Pink
Studio album by
Boris
ReleasedNovember 18, 2005 (2005-11-18)
Recorded2005
StudioSound Square
Genre
Length
  • 47:23 (CD version)
  • 55:23 (CD reissue)
  • 72:16 (LP version)
  • 93:58 (2016 deluxe CD version)
  • 110:51 (2016 deluxe LP version)
LabelDiwphalanx
ProducerBoris
Boris chronology
Boris Archive
(2005)		 Pink
(2005)		 The Thing Which Solomon Overlooked 2
(2006)
Alternative cover
2006 Southern Lord release

Pink is the tenth album by Japanese experimental music band Boris. It was originally released in 2005 through Diwphalanx Records in Japan and subsequently reissued in 2006 by American label Southern Lord Records.

The album's length was extended significantly on the LP version of the album. For the 2006 reissue of Pink, the album's cover art, track order, and length were modified from the original version released in Japan in 2005. Additionally, a music video was shot for the title track which was limited to 100 copies on DVD. Since then, the music video has been included in the limited edition of the album Smile, also published by Southern Lord.

An expanded reissue of the album using the original Japanese filled stencil-style art was announced for worldwide release by Sargent House on May 9, 2016, simultaneously debuting new track "Are You Ready" from its bonus disc.[1] Later the same month, NPR Music hosted a stream of an additional new song from the release, "SOFUN".[2] Sargent House streamed the bonus disc via their SoundCloud page the day before it was released on July 8, 2016.[3] The full-length version of the track "Farewell" from the LP edition appears on Boris / Variations + Live in Japan. It was also re-recorded for Boris' collaborative studio album with Merzbow, Gensho.

Pink has been met with critical acclaim, particularly for incorporating more melody into the band's abrasive sound. It is regarded as Boris' breakthrough, and several music sites have listed it as one of the best albums, metal or otherwise, of the 2000s.

Composition

Pink has large musical footing in metal, with doom,[4][5] sludge,[6] stoner,[7] and thrash[8] styles all seen throughout. However, true to Boris' eclectic nature, it also shows roots in ambient, hardcore,[8] garage punk,[9] garage rock,[10][11] noise prog,[12] dream pop, post-metal,[13] and post-rock.[6] Their "pensive", "poised" handling of shoegaze is seen as the record's strength.[9][14] Loudwire saw a slight acid rock sound brought on by its "organic" lo-fi production.[15]

Reception

Professional ratings
Original 2005/2006 releases
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100[16]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
Cokemachineglow79%[17]
Drowned in Sound8/10[18]
Exclaim!(favorable)[19]
Neumu8/10[20]
Now4/5[21]
Pitchfork8.7/10[22]
SpinA[12]
Stylus MagazineC[23]
Tiny Mix Tapes[24]

Pink's original releases were greeted with generally positive reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 80, based on 13 reviews.[16]

Awarding it a full five stars, AllMusic's Thom Jurek named it Boris' "most cohesive, adventurous, and "listenable" recording" to date.[10] Pitchfork's Brandon Stosuy called it their "most melodic, conventionally structured, and aggressively addictive LP to date." He named them "2006's balls-out riff makers to beat."[22] Giving it his site's fullest rating, Spin's Joe Gross called it "crazy [and] gorgeous", praising the band's ability to "flatten a club with their firepower."[12] Neumu's Tom Ridge positively noted its appeal to both extreme metal and avant-rock fans while keeping an accessibility for curious listeners.[20]

However, some critics were more reserved. Stylus' Stewart Voegtlin criticized the band's "infatuation with kitschy artistic jest" which "does little to empower their sound". Leaving the album "unimpressed", he dubbed it "neither a step in a [nearly] "right" direction nor a meaningful action altogether."[23] Tiny Mix Tapes' Grant 'Gumshoe' Purdum dismissed it as "quite simply half-there." He labeled it "muddy as a bowl of bad split pea soup, and twice as hammy."[24]

Impact and legacy

Professional ratings
2016 deluxe reissue
Review scores
SourceRating
ConsequenceA−[14]
The Line of Best Fit9/10[11]
Record Collector[25]
The Spill Magazine[26]
Uncut8/10[27]

Pink's 2016 reissue was met with acclaim. Applauding it as "groundbreaking", Consequence's Nina Corcoran claimed the album "holds up with contagious energy and genuinely mesmerizing atmosphere".[14] The Line of Best Fit's Geoff Cowart felt the reissue spoke to how "fresh and amusingly prophetic" Pink remained.[11]

