BORIS / STARCRAWLER LIVE AT THE PARADISE ROCK CLUB
By Rick Fleck
Boris plays to a energetic audience at Paradise Rock Club with Starcrawler for direct support.
Boris defies easy categorization. Their music includes elements of doom, drone, sludge, psychedelia, and noise. Think of them as architects of extreme avant-garde music that pushes the boundaries of heavy metal and rock. At their sold out Paradise Rock Club concert in Boston, Boris celebrated the 25th anniversary of their groundbreaking album Amplifier Worship. They played the entire album along with the additional songs “Scar Box” and “Mass Mercury.”
Formed in Tokyo in 1992, Boris is drummer/singer Atsuo, bassist/rhythm guitarist Takeshi, and guitarist/keyboardist Wata. For the tour, they brought with them drummer Muchio. Boris is an immersive event, the lighting, theatrics, and music work together to create a sensory-enveloping experience.
Photos Rick Fleck
They kicked things off with the opening track from Amplifier Worship, “Huge,” which was a baptism of crushing sound. The song evokes the Crippled Lucifer-era of doom metal masters Burning Witch. With thick power chords, saturated reverb, and a hum like an industrial power transformer, Boris created a vortex of sound that ushered in Atsuo’s guttural and anguished vocals. “Ganbouki” bottomed out with Takeshi’s heavy, plodding bass playing on his double-neck guitar. What was created sounded like a Black Sabbath album playing at 16 rpm with Tom G. Warrior (Celtic Frost) on vocals.
“Hama” began with an unaccompanied, cricket-like sound before kicking in with their first fast tempoed song of the night. “Hama” featured incessant, pummeling, tribal-like drumming from Muchio who was absolutely outstanding all night. “Scarbox” followed with a punk feel and attitude before descending into a lumberingly slow BPM reminiscent of the monolithic drone band Bell Witch.
“Kuru” took the audience from a place of imperceptible calm to panic and then hysteria before bringing them back again. Expansive and cinematic, “Kuru” suggested the soundtrack of a lost Daria Argento film. Boris isn’t just a concert. It’s a quasi-religious experience of like minded metal fans finding freedom from the trials and tribulations of their lives in the embrace of pummeling, bone-shaking walls of sound.
L.A. rock band Starcrawler opened the show with a tight, one hour, 18 song set. The songs were short like those of the Ramones and shared a kindred punk rock energy. Lead singer Arrow de Wilde, with her tall, lean, and lanky appearance even brings to mind Joey Ramone. De Wilde is the quintessential rock ‘n roll front person channeling the bratty, attitude-ridden spirit of the pre-eminent rockers of the 1970s. De Wilde brings to mind the intangible magnetism of arena performers like Mick Jagger and Steven Tyler.
Starcrawler’s first song of the night was “Ants” A song full of fuzztone guitar sound ala The Hives and other garage rock revival bands of the early 2000s. “Ants” captured the attention of the entire crowd. “I Love LA” is a Riot Grrrl, pop-punk song with infectious energy and addictive hooks. “Stranded” went in an entirely different direction. The guitar sound was right out of the earlier, rawer years of R.E.M. “Stranded” is cowpunk, in the same way The Gun Club is cowpunk. Making another nod to the Ramones, Starcrawler covered their hit “Pet Sematary” with equal amounts of energy and aplomb. Hearing it sung by a woman gave it an exciting new dimension.
Photos Rick Fleck
Another cover was of outlaw country star Roger Alan Wade’s hit “If Your Gonna Be Dumb, You Gotta Be Tough.” Starting off like Wade’s original version – vocals accompanied with an acoustic guitar – midway through the song, Starcrawler transformed it into a no-holds-barred shitkicker.
Wata from Boris joined the Starcrawlers on stage for a new song called “Kick Me,” much to the audience’s delight. Wata looked like she was having a blast playing a decidedly different style of music than Boris’s oeuvre. “Goodtime Girl” could be a follow up response to Joan Jett’s mega-hit “Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah).” A lot of similarities can be drawn between Jett and de Wilde’s vocal styling. In both cases, it’s a perfect fit for the music.
“Bet My Brains” was Starcrawler’s encore. Dripping with glam rock sleaze and swagger and a stomping beat a la The White Stripes’ “Icky Thump,” it was a brilliant encapsulation of the entire set. Starcrawler is a band looking for a big stage to accommodate their larger than life show and aspirations. Here’s hoping they find it.
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