Customer Reviews
A Brilliant Attempt at Making Music How it Should Be...About the Music!
by
Lil' LOUDMOUFF
You may wonder how such a sound ever originated from a couple of brothers and their friends, who after spending countless hours with cheap drawn-on guitars and an old 8 track singing songs about gameboys in their garage, decided to get serious about making music. Of course, you can't always tell if the music itself is in fact serious, satirical or just for fun. That’s what sets these young folk apart from everything else you might hear today. This is Boris Smile. Nothing flashy. But it doesn't need to be. The always-evolving Boris Smile makes music because they know something... something that today's world of music and entertainment could use to learn from: that true music isn't perfect, because the musicians that are making it are just like you and me. They aren't striving for coolness. They never will. But what you get from their music is an authenticity that is truly a work of art. Even though so many of these songs are lighthearted and fun, they capture a genuine humanness that is truly something beautiful.
So if after reading this review, you still decide to go and buy Avril Lavigne's new album or some other fake mess, read this again. And then get this album!
It's all about building community.
by
Molly23
Well, after the years of dedication and love that went into this record, Boris Smile's long-awaited first release is finally here. :)
In today's muddled pool of independent bands vying for their place in the sun, Boris Smile stands head and shoulders above the rest. Driven by A. Wesley Chung's songwriting, each member of Boris Smile brings their own unique talent to the band's sound, creating arrangements that are simple without being predictable, lush without sounding cluttered, and just generally pleasing to even the weariest of ears. The lyrics are so candid and clear, you almost feel like the band is having a conversation with you (most demonstrably so in "Cheaters Never Prosper").
Those who have been to a few of the band's [many] live shows are familiar with some of the crowd favorites like "Goodnight Moon", "Home", "Gameboy" and "Adventures with Rockets", but the album also has surprises like the collaborative freeform "Shake Your Booty", or the surreal and cozy patchwork quilt of sound that is "Smile Once In A While".
Boris Smile has charmed audience after audience over their years of live performance, and amassed a group of artists and bands and friends that they refer to as a "community". Now, with a studio release, hopefully the community that Boris Smile has built can grow and spread a little more.
Recommended for fans of the shins, ben folds, and anyone under 25
by
Douglas Dodgson
Boris Smile sound like a great suburban band - you can almost hear the rec room, garage, school hall and bedroom that these songs were composed in and for.
Their sound is eclectic and full on this album, with everything from a dirty-mic'ed acoustic guitar to a full string section, usually sounding folk-poppy but also veering into alt-pop (see the driving distorted rhythm on "Adventures with Rockets"), sound collage ("Conversations" and "Smile Once in a While" -- think of "Revolution 9" designed to charm instead of freak out) and geek-dance ("The Talk," "Shake Your Booty," and "Gameboy").
Speaking of geekiness, if there's any geekiness it's probably self-conscious geekiness -- brainy vulnerability hidden within jokes and metaphors. The title "Chapter 1" might put you in mind of a book (or Rushmore?) and if you like books (or Rushmore) you might like this album. It could be fun on the surface for background music while studying or working, but if you care to listen closer there are quite a few great lines, concepts, and sincere emotions (a few favorites: "Every light in every room would go to bed very soon" from "Goodnight Moon," "I wanna know how to make babies, just in case" from "The Talk," "Cheaters never study much when they're sitting by those Asian kids" from "Cheaters Never Prosper," "What do they mean 'in case of emergencies'?" from "Emergencies," "When it comes to fashion / you like... brown pants / dadadadadadaaa" from "Gina Stine #9" (a curious ode to an everygirl none of us will ever know), and the sincere religious/existential pleading on "My Empty Present". Some of the themes will appeal especially to younger audiences, so pick this up before you get too jaded.