Impact and legacy

"A masterpiece of modern metal",[28] Pink is seen as a breakthrough for Boris,[4] its musical diversity and accessibility both factoring into its applause.[14] Treble called it "their most eclectic and most accessible" songs.[29] Loudwire ranked it as one of stoner rock / metal's 11 best albums.[15] Tiny Mix Tapes dubbed it "one of the most rewarding and exciting metal records" of the 2000s.[30]

Nashville Scene distinguished it as "the album that made metal hip", helping heavy music reach more indie-inclined listeners outside of underground metal. This aspect helped future bands like Baroness, Pallbearer, and more find crossover success.[5] Invisible Oranges credited it with instilling appreciation for "minimalistic yet heavy" sounds in metal fans. They dubbed Boris one of the first bands to fuse ambient, shoegaze, and sludge elements.[31] To "lure in newcomers", melodic rock and shoegaze elements appear. Nina Corcoran of Consequence likened this aspect to a similarly stylized album, then-trio Deafheaven's Sunbather (2013). Like that record, Pink's accessibility has helped it be noted as one of few albums that "extend[s] with sincerity" to normally non-metal listeners.[14] Bandcamp Daily recognized both the album and Boris' place in post-metal's history. Alongside 2005's Dronevil, Pink was given credit for speaking to their consistent embrace of the scene's spirit and vitality.[13] Treble felt that Pink announced Boris as "the definitive post-metal band", if only due to their disloyalty to genre.[29]

Several tracks have gone on to become fan favourites and critical hits, particularly "Farewell". Invisible Oranges' staff deemed the track "one of those rare convergences between a band's best-known song and its strongest." They even felt it "[eclipse] pretty much anything else in Boris' discography."[32] Treble placed it among the essential songs in the shoegaze genre's history.[33] In a similar list by BrooklynVegan, "Farewell" ranked as an essential track of the 2000s/'10s shoegaze and heavy music crossover.[34] It would later be included on the soundtrack of Jim Jarmusch's 2009 film The Limits of Control, which Boris also scored.[4] Treble wrote that "Your Name Part 2"'s "slow-burn charm" foresaw Baroness in the era of their album Yellow & Green (2012).[29]

To commemorate its 10th anniversary, Boris embarked on a North American and European tour of the album. The tour involved 28 performances in various U.S. cities and two in Canada's Montreal and Toronto. Drone metal trio Earth accompanied the band for all U.S. dates, but sat out for Canada's two dates.[35] The last two months of 2016 were devoted to 28 performances across Europe and the U.K.

Accolades

Clayton Purdom for Cokemachineglow named Pink "the best heavy metal record" of the 2000s, defending it against some of the band's fans' arguments. He deemed it "a language-and-rhetoric free artistic statement" that "shattered", "steamrolled", and "de-verb[ed]" any arguments.[36]

Publication Country List Rank Ref.
Blender US The 50 Greatest CDs of 2006
49
Cokemachineglow Canada Top 100 Albums of the 2000s
69
Pitchfork US Top 50 Albums of 2006
9
PopMatters The Best Metal Albums of 2006
2
Terrorizer UK Top 100 Albums of the 2000s
96
Tiny Mix Tapes US Favorite Albums of 2006
22
Favorite 100 Albums of 2000-2009
65
Treble The Best Metal Albums of the 21st Century
20
The Best Albums of the '00s
101

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."決別" ("Farewell")7:33
2."Pink"4:20
3."スクリーンの女" ("Woman on the Screen")2:38
4."別になんでもない" ("Nothing Special")2:17
5."ブラックアウト" ("Blackout")4:49
6."Electric"1:45
7."偽ブレッド" ("Pseudo-Bread")4:29
8."ぬるい炎" ("Afterburner")4:22
9."6を3つ" ("Six, Three Times")2:53
10."My Machine"2:01
11."俺を捨てたところ" ("Just Abandoned Myself"; 18:14 on English version)10:14
Total length:47:23

Southern Lord CD version

No.TitleLength
1."Farewell" (決別)7:33
2."Pink"4:20
3."Woman on the Screen" (スクリーンの女)2:38
4."Nothing Special" (別になんでもない)2:17
5."Blackout" (ブラックアウト)4:49
6."Electric"1:45
7."Pseudo-Bread" (偽ブレッド)4:29
8."Afterburner" (ぬるい炎)4:22
9."Six, Three Times" (6を3つ)2:53
10."My Machine"2:01
11."Just Abandoned Myself" (俺を捨てたところ; 10:14 on Japanese version)18:14
Total length:55:23

