One word that sums up the night that Tokyo’s experimental trio, Boris, came to Port City Music Hall: Massive.
Founded in 1992, Boris has maintained an incredibly diverse discography, defined by no singular genre of music. This is purely by design, as the band’s strength lies in its vast sense of musical creativity, utilizing driving rock riffs, atmospheric soundscapes and incredibly heavy grooves to shake the floors of any venue they play.
As Boris took the stage for their Maine debut, the mood was instantly set. Drummer/Vocalist Atsuo connects with and hyped up the crowd immediately, and upon hitting the first beat, a massive wall of sound leveled the venue like no other. This sound is courtesy of Guitarist/Keyboardist/Vocalist Wata and Bassist/Guitarist/Vocalist Takeshi. For the first few minutes of the show, the audience was treated to a series of heavy, atmospheric tones complete with the occasional striking of Atsuo’s gong to really set the stage for something truly special. For the rest of the night, Boris showcased the musical diversity and creativity that has kept them on top for over 25 years.
Opening for Boris on this tour is New York’s own Uniform. The brainchild of guitarist Ben Greenberg and vocalist Michael Berdan, Uniform brought a significantly more frantic energy, as well as a heavy dose social and political commentary to Portland. Using pummeling sludgy riffs, distorted electronics and harsh, pained vocals, Uniform kicked the crowd at Port City Music Hall to the curb. Heads were banging to neck breaking degrees as the crushing, chaotic audible bombardment just kept on coming with no sign of slowing down. Uniform came to awaken the fighter in all of us, and absolutely succeeded.
Boris’ Maine debut was a night that the crowd at Port City Music Hall will never forget, and one can hope that we will see them back here in the future.
For more on Boris, head to borisheavyrocks.com
For more on Uniform, head to unifuckingform.bandcamp.com
BORIS
UNIFORM
