| Boces | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 1, 1993 | |||
| Recorded | 1992–1993 | |||
| Genre | Neo-psychedelia, noise pop | |||
| Length | 53:55 | |||
| Label | Beggars Banquet (UK) Columbia (US) | |||
| Producer | Mercury Rev | |||
| Mercury Rev chronology | ||||
| ||||
Boces is the second album by Mercury Rev, released in 1993. It was their final album with frontman David Baker, who was asked to leave shortly after the supporting tour concluded.[1] The title is derived from the Boards of Cooperative Educational Services system of vocational schools in New York.[1]
Background
During the tour (on Lollapalooza) for this album, the band were forced off the stage for being too loud.[2]
Music
Boces contains music that has been characterized as "dreaming musing[s]" as well as "thrashy freakouts." Some of the material has been categorized as jazz-pop. The album's instrumentation additionally incorporates flutes, harps, brass and choir.[3]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[4] |
| NME | 8/10[5] |
| Q |  [6] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [7] |
| Select | 4/5[8] |
| Uncut | 8/10[9] |
Heather Phares of AllMusic wrote, "With Boces, Mercury Rev took everything that made Yerself Is Steam such an impressive debut and made their second album even more so. [...] Mercury Rev never released another album as joyfully, unselfconsciously creative as Boces; after chief weirdo David Baker departed, the band pursued other fascinating directions, but this album remains one of the highest points of its career."[3]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Mercury Rev according to the liner notes; actual writing credits from the ASCAP Repertory are listed below.[10]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Meth of a Rockette's Kick" | David Baker, Jimy Chambers, Jonathan Donahue, Dave Fridmann, Sean Mackowiak, Suzanne Thorpe | 10:29 |
| 2. | "Trickle Down" | Baker, Chambers, Donahue, Fridmann, Mackowiak, Thorpe | 5:04 |
| 3. | "Bronx Cheer" | Baker, Donahue, Fridmann | 2:49 |
| 4. | "Boys Peel Out" | Baker, Donahue, Fridmann, Mackowiak | 4:28 |
| 5. | "Downs Are Feminine Balloons" | Baker, Donahue, Fridmann, Mackowiak, Thorpe | 6:29 |
| 6. | "Something for Joey" | Baker, Chambers, Fridmann, Mackowiak, Thorpe | 4:06 |
| 7. | "Snorry Mouth" | Baker, Chambers, Donahue | 10:55 |
| 8. | "Hi-Speed Boats" | Baker, Fridmann, Mackowiak | 4:00 |
| 9. | "Continuous Drunks and Blunders" | Baker, Donahue, Fridmann, Mackowiak | 0:48 |
| 10. | "Girlfren" | Baker, Chambers, Donahue, Fridmann, Mackowiak, Thorpe | 4:41 |
Personnel
- Mercury Rev
- Jimy Chambers – Drumming, AtlasSweepstakes
- Jonathan Donahue – Silver Pickup Guitar, Vocals between Ventolin hits
- Grasshopper – Dither Guitar, Licorice Stick
- Suzanne Thorpe – Rooster Tail Bass Flute, Chevron Fife
- Dave Fridmann – Bass Explore, Exhaled band-with Magnetics
- David Baker – Vocals
- Additional musicians
- Julie Baker – violin
- C. Gavazzi – French horn
- Jim Burgess – trombone
References
- ^ a b Jonathan Donahue 'The Mercury Rev Story' Interview by Iain McNay, retrieved March 18, 2023
- ^ "Jonathan Donahue (mercury Rev)". Archived from the original on September 20, 2016.
- ^ a b c Phares, Heather. "Boces – Mercury Rev". AllMusic. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
- ^ Farber, Jim (July 9, 1993). "Mercury Rev: Boces (Columbia)". Entertainment Weekly. No. 178. p. 50. Archived from the original on May 7, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
- ^ Cameron, Keith (May 29, 1993). "These Schoolish Things". NME. p. 32.
- ^ Snow, Mat (July 1993). "Mercury Rev: Boces". Q. No. 82. p. 98.
- ^ Kot, Greg (2004). "Mercury Rev". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 538. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- ^ Perry, Andrew (July 1993). "Mercury Rev: Boces / Urge Overkill: Saturation". Select. No. 37. p. 93.
- ^ Hermes, Will (October 2024). "Magnum Opus". Uncut. No. 330. p. 89.
- ^ "ACE Repertory". ASCAP. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
