DEAR
Sargent House.
Doom Metal, Drone Metal, Amplifier Worship.
Listening Format: Digital & CD
Boris are a seminal band from Tokyo, Japan who are celebrating their 25th year of making music together. Boris have a vast discography and are best known for making all kinds of music that is incredibly loud and extreme. The band have experimented in Drone, Doom Metal, Harsh Noise, Electronic Music, Psychedelic Rock and all sorts. Alongside experimental legends such as Earth, Melvins and Sunn O))), Boris are considered to be one of the pioneers of the amplifier worship concept, even naming their 1998 album 'Amplifier Worship', which helped establish such ear destroying sounds. The group's discography is so deep, with many collaborations, that even die hard Boris fans struggle to keep up. It's safe to say though that the band have shied away from super loud Doom and Drone Metal releases over the past decade. Commercial releases such as 'Smile' and 'Noise' experimented with Psyche Rock and Shoegaze. 'Attention Please' was a really interesting left turn into making a dreamy Synth Pop album. Even though this band have always been putting out interesting and experimental music, a large part of their fanbase love it best when this band bring out the crushingly heavy riffs. In all honesty, Boris haven't quite given us that ferocity since their classic 2006 collaboration with Sunn O))), 'Altar'... Until now...!!!
'Dear' opens with a slow, drum rattle, and then just a single, face-melting power chord is struck and left to ring out, at maximum volume. The amp feedback swirls and pierces around your brain as a reverb drenched chanting vocal comes in. Instantly the fans of Boris at their heaviest will light up with a sadistic smile. Across the whole album, Boris dish out some of the slowest, heaviest and most crushing riffs they have ever dealt. The third track 'Absolutego' even name checks their very first album, so you can tell that the band are looking back on themselves for this anniversary occasion. Even though Boris seem to be looking backwards, they still perform with absolute conviction and passion. Other highlights include the monstrous 'The Power', which could easily have fit onto the 'Altar' album. Incredibly slow pounding drums rumble at a funeral pace, as these gorgeous harmonised doom riffs tread very similar chord(s) to Sunn O))). 'Distopia - Vanishing Point' verges into Space Rock over twelve psyched out minutes. The track starts off with hushed and dreamy vocals, as the loud fuzzy guitars escalate gradually. A barrage of Floydian guitar solos in the second half brings an epic sense of drama that works really well. The closing title track 'Dear' sounds like Boris ate Melvin's 'Hag Me' for breakfast and then slowly regurgitated it back up, sounding even slower, louder and more downtuned.
'Dear' ultimately feels like a love-letter to the fans who who have stuck by Boris since their inception. Whilst their experimental works outside of the Metal realm have been very commendable, 'Dear' is absolutely that back to basics, all out Metal album that fans have been waiting for, and they have done it in true style. Boris very much still know their way around a wall of amps and an array of fuzz pedals, and they continue to prove why they are one of the best in the business. 'Dear' is very much the successor to albums such as 'Pink' and 'Altar'. Not only that, it is genuinely one of the heaviest albums of 2017. 8/10.
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