LP version

Side A
No.TitleLength
1."Pink"4:20
2."Woman on the Screen"2:38
3."Nothing Special"2:17
4."Blackout"4:49
Side B
No.TitleLength
1."Electric"1:45
2."Six, Three Times"2:53
3."Afterburner"4:22
4."Pseudo-Bread"10:08
Side C
No.TitleLength
1."My Machine"11:14
2."Farewell"9:32
Side D
No.TitleLength
1."Just Abandoned My-Self"18:14
Total length:72:16

2016 deluxe version

The first disc of the CD release is identical to the Southern Lord CD release, and the first two discs of the LP release are identical to those of the previous LP release.

Forbidden Songs
No.TitleLength
1."Your Name Part 2"6:15
2."Heavy Rock Industry"3:18
3."SOFUN"3:57
4."non/sha/lant"2:35
5."Room Noise"3:35
6."Talisman"4:26
7."N.F. Sorrow"7:50
8."Are You Ready?"4:21
9."Tiptoe"2:18
Total length:38:35

The LP version of this disc splits the track list between "Room Noise" and "Talisman".[42]

Personnel

Sourced from AllMusic's credits.[10]

Boris

  • Takeshi – vocals, bass, guitar
  • Wata – guitar, echo, sound effects
  • Atsuo - drums, percussion

Technical

  • Boris – production
  • Souichirou Nakamura – mixing, mastering

Artwork & design

  • Fangs Anal Satan – artwork
  • Stephen O'Malley – design (LP version)
  • The Lord – A&R (reissue)
  • Blake & Durer – artwork (reissue)
  • P.C.B. – design (reissue)

Pressing history

Year Label Format Country Out of print? Notes
2005 Diwphalanx CD Japan No Some copies featured a die-cut sleeve around the jewel box
2xLP Yes Ltd. 500. Deluxe 2xLP featuring a die-cut "stencil" cover and extended cuts of "Pseudo-Bread", "My Machine", "Farewell" and "Just Abandoned Myself"; different track listing
2006 Southern Lord CD United States Yes Different cover from Japanese pressing; has same audio overall as the Japanese CD apart from featuring the same extended cut of "Just Abandoned Myself" as the Japanese 2xLP. The cover art features pictures by the poet and artist William Blake depicting Satan from his illustrations to John Milton's Paradise Lost. The album also comes with three paintings of devil imagery on sheets of what resembles perforated "blotter paper," usually associated with LSD. Also, the misspelling of 'abandoned' to 'abondoned' on the album sleeve and online MP3 tagging seems to be intended.
2xLP Yes Ltd. 6000. Pressed on 180g pink marble (2000), clear pink (2000) and black vinyl (2000); has same audio overall as the Japanese 2xLP; same cover art as the US CD
2007 2xLP Yes Ltd. 2000. Pressed on 180g icy pink (1000) and deep red (1000); has same audio overall as the Japanese 2xLP; same cover art as the US CD

