Boredoms

[french_disko]

I wasn't there, but I feel like The Boredoms are a sort of 'emperor's new clothes' band. Everyone thinks they're AMAZING, UNMISSABLE, AWESOME and yet nobody can tell you why.

Not being funny here, but why should anyone feel obliged to tell you why?

what is it with this thread, and The Boredoms, that everyone is suddenly looking for justification as to why they like them?

have you posted on threads of other gigs that you didn't attend and asked people why they liked the band?

I bought my first Boredoms release over 13 years ago and now, suddenly, as soon as they play Aberdeen, people are looking for an explanation as to why I, and others, enjoy them.

If you, or anyone else, wants an answer then i'm afraid you'll have to make do with "just because I do".

And don't get me started in justifying my liking of Michael Gira, you clothed eared cunts.....

[french_disko]

See, once again I am in no position to comment whatsoever having not seen either act live, but this potentially cements my point. The one guy who had something positive to say about Gira on this board was a self-confessed big time fan of his previous band (Swans is it?), yet everyone else who was ranting and raving about the genius of Boredoms pretty much just said he was shit - shit because he wasn't the Boredoms, or just shit? Are the boredoms really that amazing, or are they amazing because 'they're amazing'? I'll probably never know, but I hope someone will understand me questioning this. As for the gig itself, I was curious but not curious enough to fork out 17 just because a lot of people said they were great.

i think i was maybe a bit harsh on you there....

[french_disko]

i'm away home to listen to Michael Gira and cheer myself up.

[lowball]

Pretty likely, but the fact that nearly everyone though Gira was utter wank must mean that Boredoms had something genuine going for them to avoid being chucked into the same category.

Actually there were loads of people there just to see Gira & pay homage to his wonderful work in SWANS. Whilst personally

I found his set too long I stood quietly & listened contently & then thought his set was actually okay. Thought the whole night worked really well beacause it attacted a whole range of people from 16 to 50+. Its great that a night like this happened & in the main worked because its not everyone's wish to go see yet another wanky four piece playing regurgitated & diluted JD/MBV/SM3......

[Guest bluesxman]

Christ, Michael Gira could have sat shitting on the floor while forlornly parping on a toy trumpet and people would still be saying he was in Swans, he is a genius.

I have a feeling I would actually like Swans, but this isnt about his past work, its about the performance on the night, and no matter how precious people get about it, a lot of folk thought he was absolute shagwank, nothing to do with Boredoms.

Id never heard Boredoms before, and as I said in another thread, I had mixed feelings about it, but on the whole I would say the music won in the end vs. the 3 drum kit spectacle side, because it added a rhythmic intensity that a single drummer could not match. Ive ordered a couple of CDs by them in the hope that they match the good bits, i.e. an actual piece of music and not 3 drums pounding away interminably.

All in all I enjoyed the night but in retrospect, 17 quid was over-priced for the music on offer for me personally. But I can imagine getting the Boredoms set-up to Aberdeen costs a lot.

[Guest Tam o' Shantie]

Not being funny here, but why should anyone feel obliged to tell you why?

what is it with this thread, and The Boredoms, that everyone is suddenly looking for justification as to why they like them?

have you posted on threads of other gigs that you didn't attend and asked people why they liked the band?

I bought my first Boredoms release over 13 years ago and now, suddenly, as soon as they play Aberdeen, people are looking for an explanation as to why I, and others, enjoy them.

If you, or anyone else, wants an answer then i'm afraid you'll have to make do with "just because I do".

And don't get me started in justifying my liking of Michael Gira, you clothed eared cunts.....

Saying that you are a 'true fan' of them isn't anything to do with my point though as I'm sure many people who went were long term fans, and surely you must be able to say why you like them? It's not a soul searching question, and it doesn't really matter anyway, but it's a bit puzzling nonetheless. It's more the waves of people going "oh yeah, boredoms, err genius stuff, they've got three drumkits and everything" that have got me thinking that a good few people probably only went to look clever to the other people who heard that you have to like them.

[Guest Tam o' Shantie]

a rhythmic intensity that a single drummer could not match.

