Boris — Smile
With the thing that’s the most present and often highest in the mix been the lead guitar work that surf's gloriously over the wonderful chaos of the album. The album surprises at every turn take the opener Flower Sun Rain, you think it's going to be all mean and doomy with the intro guitar hit and feedback but just when you think it’s going to kick-in it drop’s into electric guitar lined Jap folk pop. Or the chugging lo-fi 80’s punked metal groove of Laser Beam that suddenly throws in 80’s keyboard drums and effects over the top, With an odd harp like acoustic guitar refrain that suddenly cuts out, and somehow make it work. My neighbour Satan starts off like a lo-fi muffled take on 80’s teen movie troubled rock ballad before kick in and out of roaming and meaty fist punching rock grove with loads of soloing.
Smile finds both Boris polishing and presenting more memorable pop like moments, but at the sametime shooting the album through with jarring sudden shifts in pace, weird effects and great crazy production, but of course always keeping sigth of their heavy riff base in place. When I read their last album Pink sold hugely I was concerned this might have been a compromised and more commercial release- but instead they’ve performed a starterling feat an album that’s sure more commercial but at the same time more daring and crazy, but most importantly they make the whole splendid chaos work on so many levels.