Kent - Isola

Swedish Edition: 8/10
English Edition: 9/10

As stated in my Kent review intro, after hearing the Kent song "We Ran Out of Time" on my local college radio station, I picked up Kent's Isola from my local awesome music store. Upon my first album listen, I was pleased to hear that "We Ran Out of Time" was actually a four minute re-mixed edit of "747," a near 8-minute epic of vast emotional scope. I was even more pleased to hear that "747" turned out to be the capper to a great rock album. Isola sees Kent graduating to the big leagues. Their songwriting becomes more timeless, their playing abilities are heightened, and the atmosphere is thicker. The English version contains a perfect combination of slower, more emotional songs, and faster...more emotional songs. Isola is a pretty emotional album. Isola also marks the point where the unique bass tone Martin Sköld achieved on Verkligen becomes trademarked. It is thick and rubbery, and it carries every song on its back. Awesome. I'll fault the Swedish language version one point for missing the song "Velvet." Occupying the track ten slot on the English Version, "Velvet" is a huge-sounding uptempo rock song, and without it, Isola's early ballad section (track 3-5) isn't quite balanced out. "Velvet" also works as a more natural segue into penultimate track, "Glider."
I could write quite a bit more about Isola, as I've listened to it so much over the last fifteen years, but I've covered the important bits, and the rest is up to you, the listener. Check it out.
Also, a note to young men in love: make your lady a mixtape featuring "Glider." It will help you get ahead.


1997(Swedish)/1998(English) BMG
1. Lifesavers 4:36
2. If You Were Here 4:01
3. Things She Said 3:55
4. Unprofessional 4:45
5. OWC 3:10
6. Celsius 4:16
7. Bianca 4:56
8. Before It All Ends 3:40
9. Elvis 4:33
10. Velvet 4:06
11. Glider 4:05
12. 747 7:48