nee hoor
trouwens, het zijn twee platen (cds), en je moet ze eigenlijk tegelijk afspelen, maar hoeft niet persé
You NEED Two Stereos - 95%
Written by orphicGLOW on February 3rd, 2009
*Note - This is a review of Dronevil - Final-*
*Note 2 - Man, you really gotta hear this on two stereos*
So Boris. When this slab of unruly heaviness first came out, I was a young and impressionable high school kid who had a penchant for most things Heavy. I started my journey with Pelican (S/T), Bongzilla (Gateway), and Electric Wizard (Dopethrone). I can clearly remember my first spins of each, and my innate reactions to each. They are burned in memory. Bands like the aforementioned, along with Isis, Fu Manchu, Kyuss, Neurosis, SunnO))), Earth, HoF, Cathedral, Warhorse, Om, YOB, Sleep, Clutch, the Melvins, and then eventually.. Boris.
I had heard of Boris while on my drone journey, getting caught up in the likes of Sunn 0))) and Earth (keep in mind this was White2/pre-Hex era), and had heard that these Japanese heavyweights made some of the densest, heaviest, and most fucked up music this side of Golgotha. Being the young and impressionable one that I was, this piqued my interest. After months of scouring the internet for reviews, soundsamples, and any info whatsoever about Boris, I came across a wonderful program named SoulSeek which let me in on most of the fun that I had seemed to be missing out on. We'll keep this short and move on to the actual review. I found Absolustego, listened to it, freaked out, then downloaded Dronevil (the original release).
Now, during my stints scouring every web page on stonerrock.com and the general internet for any info on this album, I found out probably the coolest thing I had heard being done in the drone "scene" (I hate that word). 2 records, one being drone the other being evil, played simultaneously. I thought to myself "I have to hear this!". It later became a reality, however sadly not on vinyl.
Dronevil -Final- is basically the exact same as Dronevil, with the addition of one track on each half (Loose, and Red). Now, you can listen to both on their own, or you can mix them. This review will be of the mixed version.
Loose/Red.
This is a very quiet, almost sombre introduction. Wata delicately plucks her notes on a clean, reverbed guitar, while bass notes fade in and cymbals shimmer around you. The entire piece creates a very mellow vibe, while the cymbals and a high-pitched tone make up the droning segment of the music. Near the end we hear the distinction finally between sides Drone and Evil, as the drums go into a slow, steady beat and the guitar and bass work together, creating a very Hex-esque vibe.. even before Hex was released. The last 2 minutes really help to build the anticipation to the next track, with very very lightly overdriven chords taking away the song, until everything fades out but the high-pitched drone.
Giddiness Throne/Evil Wave Form.
Alright, enough goofing off. Evil Wave Form gets right down to business with a thickly distorted 3 note riff starting us off, while Giddiness Throne in all it's guitar feedback, amplifier-worshipping glory makes the atmosphere that much thicker. The anticipation is now building, as bass feedback and percussion begin to make themselves heard, edging between loud and soft, tricking you into thinking they're going to take off into complete doom-laden riffdom. But not quite, as it's only been 3 minutes, and only just now are things beginning to even somewhat show themselves. It isn't until 5:20 that the whole thing implodes upon itself. Huge, massive, sludge-filled riffs dominate the spectrum, while drums plod along behind and the bass rumbles and grooves and shakes the whole damn building down with it.
7 minutes in and we're treated with a cool kind of post-rock guitar solo thing, but the heavy ass fuck groove hasn't been forgotten by the rhythm section. It all starts to fall apart and dissipate and then right at a quarter to 9 minutes, we're given solace from the bludgeoning. A clean, delayed guitar delivers us into the light, while wind and other sounds begin to pick up in the background. The atmosphere gets thicker and thicker, the tension rising with it. The guitar takes a backseat as the atmosphere begins to pick up more rapidly, as rising and falling synths/feedback dominate.
A moment of fear arises as the clean guitar completely drops away for moments, leaving you with just pure sound until.. BANG. The whole motherfucking thing takes off again, this time with a HUGE bass tone guiding everything. I mean huge. Melvins. The guitar freaks out for a few moments, until another mammoth riff breaks loose, and more guitar freakout occurs. Seriously. Melvins.
Interference Demon/The Evil One Which Sobs.
This starts out similar to the way Loose/Red started, only it gets to it much quicker. A quiet, slightly overdriven arpeggio opens up the track, with whirring and feedback eating away at your brain for a bit. It all begins to build up, with guitar strumming and more intense feedback, until we get another Boris-patented explosion. This time they hammer on one chord with all the unruly might they can muster until they decide we've had enough. The drums keep on going, and the guitar repeats that intro arpeggio, but only this time nice and fuzzy. This continues on, building in volume and distortion, until at 7:20 there is a very sad, melancholic, almost hopeless heavy feeling emitted from the guitarsound. This is quite possibly the most epic moment on the whole journey, and it lasts for a solid few minutes. After we're offered respite, as everything begins to fade away, slowly and slowly, until all that's left is guitar feedback. It drones on and on for what seems like eternity, morphing into a high-pitched squeal. A slowly played acoustic guitar delivers us from the storm.. side Drone cuts out.. and the acoustic guitar directs us back into a daily course of life..
Now, I'm going to say this again. It comes with 2 CD's (or LP's) that are meant to be PLAYED TOGETHER. You must experience this. The dynamic play between both recordings is phenomenal, almost on par with the Times of Grace/Grace mix by Neurosis.
And to finally cap off this review, let me say a few words. When I got into the stoner scene, discovering bands like EW, Bongzilla, and Boris were literally magical moments. I didn't know what I was getting into, but I knew it was awesome. My only wish however, is that the magic from a few years ago returns, and Boris stops making albums like Smile.
Sorry for rambling, listen to this record, smoke weed.
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