NEWS: BORIS STREAM NEW ALBUM ‘DEAR’ VIA NPR FIRST LISTEN
In anticipation of the July 14th release of their twenty-third studio album Dear, legendary Japanese power trio Boris are streaming the record in full via NPR’s First Listen.
“We don’t feel comfortable calling Dear a return to our slow and heavy style,” the band says. “We’ve been heavy since day one.” And it’s true. From the droning thunder of their Absolutego debut and through the cinematic crescendo of albums like Flood, the bombastic licks of the Heavy Rocks records, the punk rage of Vein, the bottom-dwelling psychedelia of Akuma no Uta and Pink, and the grimy thump of Attention Please and New Album, Boris have always attempted to search out new ways to level listeners with their sound. On the 25th year of their existence, the trio delivers Dear, an album they describe as “heavenly—far beyond heavy.”
Though Boris has traversed a broad swath of sonic territories, they have always been consistent in their embracing of excess, pushing their myriad of approaches and stylistic forays to points of intoxicating absurdity. But a time came in the early years of their third decade where the band wondered if there were any new horizons to explore. Consequently, it was decided that the band would begin jamming on material for what was planned to be a record that served as a formal goodbye to fans. In a strange twist of fate, being unencumbered by expectations and having an open-ended approach to the writing process reinvigorated Boris. The renewed vitality yielded an album that fortifies their monolithic wall of sound while also allowing the individual band members to explore the nuances and intricacies of minimalist riffs played at maximum volume.
Songwriting for Dear initially yielded three albums’ worth of material by the end of 2015, but as the band was slated to spend a large chunk of 2016 on their “Performing Pink” worldwide tour, they decided to hold off on releasing any new material. The tour further rekindled their passion, and when the band returned home they wrote several more songs and scaled the three records down to one. “At the very first moment, this album began as some kind of potential farewell note of Boris. However, it became a sincere letter to fans and listeners… you know, like ‘Dear so-and-so, this is the new album from Boris’ or something like that. We feel so grateful we can release this album in our 25th anniversary year.”
Following the release of Dear, Boris will traverse the United States on an extensive headline tour that will feature Endon (Japan) on the tour’s entirety, as well as support from Sumac, Subrosa, Helms Alee, Mutoid Man, Thou and Torche in select territories. Check out the expansive tour routing, which runs throughout October and November and includes performances at Desert Daze (Joshua Tree, CA) and Sound on Sound (Austin, TX) festivals, below.
Dear will be released to the world on July 14, 2017 on CD, 2xLP, and digital formats and is available for pre-order from iTunes and HelloMerch.
BORIS - ON TOUR:
October 3 Fresno, CA @ Strummers *
October 4 Sacramento, CA @ Harlow’s *
October 6 Eugene, OR @ WOW Hall ^
October 7 Seattle, WA @ Neumo’s ^
October 8 Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre ^
October 9 Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge ^
October 11 San Francisco, CA @ The Independent ^
October 12-14 Joshua Tree, CA @ Institute of Mentalphysics (Desert Daze Fest)
October 14 Tucson, AZ @ 191 Toole %
October 16 Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Music Hall %
October 17 Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater %
October 19 Lawrence, KS @ Granada Theatre %
October 20 Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room %
October 21 Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock Social Club +
October 22 Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall +
October 23 Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall +
October 25 Detroit, MI @ El Club +
October 26 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop +
October 27 Millvale, PA @ Mr Smalls +
October 28 Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer +
October 29 Baltimore, MD @ Rams Head Live! (Days of Darkness)
October 31 Allston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall =
November 1 Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw =
November 4 Durham, NC @ Motorco =
November 5 Knoxville, TN @ The Concourse =
November 7 Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade, Hell Stage =
November 8 Nashville, TN @ Exit / In =
November 9 Birmingham, AL @ Saturn $
November 10 New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jacks $
November 10-12 McDade, TX @ Sound on Sound Fest
November 14 Albuquerque, NM @ Sister +
November 15 Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom #
November 17 San Diego, CA @ Casbah #
* w/ Endon
^ w/ Sumac, Endon
% w/ Subrosa, Endon
+ w/ Helms Alee, Endon
= w/ Mutoid Man, Endon
$ w/ Thou, Endon
# w/ Torche, Endon
Dear Track Listing:
- D.O.W.N. -Domination Of Waiting Noise-
- DEADSONG
- Absolutego
- Beyond
- Kagero
- Biotope
- The Power
- Memento Mori
- Distopia -Vanishing Point-
- Dear
