A Taste:

Wu-Tang Clan, Kevin Drumm

“I listen to a lot of different stuff,” says Isis mainman Aaron Turner. After cranking Isis’ latest tapestry of progressive psychedelic metal, Wavering Radiant, it’s no surprise to hear that Aaron’s musical tastes are a bit “out of the ordinary.” Even though Isis is known for crushing polyrhythmic riffs and multi-textured instrumental passages, Aaron finds inspiration in classic Wu-Tang Clan. Who said prog can’t get gangsta?

In this exclusive feature, Aaron opened up his iTunes and gave us a look inside. Check out what Aaron is spinning below.

Aaron Turner’s Playlist:

1. Kevin Drumm — Malaise

2. Kevin Drumm — Snow

“I don’t even know how to describe Kevin Drumm’s music. He does a lot of composition using software, but a lot of the music is processed from the original source material—guitar. When you hear the end result, there’s nothing like it. I’ve been listening to those two albums a lot, and they’re pretty interesting. Snow is a little more classic and serene. I guess that’s something I’ve needed lately [Laughs]. Malaise is a lot harsher, and I guess that’s another need that I’ve had as of late. I feel like whatever I listen to sort of parallels whatever I’ve got going on in my head at the time. It’s like a counterbalance.”

3. Wu-Tang Clan — 8 Diagrams

“I’ve been listening to old and new Wu-Tang stuff recently. I feel like that’s always in my playlist. It’s good to go back to the old albums and rediscover them. The newer stuff that’s been generated has been pretty good too. It felt like there was a dead spot there for awhile where nobody in that camp was doing anything. It’s really exciting to hear from them again. I liked 8 Diagrams. It’s funny because it seemed like that album was blasted by a lot of people. There’s certainly a very different character to it from the early Wu-Tang stuff, but I really thought 8 Diagrams had some incredible moments. Since Wu-Tang came out so strong early on, a lot of people wanted them to repeat the same process over and over. While there’s certainly some very Wu-Tang elements on 8 Diagrams, there are also some things that are a little more subtle and developed in a way that’s really interesting. The RZA’s production on some of those songs is just fucking mindblowing and quite different from what he might’ve done early on. However, in my eyes, it’s no less valid.”

4. Wu-Tang Clan — Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers

“Wu-Tang and Kevin Drumm are from complete opposite ends of the spectrum, and they’re both beneficial to my life and indicative of my state of mind as well.”

—Rick Florino
04.16.09