You got ripped off, friend. A similar spectactle is often available for free viewing outside the Bon Accord centre on a Sat.

[Old Gold]

Thought the whole night worked really well beacause it attacted a whole range of people from 16 to 50+.

in the main worked because its not everyone's wish to go see yet another wanky four piece playing regurgitated & diluted JD/MBV/SM3......

Surely it was the marvelous sounds being created by the acts that mattered? Those are just trivial plus-points that can be lumped in with the 'There were three drumkits' comments. I'd watch a band with a roomfull of pensioners if I thought they were good, and if someone simply didn't want to watch musicians playing pap then they could just stay home.

[scottyboy]

i liked them because i though their music sounded good o_O

[Graeme]

i liked them because i though their music sounded good o_O

Radical thinking!

[Jim Stax]

I enjoyed the racket they made. I didn't enjoy Gira until I went forward a bit and listened and even then I only enjoyed 10 mins or so as it was tad dour for my tastes. The Boredoms are far from genius and I wouldn't probably go see them again but there was a great sound coming from the stage that seemed to have more layers to it than was actually being played... Got me thinking as to how I to play my own music solo and do away with those pesky guitarists and the like.

Fun night, glad I went, not in a rush to see either of them again...

To be honest I was entertained the most watching the guitar tech calmly not losing fingers as he changed and tuned the guitar implement on stage. He's done that before...

[HeinzHines]

Why the need for some radical review of them?!

They are what they are, percussion mad, with a charismatic front man who creates music ranging from noise to techno. There is no need to go overboard on analysis.

They make good dancy music and i like them for it.

[Larsen B]

Why the need for some radical review of them?!

They are what they are, percussion mad, with a charismatic front man who creates music ranging from noise to techno. There is no need to go overboard on analysis.

They make good dancy music and i like them for it.

Maybe just because they seem like scared cows, and they are the type of band who people will take at face value as being "genuises" and such purely for their leftfield stylings. Not that I'm sure they've been called such by anyone on here.

[scottyboy]

Maybe just because they seem like scared cows, and they are the type of band who people will take at face value as being "genuises" and such purely for their leftfield stylings. Not that I'm sure they've been called such by anyone on here.

i had a listen to a couple of the tracks on their myspace page before going (i don't have any of their music) and i didn't think much of it. i thought they were just trying to be as cerebral and 'far out' as possible, to the point of sounding contrived. however it turned out a lot different to what i was expecting.

the three drum kits didn't sound gimmicky or anything, just a thunderous rythm sound. combined with the monosyllable vocals (no idea if they were words or not; can't speak japanese) it was all very primal sounding which i found very cool. the 'guitar' parts were just thrashed out (he was hitting the instrument with sticks) but it sounded just like very thick power chords. in fact there wasn't really any atonal sounding stuff which i was expecting and i was glad of that. there were also as someone mentioned some catchy pop parts with 'proper' vocals; nobody needs an explanation as to why people enjoy that.

as for the 'song' stuctures, to me it seemed there were lulls in the music where they could have been changing songs (again i don't know their music). the singers english seemed minimal so i wasn't exactly expecting a lot of stage banter. i like to hear improvisations when i go to gigs (admirer of wanky musos that i am) so i'm quite receptive to extended music i've never heard before. that said i don't agree it had a 'jam' feel to it, the drumming was obviously very precise. i was also down at the front where people were dancing so it was just a great vibe; maybe long rythmic music wouldn't have been so exciting had you been sitting at the back with a pint.

finally the keys playing by the female drummer was fantastic (i think the singer was doing some too?), just great solos. at one point i was looking round for a lead guitarist... turned out she seemed to be using a pitch shifter button to bend the notes and presumably using the pedal board underneath to produce an affected, 'widdly' tone.

overall it was awesome, one of the best gigs i've been to. catchy, dancable music that had me grinning. very different (to my ears anyway; although perhaps you guys with tonnes of obscure records have heard it all before) without being contrived or atonal. great atmosphere and spectacle (the singer swinging from the light rail was pretty memorable, not least because the guy next to me had to duck).

yeah so theres my review.

[Guest Tam o' Shantie]

scared cows

pointless quote, but quasi amusing