If life were an awards show, Japanese sludge metal outfit Boris and Ian Ashberry Astbury (singer of The Cult and the forgettable reincarnation of The Doors) might take the prize for collaborators we couldn’t see coming. Boris is always a good watermark of cool, while Ashberry Astbury seemed to be going the other direction (what do you expect when you take the job as replacement frontman for one of the worst bands of all time …yeah, I said it). Well, kudos, Mr. Astbury– way to rescue your credibility.
The EP these two artists have created, titled BXI, was recorded last April in Tokyo and will finally see an official release in September on CD and vinyl. The collection is only four songs, three of which Ashberry sings, and thankfully doesn’t include “The End”, a cover of The Doors that Astbury jammed with Boris recently in Australia. It does, however, include a cover of “The Rain” sung by Boris’ Wata in addition to the three original numbers. The album will be out on Southern Lord. (P4K)
Boris has a tour lined up with Red Sparrows, and though Astbury isn’t scheduled to play with them, don’t be surprised to hear a cover of a lunatic pretending to sing at your next Boris show. Tickets are on sale at Ticketmaster.com.
Boris 2010 Tour Dates:
07/24 – San Diego, CA @ Casbah
07/25 – Tucson, AZ @ Plush
07/27 – Dallas, TX @ Palladium Ballroom *$
07/28 – Austin, TX @ The Mohawk *$
07/30 – Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon *$
07/31 – Tallahassee, FL @ The Engine Room *$
08/01 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade *
08/02 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle *
08/03 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club *
08/04 – Philadelphia, PA @ Starlight Ballroom *
08/07 – Cambridge, MA @ The Middle East *^
08/08 – Montreal, QC @ Le Tulipe *
08/09 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Place *
08/10 – Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick *&
08/11 – Newport, KY @ Southgate House *
08/13 – Chicago, IL @ Metro *
08/14 – St. Louis, MO @ Firebird *&
08/15 – Lawrence, KS @ Granada Theatre *&
08/16 – Denver, CO @ Marquis Theater #&
08/17 – Salt Lake City, UT @ TBA #
08/19 – Calgary, AB @ Republik #
08/20 – Edmonton, AB @ The Starlite #
08/22 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theater #
08/23 – Seattle, WA @ Neumo’s #@
08/24 – Portland, OR @ Hawthrone Theatre #@
08/26 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall #@
08/27 – Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey #@
08/28 – Pomona, CA @ The Glass House #@
09/05 – Monticello, NY @ ATP New York %
* = w/ Russian Circles
$ = w/ SAADE
^ = w/ Cave In
& = w/ The Life and Times
# = w/ Red Sparowes
@ = w/ Helms Alee
% = “Altar set” w/ Sunn O)))
