truth, which refined the formula into something breathtaking. For me, Oceanic is an album I enjoy a lot, even with its flaws. It’s not quite a 5-star masterpiece, but it’s a landmark in post-metal, and a reminder of a time when this sound was still evolving and finding its identity.

Once i heard the lyrical delivery, i thought i was just going to chalk this up to another metal trope approach that didn't really work... however, what i found was that the music is truly what sets this apart... at time throbbing and driving, but its almost like ambient metal. I think if this had no lyrics, it would be a five star album... the vocals serve as a distraction and i couldn't find a way that they really elevate the music.

They who shall not be named

I love this post metal album. It sounds like shoegaze with a metal vibe and it hits all the right spots.

From the cover art plus Wikipedia, I was expecting something quite boring and pretentious, but indeed I found something quite fun and enjoyable. If not a masterpiece or something like that, it's a quite competent work for the purpose. Post-metal is something I should explore more.

Very groovy and very heavy - pretty brutal and guttural screams over some very technical and doomy guitar playing. Apparently this is post-metal, which almost makes sense as a moniker - it has the experimental ambient nature of post-rock and combines it with metal, so I guess they just smushed the genre names together. Fine The album is pretty great though

Oceanic is the good stuff, loud, crunching, driving metal to sink into and, in my case, work along to today. The Beginning and the End is a strong opening track, I really liked Carry and Weight; the former explodes into life in the final third after a slow build, while the latter does it more gradually, building heightened anticipation and a sense of urgency through the whole thing and you're on edge the whole time. Really good, 4/5, will listen again.

This album is great because every time I say to myself: "Alright it's getting kind of boring now", they immediately whip out the nastiest riff I've ever heard in my entire life from thin air. Huge. Large even. And what a perfect album cover as well, because this totally sounds like the ocean, but specifically that shade of unsettling murky green that's slowly dragging you under. Second best water-themed album recorded by a post-metal band.

This seems of significantly more musical interest that much of the other metal presented here (whether death, doom, nu, post, progressive, sludge, speed, gloom, glam, death, thrash or any of the various cores). Perhaps one likes it more than other metal entries because it’s less metal generally. Consider how “Maritime” has as much in common with Lanterna than Metallica. As noted, the vocals are atrocious and completely unnecessary – the instrumental sections are the strength here. Not sure how well the titular metaphor gets paid off in the end. One would be fine with this replacing any (or every) other metal album on list proper.

I started into this and didn't think I was going to be able to make it through. It's harder than my usual fare and I am not always into such things. But about midway through some of this really stood out to me and I found that I wasn't minding the ponderosity of it all. "Weight" was a particularly good track to me, very meditative and something I'd like to hear again I think.

Didn’t wow me but I didn’t hate it either. Vocals felt fine against the more atmospheric post-rock atmosphere, and this felt much more introspective and wandering than the chug fest I expected. Coming down on a 3 here, probably won’t return to this one but it was a solid listen.

Enjoyed this post metal album, good music, not sure if I’ll come back to it though.

Pretty solid metal. Generally just not a fan of the vocals in this kind of music but found the style on this less grating than some. Started out my day frustrated by some ill turns of chance so a little dark thrash wasn't unwelcome.

Rating: 6/10 Best songs: Weight

Musically this was really pretty excellent, but I have limited tolerance for this type of vocal. Fave Songs: Weight, Maritime, Carry, False Light

Yea, real nice.

RAAARGHHH, WAAAGHHH, GRRRRRRHHH, SKREEEEE, BLAAARGHH, YAAARGHH, BRUUUUHHHH, KRAAAHHH. It's not even so bad if the singer just shuts up.

Worst thing about metal is when there is no actual metal clinging, instead they call industrial that. The ambience and space here is so important why not fucking throw wrenches at pipes in the background I don't get it???? good lbun thou

It was pretty good except for the harsh vocals.

A good post-metal album. The high points are great but the rest aren’t overly affecting for me

Technical metal at its most technically. I enjoyed it - though not enough to seek out more of the same.

Thought I was gonna dislike this but it has some guile. It feels TOOL adjacent but thats ni bad thing and metal tropes are easy to fall into.

"Post-metal" which basically just sounds like post-rock with screamier vocals. Above average in terms of American heavy metal sensibilities.

Boring punk metal

Not awful put somewhat dull. Goes on way too long. Tool is a much better artist in this genre, I think.

This ‘post-metal’ album is likely over an hour only because the musicians often forgot where they were and just kept looping whatever they were doing until one of them remembered to move on

2 System of a Down but only the screams Untitled is pretty banger

lol I remember these guys changed their name because they didn't want to be associated with the REAL ISIS. Anyway, post-rock, post-metal, whatever you want to call it, is boring. And the yelling.... meh. I'm a metal guy and this doesn't do much for me. 2/5.

Post-metal, sludge metal. Aburrido. Un 2.

About halfway through the album I realized I had not clearly heard any of the lyrics, and had to check if there were any or if he was just yelling randomly.

I liked the music but get tired by the shouty screaming. Is there like a special school of vocal training you need to attend to sing like that?

Way too long. Each song could have been trimmed by minutes. The screaming was quite annoying as well. Good music though, should have been an instrumental album

Instrumentals are solid if a bit slow. Vocals aren't my thing

This is like the lightest heavy metal meeting the softest hardcore...

*Checks the ISIS jokes have already been done to death.* There's some good music here, but the vocals are just so god awful to ruin the rest of it. I don't really know what "Post Metal" is, but it sounds suspiciously like "Nu metal" hiding in less washed clothes.

I just found out that Tool haven't made the most boring and unsatisfying albums ever... ISIS did.

No thank you. Quite unpleasant.

Jatt awful

This shit sucks