We are now taking pre-orders for ISIS' first album, Celestial, which Robotic Empire has just reissued on 2xLP with nice packaging. The manufacturing is all done, and with a July 9th release date we hope to have it in your hands just around that time. You can pick it up now in the Robotic Empire - Online Store.
For those unfamiliar with the release, the now-classic debut full-length Celestial highlights ISIS' roots in metal and hardcore while displaying the experimentation with post-rock and ambience that they would become best known for. Accurately described by Decibel Magazine as "a transitional record between the band's early work and the post-metal benchmarks such as Oceanic ... the elements of the greatness are present, but rawer, more direct." Initially surfacing in 2000 following the larvael stages of formative EPs, Celestial was ISIS' first release with the (then newly-solidified) lineup that would last them through a decade until disbanding in 2010.
With chugging sludge, expansive doom, droning metal and a nuanced yet vital use of keys, samples and noise, Celestial at times borders on completely devastation, but gracefully shifts into passages of sheer beauty. ISIS came into their own with Celestial, mastering the flow of sonic dynamics between "loud" and "quiet", smoothly bringing sparse elements into an otherwise oppressively heavy sound.
This unique and varied album of nearly an hour's length was their first captured by engineer Matt Bayles, who subsequently recorded ISIS' following three long-players. Aaron Turner's artwork has been fully reimagined from the original elements, and the double LPs are housed in a jacket with printed innersleeves containing flood-black interior printing. Out of print for years, Celestial is finally available again with newly remastered audio, carefully crafted specifically for vinyl by longtime cohort James Plotkin.
We've pressed 2000 copies of this and they turned out great: 1100 black vinyl, and 300 each of three variations of yellow.
* Listen to track 3, "Glisten", at SoundCloud * Order vinyl at the Robotic Empire - Online Store
Beyond that obviously massive release, we've stocked a variety of rad stuff for the Robotic Empire - Online Store recently, pretty much all on large-format vinyl. A great stack of no-brainers so its almost a bit weird highlighting ANNIHILATION TIME, BARONESS, BLACK TUSK, BOTCH (!), CENTURIES, CHELSEA WOLFE, CONSTANTS, COUGH, HULL, INTER ARMA (!), PIG DESTROYER, TIDELAND (!), VITAMIN X, YEAR OF NO LIGHT, etc... but, we just did. Here's the full list:
NEW ITEMS:
* American Heritage - Sedentary 12" (Solar Flare) $14.99
* Annihilation Time - II 12" (Tank Crimes) $9.99
* Baroness - Yellow & Green 2x12" (Relapse) $19.99
* Black Tusk - Set The Dial 12" (Relapse) $14.99
* Botch - American Nervoso 2x12" (Hydra Head) $19.99
* Centuries - Broken Hymns 12" (Halo Of Flies) $11.99
* Chelsea Wolfe - Apokalypsis 12" (Pendu) $18.99
* Constants - If Tomorrow The War 12" (Science of Science) $16.99
* Cough / Windhand - Reflection of the Negative - BLACK GREY SWIRL COLORED VINYL 12" (Relapse) $12.99
* Hull - Viking Funeral - Ox Blood w/ BLACK HAZE COLORED VINYL 12" (Science of Science) $29.99
* Inter Arma - Sky Burial 2x12" (Relapse) $19.99
* Isis - Celestial - BLACK VINYL 2x12" (Robotic Empire) $22.99
* Isis - Celestial – SUN YELLOW COLORED VINYL 2x12" (Robotic Empire) $22.99
* Isis - Celestial – SWARM YELLOW COLORED VINYL 2x12" (Robotic Empire) $22.99
* Isis - Celestial – MARBLED YELLOW COLORED VINYL 2x12" (Robotic Empire) $22.99
* Kicker - Not You 12" (Tank Crimes) $10.99
* Momentum - Herbivore 12" (Halo Of Flies) $11.99
* Monolith / Voyager - Split 12" (Science of Science) $8.99
* Pig Destroyer - Book Burner - 180 GRAM VINYL 12" (Relapse) $12.99
* Sofy Major - Idolize 12" (Solar Flare) $14.99
* Tideland - Lull 12" (Sterling) $9.99
* Tideland - Lull - SILVER COLORED VINYL 12" (Sterling) $9.99
* Vitamin X - About to Crack 12" (Tank Crimes) $10.99
* Watertank - Sleepwalk 12" (Solar Flare) $14.99
* Year Of No Light - Vampry 2x12" (Music Fear Satan) $19.99
On the restock-tip we're in the same boat: all no-brainer bangers from BARONESS, COUGH, DAITRO, DOOMRIDERS, GHOUL, GLACIERS, JKFLESH, JODIS, KAYO DOT, KICKING SPIT, KONGH, PYGMY LUSH, TORCHE and YEAR OF NO LIGHT.
RESTOCKS:
* Baroness - Blue 2x12" (Relapse) $19.99
* Baroness - Red 2x12" (Relapse) $19.99
* Cough - Ritual Abuse 2x12" - BLUE COLORED VINYL (Relapse) $19.99
* Daitro - Cendresdes Cendres, Je Me Consume 10" - BLACK VINYL (Music Fear Satan) $10.99
* Doomriders - Black Thunder 12" - COLORED VINYL (Magic Bullet) $14.99
* Ghoul - Transmission Zero 12" - COLORED VINYL (Tank Crimes) $9.99
* Glaciers - And The Sea Won The Battle 12" - CLEAR BLUE SWIRL COLORED VINYL (Self Released) $14.99
* JK Flesh / Pruient - Worship Is the Cleansing of the Imagination 12" (Hydra Head) $15.99
* Jodis - Secret House 2x12" - GREEN PEACH COLORED VINYL (Hydra Head) $24.99
* Kayo Dot - Blue Lambency Downward 12" - MAROON COLORED VINYL (Hydra Head) $14.99
* Kicking Spit - Psychrockbullshit 12" - WHITE COLORED VINYL (Tank Crimes) $9.99
* Kongh - Shadows Of The Shapeless 2x12" (Music Fear Satan) $19.99
* Pygmy Lush - Mount Hope 12" - 180 GRAM VINYL (Lovitt) $14.99
* Pygmy Lush - Mount Hope 12" - CLEAR COLORED VINYL (Lovitt) $14.99
* Pygmy Lush - Mount Hope 12" - RED COLORED VINYL (Lovitt) $14.99
* Torche - Harmonicraft 12" - CLEAR COLORED VINYL (Volcom) $14.99
* Year Of No Light - Ausserwelt 2x12" - BLACK VINYL (Music Fear Satan) $19.99
Another noteworthy highlight is that a recent release from last month, SOME STRANGER's debut 12" EP, has received some nice praise from the glossy UK mag Rock Sound. Both a feature and review were in their last issue, and a larger graphic can be viewed here
That one has been a fun release for us, a little outside our comfort zone yet a very powerful debut from some longtime friends of the label.
* Listen to the full EP at Bandcamp
* Order vinyl at the Robotic Empire - Online Store
OK that wraps up the latest update from Robotic Empire. Please order something from our Online Store if ya can, so we can make room for this guy!
Peace!
* Robotic Empire - Online Store
