Boris

Boris is a Japanese experimental metal group from Tokyo, active since 1992. The band’s line-up consists of Nagata, Atsuo, Takeshi and Wata. Their sound draws on ambient, doom metal, drone, drone metal, experimental, noise, sludge metal, psych and related heavy styles, and they are associated with Tokyo’s long-running experimental metal scene.

Formation and name

The group forms in Tokyo in 1992. Its name comes from a song title on Melvins’ album Bullhead. The original line-up is Atsuo on vocals, Takeshi on bass and rhythm guitar, Wata on lead guitar, and Nagata on drums. After Nagata leaves in 1996, Atsuo moves to drums, and the core line-up remains stable.

Recording career

Boris release their debut full-length album, Absolutego, on their own label, Fangs Anal Satan, in 1996. They go on to release more than 20 studio albums, along with EPs, singles and collaborations on a range of labels. Fangs Anal Satan remains one of their key labels.

Collaborations and wider recognition

The band develops a particularly close partnership with noise musician Merzbow, with whom they release three studio albums, a 12-inch EP and two live albums by 2016. Their profile rises internationally in the 2000s after Southern Lord reissues some of their work in North America, bringing them wider critical attention in Western music press. Their album Pink, first issued in Japan in 2005 and later reissued by Southern Lord, receives strong US critical response and appears in year-end lists from Blender, SPIN, Exclaim and Pitchfork Media.