77 Boa Drum
77 Boa Drum is a region free DVD. 77 Boa Drum comes packaged in a four panel DVD wallet with three postcards featuring photographs from the performance
On July 7th, 2007 at 7:07 PM, Japanese group Boredoms, orchestrated a performance by 77 drummers at the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Brooklyn, NY. Nearly three years later, the experience is finally making its way to DVD. 77 Boa Drum is the official live performance documentary of the event, complete with behind the scenes rehearsal footage, interviews, and of course, lots of footage of the actual performance.
The momentous event was filmed by Jun Kawaguchi and his crew, web-TV sites like VBS TV, Viva-Radio, and several unknown You Tube cameramen. Kawaguchi, a big fan of Boredoms, had spent a decade chronicling the band’s live performances and the 77 Boa Drum concert was no different. After editing his footage together with live footage captured and posted on You Tube, the 89 minute documentary was born.
BOREDOMS HISTORY
There may be no other band in the world that has traced a path quite like Japan’s Boredoms. Across nearly 20 years, founder and leader Eye Yamataka, along with frequent collaborator Yoshimi, has taken the band on a cosmic road trip, from the early swamps of chaos through times of tribal frenzy, oceanic tranquility, and massive sonic constructions. Perhaps most remarkable is the unceasing commitment to vision above all else, and the effects of that commitment. The influence of Boredoms in underground, experimental, noise, and performance-based music cannot be overstated.
The early Boredoms seemingly harnessed that chaotic energy and began melding it into a No Wave-influenced rock format. The first release under the name Boredoms appeared in 1986. The frenetic, maniacal live show cemented their reputation. The incredible rhythmic power, clever melodic punches, and sheer chaotic intensity allowed the band to play off each other in ways that had perhaps never been heard or seen before. The result was both well-earned rising popularity and something unheard of: a major label deal, in Japan, for an incorrigibly independent band that demanded full control. Outside Japan, Boredoms have made their mark as well. From their associations with bands like Sonic Youth to their explosive tours through the U.S. and Europe, Boredoms were partially responsible for opening the eyes of listeners in this country to the possibilities of the Japanese music scene.
After the release of Chocolate Synthesizer, the Boredoms began to evolve away from the chaos-rock of their past. 1998’s Super Ae evoked tribal rhythms as well as electronicized krautrock – a trance-inducing set of songs filled with tribal elements. In their Super Roots series of records (1993-1999), Boredoms expanded their ideal of ecstatic, thunderous, repetitive music, steeped in power rock, electronic rhythms, and psychedelic incantations. At the time, Eye also became more involved in DJing and dabbling in Japan’s rave culture, resulting in the Rebore series of Boredoms remix EPs. After a prolonged absence, their record Seadrum/House of Sun was finally released in 2005. In 2007, they released their first live album Super Roots 9 (released on Thrill Jockey in the U.S. in 2008) and made an already legendary Boa Drum show with 77 drummers become reality. 2008 saw the continuation of the series with two simultaneous 88 Boa Drum shows taking place in both New York and Los Angeles. A series of Boa Drum 9 shows throughout 2009 were also hailed as some of the best performances of the festivals where these unique events took place.
After nearly two decades of noise, chaos, tribal experimentation, remixing, trans-inducing feats of rhythmic intensity, lineup changes, continued collaborations, and doing what they want regardless of trends and fashion, Boredoms continue, and remain as vital as ever.
