It’s somewhat ironic that famed music producer (and notorious psychotic) Phil Spector was sentenced to 19 years to life in prison this week while his trademark “Wall of Sound” style was alive and well last night at the Black Cat when ISIS, PELICAN, and TOMBS brought their respective monolithic styles to the District of Columbia. While the lineup felt like a “Dream Team” of  post-metal bands, last night’s show proved that not all bands are created equal.New York City’s TOMBS have been out on the road promoting their Relapse debut Winter Hours and they have been in the unenviable position of opening for PELICAN and ISIS on this particular tour. While most concertgoers tend to eschew the opening band(s), TOMBS made that difficult. TOMBS’ brand of layered noise-meets-hardcore was quite compelling live, probably moreso than on record. Add to the mix a very intense drummer and you have an upstart band that is probably teaching the veterans a thing or two.

PELICAN on the other hand have been on the road many times before as a band and were on familiar ground at the Black Cat. The band recently signed with alt-metal label Southern Lord and they have been on tour in support of their new Ephemeral EP on that label. Their set last night consisted of a mix of tracks from their entire catalogue, yet, something was lacking. It could have been the general noisy guitar tone or the fact that their drummer remains one of the sloppiest drummers I have ever seen play live (he consistently plays behind the beat). Whether it was the former or the latter, whatever the case, it did not take long for me to begin surfing Facebook and Twitter on my phone. Though PELICAN’s frontmen continue to write expansive and compelling riffs, their overall live performance is sloppy due to noise and inconsistent drumming. This is unfortunate given their unique style and the fact that The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon The Thaw is one of the best metal albums of the last 5 years. It was a bit of a letdown for me and I hoped that ISIS would salvage the remainder of the evening.

Sure enough, the grandfathers of the modern instru-/post-metal scene, ISIS, came out, bent us over their collective knee, and spanked us good. They proved how dense layering, ultra-reverbed clean tones, and thunderous distorted riffs can all blend together into something incredible. When they took to the stage last night with the opening salvo from Wavering Radiant, “Hall Of The Dead”, ISIS felt like a breath of fresh air. Shimmering tones melded with crisp drumming as the band would meander through expansive passages, building a crescendo until reaching the explosive, roaring climax. Interestingly, this approach to their individual songs appeared to be applied to the set as a whole, with Panopticon favorite “In Fiction” serving as the high point of the entire set. It was also this song that inspired me to bust out my air guitar chops, as there is one particular section two-thirds into the song that, to this day, remains my favorite ISIS riff ever written. Yet, as “In Fiction” reached its conclusion, the remainder of ISIS’ set meandered to its close, with the band performing Oceanic epic “The Beginning and The End” as their encore.

ISIS stormed the Nation’s Capitol with what is arguably the best set I have ever them play, both in terms of scope and fury. Above all, the band’s ability to continue to grow further cements their stature as an important 21st century band and also substaniates their longevity as performing artists. Additionally, I think TOMBS and PELICAN will benefit as musicians and performers from touring with a band like ISIS, but among those two, it will be interesting whose star rises and whose falls after this tour.

Photo courtesy of ISIS’ MySpace page – www.myspace.com/sgnl05