BORIS / STARCRAWLER LIVE AT PARADISE ROCK CLUB

BORIS / STARCRAWLER LIVE AT PARADISE ROCK CLUB

By Rick Fleck

Boris playing to an energetic crowd at Paradise Rock Club with Starcrawler in direct support.

Boris defies easy categorization. Their music includes elements of doom, drone, sludge, psychedelia and noise. Think of them as the architects of extreme avant-garde music that transcends the boundaries of heavy metal and rock. At their sold out concert at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston, Boris celebrated the 25th anniversary of their breakthrough album Booster Worship. They played the entire album along with the additional songs “Scar Box” and “Mass Mercury”.

Founded in Tokyo in 1992, Boris are drummer/vocalist Atsuo, bassist/arranger guitarist Takeshi and guitarist/keyboardist Wata. For the tour they brought drummer Muchio with them. Boris is an exciting event, the lighting, theatrics and music work together to create a sensory experience.

Rick Fleck photos

They kicked things off with the opening track from Booster Worship“Huge,” which was a baptism of overwhelming sound. The song is reminiscent of the Crippled Lucifer era of doom metal masters Burning Witch. With thick power strings, saturated reverb and hum like an industrial power transformer, Boris created a vortex of sound that introduced Atsuo's guttural and anguished vocals. “Ganbouki” hit rock bottom with Takeshi's heavy, punchy bass playing on his double neck guitar. What was created sounded like a Black Sabbath album played on 16 rpm with Tom G. Warrior (Celtic Frost) on vocals.

“Hama” began with an unaccompanied sound like a cricket before launching into their first fast song of the night. “Hama” featured non-stop, pounding, tribal drumming from Muchio who was absolutely brilliant all night. “Scarbox” followed with a punk feel and attitude before descending into a heavy slow BPM reminiscent of monolithic drone band Bell Witch.

“Kuru” took the audience from a place of subtle calm to panic and then hysteria before bringing it back. Expansive and cinematic, “Kuru” suggested the soundtrack to a lost Daria Argento film. Boris it's not just a concert. It's a quasi-religious experience of like-minded metal fans finding freedom from life's trials and tribulations in the arms of a pounding, wall-shaking sound.

Los Angeles rock band Starcrawler opened the show with a tight hour-long 18-song set. The songs were short like those of the Ramones and shared a relatable punk rock energy. The singer Arrow de Wilde, with her tall, thin and slender appearance even brings to mind Joey Ramone. De Wilde is the quintessential rock and roll star who channels the spontaneous spirit of the quintessential 1970s rockers. De Wilde evokes the intangible magnetism of arena artists such as Mick Jagger and Steven Tyler.

Starcrawler's The first song of the night was “Ants” A song full of fuzztone guitar sound a la The Hives and other garage rock revival bands of the early 2000s. The “ants” had 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 a completely different direction. The guitar sound came out of REM's earlier, rawer years. “Stranded” is cowpunk, 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 gusto. Hearing it sung by a woman gave it an exciting new dimension.

Rick Fleck photos

Another cover was outlaw country star Roger Allan Wade's hit “If Your Gonna Be Dumb, You Gotta Be Tough.” Starting out like Wade's original version – vocals accompanied by acoustic guitar – mid-song, Starcrawler transformed it into a no-holds-barred stalker.

Wata from Boris joined the Starcrawlers on stage for a new song called “Kick Me”, much to the delight of the crowd. Wata seemed to be having fun playing a completely different style of music than that Borishis work. “Goodtime Girl” could be an answer to Joan Jett's smash hit “Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah).” Many similarities can be drawn between Jett's and de Wilde's vocal style. In both cases, it fits the music perfectly.

“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 wonderful encapsulation of the entire set. Starcrawler is a band looking for a big stage to host their biggest show and ambitions. Here's hoping they find it.

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