[rayword45]

Day 23: Vision Creation Newsun by Boredoms (Album Choice: Lord Of Sushi)

I'm going camping and will have barely any internet access. Thus, the next 4 days have all already been chosen. First 2 were via random.org, then after those 2 were Japanese I decided to keep that theme going for the whole camping trip.

Day 9 of the pledge: Hello? I'm stuck in the wilderness. How the hell am I supposed to even think about watching ANYTHING when I can barely find the connection to post text?

So, yeah I remember listening to Pop Tatari by Boredoms last summer while stuck in an undisclosed noisy location. It was a weird album. This one is much more highly regarded and seems to be much different in sound overall. Thus I'm gonna keep comparisons to a minimum. Also this review shall be rather terse as will the next 3 days for obvious reasons.

So yeah, definitely different, and most certainly not a car album, or at least Circle is not a car song. This sounds like very little else I've heard. The closest comparison would be groups like Fuck Buttons or Black Dice, but this is a lot more organic sounding. This is outdoor celebration music for sure, although it may not have enough mass appeal to be used for that purpose ever. Through all of the chaotic, sun-blistering noise jams there is a sense of cheer and celebration throughout the music, especially with the constant chants of "Vision Creation Newsun!"

Every track here morphs together into one big song thus far, but whereas the first two tracks sounded like explosive celebrations in audio form, the third track, aptly titled (or really symbolized) Heart, is much calmer in form, being one riff repeated and run through many different effects. The change in mood is nice but the track (or section, I should say) drags on for a bit too long. Much better of a "pretty song" (relative term) is Tilde, which still keeps up the energy and tribal beats but includes some wonderful acoustic guitar.

I decided against typing for the remainder of the seamless jam which unfortunately ended after track 7, leaving two more tracks. Omega starts out with some unenjoyable chanting then turns into a reprise of the drone between Circle and Star. Zutto comes after a minute or so of silence and is definitely the quietest track on the album, especially at the end when the drums drop out leaving nothing but that sweet guitar.

Wow. A car was NOT the right atmosphere for this album, but that was mindblowing. Chaotic, noisy and sprinkled with effects and atonal electronics, yet equal parts captivating, celebratory and beautiful. As a guy who is absolutely biased AGAINST Japanese culture (don't question my tastes) and slightly less biased against Jam Rock (there's still a few jam bands I enjoy) this stands out as one of the best albums yet this challenge. It may prove even better once I get in the right atmosphere. I need to experience this in some outdoor festival or gathering or something, preferably surrounded by MDMA (which I would NOT take).

Best Track: Circle but all the first seven tracks basically count
Rating: 9/10