Boris-Smile
Southern Lord
April 29, 2008

Boris are one of those rare breeds that can most likely tackle any style of music and make it sound good. Smile is full of song after song of different styles, and they pull them all off so well. Whether it be stoner drone, sludge, metal, hardcore, punk, melodic instrumental, ambient, etc., it seems done effortlessly, fitting in at every moment its played. Their use of dynamics, going from loud to soft, staying soft for awhile and then creshendoing, (again) etc., adds even more depth to Boris that one would think unfathomable. These guys are talented, and this almost hour long album (done in eight songs) is a testament to that.

The only negative that people may have with Smile is its length. People with short attention spans will not like this album, even though Boris do a great job of keeping things interesting throughout. There are tons of layers to each song, and a lot of different parts and styles to keep the ears of most people, and there are a lot of vocals, which sound more like an extra instrument instead of a voice (a case can be made that vocals are an instrument, but I look at it as its own separate element).

There are plenty of things to like about this album. Boris succeed on so many levels with Smile. They have already gathered a good amount of buzz within the past couple of years, and Smile very well could be their official breakthrough album.

Written by: RF
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