"More complex than you'll notice on a first or even
second listen, 'Spoon' goes places your standard pop doesn't. It's an
intriguing look at a band trying their hand at a second genre-- and
succeeding." Best New Track -- Pitchfork
"A strong, striking new direction for Boris."
-- The Onion AV Club
"New Album is a beaming ode to optimism and
joy - an awesomely wild detour from the band who nicked their name (and
sound) from a Melvins song."-- SPIN
Legendary Japanese trio Boris today release their third full length this year. New Album is available worldwide (excluding Japan) today, December 6th on LP, CD and Download via Sargent House. The album is streaming in full courtesy of SPIN.com ( HERE) and AOL Spinner (HERE). Rolling Stone recently premiered the MP3 for New Album track "Flare", which is available to stream/download HERE. Additionally, Pitchfork previously posted "Spoon", the first single from New Album, giving it their coveted Best New Track rating. It is available to download HERE. The band has also announced the first few dates of an Australian headlining tour in March 2012. Please see current dates below. Boris has long been celebrated for their rare ability to reinterpret a multitude of esoteric musical genres into a sound uniquely their own. New Album finds the intrepid Japanese trio etching their own post-noise, extreme pop niche with some of their most accessible and melodic music being equally their most subversive. Where their two previous albums, Attention Please and the all new Heavy Rocks -- both released by Sargent House on the same day, May 24th, 2011 -- offered divergent expansions to their sonic palette, New Album is the culmination of the band's ongoing experimentation that catapults its ferocious sound headlong into new territory.
Much of the inspiration behind New Album derives
from a confluence of ideas regarding the very basic notion of music as art in
the modern age. The band was inspired by a current Japanese pop music trend
in which a singing synthesis software program called Vocaloid, which
enables users to create songs simply by typing in lyrics and a basic melody
to be sung by an imaginary anime character vocalist. It has resulted in many
chart topping hits created by people with little musical ability (vaguely
similar to the success of Autotuned instant stardom in the US). On the other
end of the spectrum, New Album also flips the script on the long
established notion of the band as an experimental noise act -- based upon
their prior albums as well as collaborations with sonic deconstructionist Merzbow
and doom-drone duo Sunn 0))). It proves their enviable skill at
penning catchy melodies that many of their extreme noise fans would consider
reviling "noise" from their perspective. It's a dual jab addressing
the rapidly changing landscape of music that situates Boris once again as
innovators in their constant challenging of archetypes. And, it showcases the
band's ability to embody the essence of myriad musical styles in Boris' own
monolithic form.
The 10-track New Album features a handful of
revamped versions of songs from both Attention Please and Heavy
Rocks (2011), along with a few new tracks, hyper-charged and rearranged
with the assistance of radical Japanese producer Shinobu Narita resulting in
a sound that could best be described as extreme pop. It shares both the hummable
heft of Nirvana's Nevermind and the entrancing, droning haze of
My Bloody Valentine's classic Loveless, run through two
previous decades' worth of electronic exploration and the merging of
underground noise with sugary mainstream gloss. Boris usually self-produce
their recordings, so working with a popular producer is quite an exception.
The disc was first issued as a Japan-only release in March 2011, but this
rearranged and remastered worldwide edition features a reorganized track
listing and four songs not available on either Attention Please or Heavy
Rocks.
Album opener "Flare" kicks off with a repeated
whine of an emergency siren before hurtling into a speedy punk refrain led by
bassist/vocalist Takeshi reminiscent of Sonic Youth's most radio-ready
work, while elements of glitch and dubstep pepper the proceedings.
"Hope" bursts forth with jangling detuned guitars and churning
distorted bass as guitarist/vocalist Wata coos along with a soaring string
section and chirping electronics. "Party Boy" could just as soon be
a lost Bjork track, with drummer/vocalist Atsuo's bouncing dance beats
and Wata's cryptic lyrics detailing an alien encounter at a hazy late night
dance party. The chugging metallic riff of Heavy Rocks song
"Jackson Head" is transformed here into a slithering synth line and
chopping rhythms befitting a violent grime tune. "Looprider" closes
the album with a throbbing dream pop melody and gliding chorus that gently
drones out throughout the 7-minute songs duration before fading into a
delicate piano line that dissolves into the ether.
Boris formed in the early '90s as a four piece
just-for-fun endeavor with the sonic template of influences like Melvins
and Earth. By the time of its 1996 debut as a trio Absolutego
(later released in the US via Southern Lord in 2000), Boris had already hit
its stride in creating unique ground-rattling heavy, melodic music. The
group, bassist/vocalist Takeshi, guitarist/vocalist Wata and drummer/vocalist
Atsuo went on to release nearly 20 studio albums, as well as numerous
collaborative albums -- including projects with Merzbow, Sunn0))),
Ian Astbury and Michio Kurihara of Ghost (who also currently
tours with the band as second guitarist and frequently guests on albums) --
EPs and singles on various labels throughout the world.
These eternal masters of the aesthetic 180-degree shift,
Boris prove once again with New Album just how deftly the band can
tackle seemingly disparate musical elements and forge new sounds that may
seem inconceivable to other artists. New Album is available on
LP/CD/Download on December 6th via Sargent House.
BORIS AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2012
03/22 Sydney @ The Metro
03/23 Brisbane @ The Hi-Fi
03/24 Melbourne @ The Corner Hotel
Artist: Boris
Album: New Album
Label: Sargent House
Release Date: December 6th, 2011
01. Flare (MP3)
02. Hope
03. Party Boy
04. Luna
05. Spoon (MP3)
06. Pardon?
07. Jackson Head
08. Les Paul Custom '86
09. Tu, La La
10. Looprider
Artist: Boris
Album: Attention Please
Label: Sargent House
Release Date: May 24th, 2011
01. Attention Please
02. Hope (MP3) (VIDEO)
03. Party Boy
04. See You Next Week
05. Tokyo Wonder Land
06. You
07. Aileron
08. Les Paul Custom '86
09. Spoon
10. Hand in Hand
Artist: Boris
Album: Heavy Rocks
Label: Sargent House
Release Date: May 24th, 2011
01. Riot Sugar (MP3) (VIDEO)
02. Leak-Truth, yesnoyesnoyes-
03. GALAXIANS
04. Jackson Head
05. Missing Pieces
06. Key
07. Window Shopping
08. Tu, la la
09. Aileron
10. Czechoslovakia
On the Web:
www.borisheavyrocks.com
www.myspace.com/borisdronevil
www.facebook.com/Borisheavyrocks
www.twitter.com/borisheavyrocks
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Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Boris' New Album available everywhere today, full album streaming on SPIN.com and Spinner.com
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