Three years in the making and their third release after a 7" and EP, Is/Is is finally getting ready to celebrate their debut album III. It's the next logical step for a career that has had this trio on the critical radar since they first stepped foot on a stage. Notriously difficult to google and either extremely visible in the local circuit or on the downlow for extended periods of time, the band will likely be highly sought after once the record is released next Friday.

III is a rock masterpiece. Acid, grunge and pysch; this collection of songs echoes The Velvet Underground in extended jams like "Sun Tsunami" and "Save Your Savior," Chicago outfit Disappears in advance droned-out singles "Hate Smile" and "Fire" and even pop-esque structures that invokes Black Mountain and Film School in a track like "Lie Awake." I imagine Is/Is already has more than a dozen new recordings ready to be unleashed, evidenced by their session on The Local Show this weekend — you'll get a taste of an unheard song called "Jealous Sea." It's this perpetual output that guarantees the trio will be around for a long time, and hopefully a national break-out is imminent.

You can catch the record release show for Is/Is' III on Friday, April 13 at the Turf Club with special guests Heavy Deeds, Acid Baby Jesus (from Greece), Fire In The Northern Firs and Zoo Animal in the Clown Lounge.

Is/Is will be the in-studio guests on The Local Show this Sunday night from 6-8 p.m. Download "Fire" from our Song of the Day page and subscribe to the podcast while you're at it.