I’ve never been a fan of the drum circle. Back in the day, nothing killed a house party moment like the gratuitous suggestion for a drum circle in the backyard
I’ve never been a fan of the drum circle. Back in the day, nothing killed a house party moment like the gratuitous suggestion for a drum circle in the backyard. Within moments the party soundtrack has been replaced by the sound of hippie types thumping away on a set of drums procured during a journey of philosophical discovery through the mountains of Tibet (a story you’ve probably been told – without solicitation – earlier in the evening). It’s a downer, and time to go. Or maybe it’s an afternoon in an inner-suburban park, where the sound of bongos provides the soundtrack for an impromptu session of fire-twirling and organic tofu juggling.
On Saturday night Boredoms showed what a drum circle should be. At precisely 12am, Boredoms, with an accompanying entourage of local drummers (including Evelyn Morris, Cameron Potts and Ben Ely), strode onto the stage. Consistent with other numerically significant dates in the past – 7 July 2007, 8 July 2008 and 9 September 2009 – Boredoms chose the start of the tenth day of the tenth month of the tenth year of the decade to perform their ‘Boardrum’ show. And what a show it is.
Yamanaka Eye is the focus of visual attention. With his dreadlocks spilling out of the back of his peaked cap, Eye looks like a Shinto Lee Scratch Perry. For most of the evening he’s standing in front of his keyboard, rocking from one foot to the other, augmenting the spectacular rhythmic sound with the occasional melody. Behind Eye stand two versions of the ‘Sevena’, Eye’s seven-necked guitar invention. Yoshimi P-We is seated to Eye’s right; Yoshimi’s high-pitched shrieks pepper Boredoms’ set, synchronised to exacerbate the band’s relentless rhythmic attack.
A few minutes into the event and attention is drawn to the right hand side of the venue. Yojiro Tatekawa sits atop of mobile float, thrashing away at a drum beat Keith Moon would be happy to hear. The float makes its way through the crowd, and Yojiro assumes his spot on Eye’s left, barely breaking stride. With each drummer indulging their own creative streak, the combination of drums is as much a conversation as it is a performance – it is, a friend remarks later on, a conversation where you don’t know what’s going to be said next.
For the next hour and a half it’s a blistering journey through a multitude of rock styles and formations. There’s doses of psychedelia, surf rock and even a hint of comfortable ‘70s West Coast rock. Midway through the set the tempo moves from frantic to heavy, and the Boredoms start to channel Black Sabbath. Eye stands before his twin-Sevena, soliciting bruising power chords from the multitude of fretboards on offer.
Eventually the band and attendant drummers wander off the stage. There’s an inevitable lull, before first Boredoms and subsequently the support drumming cast return to their positions. A few punters suggest later on that it’s something of a letdown, but that says more about the power of Boredoms’ opening statement than the quality of the coda. There are another ten or 15 minutes of explosive drummer, screeching and Sevena attacks before Boredoms depart. As the lights come on, we stare at each other in facial tones of complete amazement, offer such bland observations as “fuck, man, that was phenomenal”. Damn straight.
Check our Snaps page for images from the Boredoms Gig.