References

  1. ↑ Yoo, Noah (May 9, 2016). "Boris Reissue Pink With Bonus Album, Share "Are You Ready": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 5, 2016.
  2. ↑ Gotrich, Lars (June 15, 2016). "Viking's Choice: Boris, 'SOFUN'". NPR Music. Retrieved July 5, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Boris – Pink "Forbidden Songs" by Sargent House". SoundCloud. Retrieved July 7, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 Spill New Music (May 9, 2016). "SPILL NEW MUSIC: BORIS PREMIERE UNRELEASED TRACK FROM 10TH ANNIVERSARY PINK ALBUM DELUXE REISSUE". The Spill Magazine. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  5. 1 2 Graves, Seth (July 28, 2016). "Music From Big Pink: Boris Brings to Nashville the Album That Made Metal Hip". Nashville Scene. Archived from the original on February 15, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  6. 1 2 Bowe, Miles (10 May 2016). "Boris prep 10th anniversary reissue of Pink, play in full on tour". Fact. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Beginner's Guide: Boris". Treblezine. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  8. 1 2 Joffe, Justin (August 3, 2016). "No One Can Top the Beautiful Heaviness of Boris' Masterwork 'Pink'". Observer. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
  9. 1 2 Vigil, Ricky (August 4, 2016). "Boris - SLUG Magazine". SLUG Magazine. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Jurek, Thom. "Pink – Boris". AllMusic. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  11. 1 2 3 Cowart, Geoff (June 27, 2016). "Pink's 10th birthday reissue is the perfect way to revel in Boris' delirious power". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  12. 1 2 3 Gross, Joe (April 2006). "Boris: Pink". Spin. 22 (4): 93–95. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  13. 1 2 Wiederham, Jon (August 4, 2016). "A Brief History of Post-Metal | Bandcamp Daily". Bandcamp Daily. Archived from the original on March 22, 2022. Retrieved February 17, 2022.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Corcoran, Nina (July 22, 2016). "Boris – Pink (Deluxe Edition)". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on September 12, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  15. 1 2 DiVita, Joe (April 20, 2021). "11 Best Stoner Rock + Metal Albums". Loudwire. Retrieved March 19, 2022.
  16. 1 2 "Reviews for Pink by Boris". Metacritic. Retrieved March 19, 2009.
  17. ↑ Betz, Chet (January 19, 2006). "Boris: Pink | Records | Cokemachineglow". Cokemachineglow. Archived from the original on January 6, 2008. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  18. ↑ Diver, Mike (May 16, 2006). "Album Review: Boris – Pink". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  19. ↑ Ayers, Chris (June 1, 2006). "Boris Pink". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved March 19, 2022.
  20. 1 2 Ridge, Tom. "Neumu - 44.1kHz". Neumu. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  21. ↑ Perlich, Tim (May 11, 2006). "Boris". Now. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  22. 1 2 Stosuy, Brandon (January 9, 2006). "Boris: Pink". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on February 15, 2022. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  23. 1 2 Voegtlin, Stewart (May 1, 2006). "Boris – Pink – Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on May 23, 2007. Retrieved April 16, 2009.
  24. 1 2 Grant 'Gumshoe' Purdum. "Boris - Pink | Music Review | Tiny Mix Tapes". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on January 26, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
  25. ↑ Hamnett, Alun (August 2016). "Boris – Pink – Deluxe Edition". Record Collector (456). Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  26. ↑ Fazio, Nicholas (8 July 2016). "SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: BORIS – PINK (DELUXE EDITION)". The Spill Magazine. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
  27. ↑ O'Connell, Sharon (August 2016). "Boris: Pink (Deluxe Edition)". Uncut (231): 89.
  28. 1 2 Treble Staff (January 18, 2010). "The Best Albums of the '00s - Page 5". Treble. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  29. 1 2 3 Terich, Jeff (July 15, 2016). "Boris' Pink Deluxe Edition is a thunderous anniversary gift | Treble". Treble. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  30. 1 2 TMT Staff (February 9, 2010). "Favorite 100 Albums of 2000-2009: 80-61". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
  31. ↑ Kettering, Kelly (July 21, 2016). "Interview: Takeshi (Boris)". Invisible Oranges. Archived from the original on July 23, 2016. Retrieved March 29, 2022.
  32. ↑ Michaels, Clayton (June 14, 2017). "So Grim So True So Real: Boris". Invisible Oranges. Archived from the original on June 16, 2017. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  33. ↑ Treble Staff (May 23, 2022). "45 of the Best Shoegaze Songs: A History". Treble. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  34. ↑ Sacher, Andrew (June 17, 2022). "30 essential songs from the shoegaze / heavy crossover". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  35. ↑ Adams, Gregory (May 9, 2016). "Boris Treat 'Pink' to Extended Reissue and Anniversary Tour". Exclaim!. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  36. 1 2 "Top 100 Albums of the 2000s - Page 4". Cokemachineglow. Retrieved June 20, 2022.
  37. ↑ "The 50 Greatest CDs of 2006". Wayback Machine. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  38. ↑ Pitchfork Staff (December 19, 2006). "Top 50 Albums of 2006 - Page 5 | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  39. ↑ Begrand, Adrian (December 21, 2006). "The Best Metal Albums of 2006 | PopMatters". PopMatters. Archived from the original on February 18, 2022. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  40. ↑ TMT Staff (December 20, 2006). "2006: Tiny Mix Tapes Favorite Albums of 2006". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  41. ↑ Treble Staff (September 12, 2017). "The Best Metal Albums of the 21st Century | Treble - Treblezine". Treble. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  42. ↑ "Pink Deluxe 12" Triple LP". Sargent House Hello Merch Store. Retrieved July 5, 2016.
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