SOUNDTRACK: BORIS-tears e.p. (2019).
Boris tends toward being a very heavy band. Their two recently albums D.E.A.R. and NO are some intense heavy metal. They also do a lot of noise and heavy drone. But they are not afraid of melody. And they are not at all afraid to make pretty, dancey music.
There are five songs. The first song “どうしてもあなたをゆるせない (doushitemoanataoyurusenai)” is on the disc twice. The first version of this song is a remix by Narasaki under his name “Sadesper.” It opens with a grooving bass line and some pretty guitars. The drums are metronomic and there’s a sprinkling of keys. I’m not sure who sings, but there’s a lot of falsetto. I love how just before the chorus there’s some orchestra hits. It’s pretty much a full on dance song and it suits them perfectly. You’d never guess it was Boris, but it makes sense once you realize it. It even ends with a nifty guitar solo that sadly fades out.
“u fu fu” opens with a fast simple guitar chugging riff. After a good ol’ “Whoo!” from Atsuo, the song pulses forward on the insistent grunted “ooh ah” that works as a foundation to the song. There’s a lots of great backing vocals in each ear. With about a minute to go, the bass takes over with a fast, heavy rumble before the harmonizing vocals kick in.
Up next is a fantastic cover of a Coaltar of the Deepers song “To the Beach.” I didn’t know Coaltar of the Deepers before this release, but I have listened to them a bunch since and they are a terrific Japanese band unknown in the States. I’m not sure how much this differs from the original , but this version is fantastic–slow and moody with lots of build and release. The song starts with a pretty guitar melody and then a series of crashing chords and cymbals while Wata’s guitar soars. The verses are slow with a whispered vocal. But the choruses resume the crashing chords to punctuate things perfectly. In the middle of the song as the vocals overlap and blend, it sounds magnificent.
“Peaches” comes next, it’s a 2 minute song sung by Wata. A pulsing bass line propels the song forward as Wata chants the the word “peaches” over and over with an occasional “la la la” fleshes things out. A repeating piano is added for a bit and then a shift to a kind o funky bass line that leads to the end of the songs. It’s only two minutes long and kind of goofy but I wish it was longer.
The disc ends with an instrumental version of “どうしてもあなたをゆるせない.” The song is so catchy and wonderful that hearing it a second time in the EP is a great thing. It’s one of the few instrumentals that I think might sound better than the original because you can really hear what the musicians are doing–and its some great stuff.
[READ: October 29, 2020] The Ten Loves of Nishino
I have a stack of books waist high next to my desk which I intend to read. And yet, I continue to find new (to me) books that I jump in and read first. This book was recommended by the most recent Tiny Desk Contest winner Linda Diaz. Why on earth would I read a book recommended by a person I’d never heard of before? She said it was her favorite book ever (which seems weird since it only came out in English last year, but whatever). It was also pretty short. So I decided to check it out.
I have enjoyed many of the Japanese writers that I’ve read, so I was intrigued to read a contemporary female author (this book was translated by Allison Markin Powell).
So this book is written in ten chapters–each one written by a lover of Nishino, an enigmatic figure whom we only learn about from the women writing about him.
There is something strangely seductive about Nishino that these women find hard to resist. He is aloof and puzzling, but that seems to make women want him even more. But he is perpetually with women (more than these ten, it would appear).
“Parfait” is written by Natsumi. She is married with a child, Minami, when she meets Nishino. They go out many times, including with Minami. They never do anything inappropriate when Minami is with them, usually it’s just to dinner. He always buys Minami a parfait (which she never eats). The story jumps years later when Minami asks Natsumi about Nishino. She sensed something was going on all that time, but wasn’t sure. Nishino promised he would be with Natsumi when he died and maybe he is.
“In the Grass” is written by Shiori. She and Nishino were in 8th grade together. Shiori’s mother was gone and as an act of defiance, she buried things in an empty lot near their house. One day Nishino was in the lot with an older woman. Shiori watched the older woman lift her shirt as Nishino sucked on her breasts. Later on, we learn that it was an act of kindness for the woman who had lost her baby (yup I’m leaving something important out). He kissed Shiori afterward and she wondered what exactly she was tasting.
“Good Night” is written by Manami, Nishinio’s boss (she calls him Yukihoko, his last name). She found his sensuousness irresistible. She loved him from the beginning but once he said he was falling in with with her, she knew he’d lost interest. Once, he brought an ex-girlfriend, Kanoko, to one of their dates.
“The Heart Races” is written by Kanoko! She says they broke up five years ago (I’m sure it would be fun to put a timeline to this novel). She always called him–he never called her. She mostly talks about their breakup (and the time she met Manami on that date) and wishes that maybe they hadn’t broken up.
“The Kingdom At Summer’s End” is written by Rei. She saw Nishino and wanted to have sex with him immediately. She was very forward and insisted that they go to his place. They had sex and she stayed in his house for a few days. She has sex with lots of different men–and doesn’t worry about falling in love. But something is different about Nishino. Could she fall for him? Could anyone, really?
“Osaka Tower” is written by Tama. She has a roommate, Subaru, who met Nishino first. Subaru is always straightforward, but Tama is more circumspect. He started seeing Subaru, but then he had sex with Tama and Subaru found out. When Subaru found out, she left and neither of them heard from her again.
“Keenly” is written by Eriko. She and Nishino feed a cat named Maow. Eriko was annoyed that Maow seemed to like him better than her (it was a feral cat). Eriko was divorced and didn’t want to get involved with Nishino (even though he pleaded every day “Why can’t I be your lover?” He asked her to marry him but she laughed it off.
“Marimo” is written by Sayuri. She met Nishino at an Energy-Saving cooking club. He stood out among the young ladies who took the course and they all fawned over him. He told Sayuri that she seemed different from the other women. She thought she’d never fall for such a line, but she did.
“Grapes” is written by Ai. Nishino was in his 50s when she was in her 30s. Her friend Kikumi is a lesbian and thought Ai might be one as well. But Ai said she’d never been in love with a guy or a girl. When Nishino slept with Ai he told her that he’d slept with many women but she was the best–which she said only reminded her of how many other people he must have slept with. He told her that they should die together. And soon enough he was actually dead.
“Mercury Thermometer” was written by Nozomi. She dated Nishino when he was 18. The first time they’d met was on the college quad. He came up to her and asked if it was true that she’d have sex with anyone. The next time he was dating Kanoko (who she thought was a real beauty). She didn’t see him for awhile, then one day she was sitting in these large empty clay sewer pipes and he stumbled upon her. She had a boy for every day of the week and Nishino fit in easily with her schedule. They broke it off and he saw her a year later and gave her a thermometer. She hopes he got along in the world.
I enjoyed this story, although it was a little strange to have all of these women talking about a man. It was cool to get a full picture of one person from ten others, although none of them are all that flattering of him.
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