Album Details

• Artist: Boredoms
• Album: Super Roots 9
• Label: Thrill Jockey
• Year of Release: 2008
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: patchen on 2008-05-01

Listening to "LIVWE!," the only track on the new Boredoms release, you often can't help but feel that you are at some revival meeting on another planet. "Super Roots 9" is a forty minute reach for the stars, complete with symphonic peaks and yearning vocals. Minimal to a fault, and featuring little of the spastic noise of usual Boredoms releases, this is a repetitive, cyclic journey toward a moment of hope that is more percussion driven than anything. The drums are tribal in the sense of providing a grounding while also showing an avenue for insight. This is music that is leading you somewhere. All the members of the band-Yoshimi, ATR and Yojiro-pound away on the skins, with the exception of Eye, who handles the turntable and other majestic duties.

This performance was taken from a 2004 Christmas Eve show, and comes with a 40 page booklet of full score and thank yous. The choral samples and incessant drumming create an anticipation for something wonderful to happen. We aren't sure what kind of advent "LIVWE!" is announcing, but on feel alone I'd say they were aiming for a permanent, transcendent change in the listener. Your willingness to follow along for the epiphany may depend on how long you can hang for 40 minutes of the same rhythms, slowly building. Boredoms have rarely cared how many jump on board, though; they play to those who want to get it.

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