Button Bashingly Good (R Borlax - Horse The Band)

Member Name: rleigh

Product:	R Borlax - Horse The Band
Date:	30/06/08 (57 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The music is great fun to listen to, excellent use of lyrics is made here.

Disadvantages: If you don't like hardcore shouted vocals then you won't like this.

Originally released in 2003 through Pluto Records, 'R. Borlax' is the debut studio release from the hugely fun Nintendocore band that is HORSE the band. The bands music possesses an experimental hardcore sound, retro Nintendo computer games are a massive influence on the music of HORSE the band and lyrically the bands tracks often here refer to Nintendo computer game characters. A couple of sound clips are also here taken from movies such as 'Mulholland Drive' and 'Donnie Darko' and utilised within the tracks 'Purple' and 'Kangarooster 4057' respectively. Originally the album only contained 10 tracks; the album was re-released through Koch Records in 2007 however and now possesses 12. I own the re-release of the album and must say that the further two tracks which were tagged on the end add further depth and excellence to this 'R. Borlax' album release.

In terms of my favourite tracks from this album I'd have to say that those of 'Handsome Shoved His Gloves', 'Cutsman', and 'Big Blue Violence' are those that appeal to me most here. 'Cutsman' is another track from this album to utilise a sound clip, it begins with a clip taken from the 1989 film 'The Wizard' and the sound clip used here talks of the 'power glove' which features within the film. The track makes excellent use of the sound clip, this really adds brilliance to 'Cutsman' and is I feel the reason that I perceive it to be one of the best tracks on the album.

Throughout this 'R. Borlax' album the band makes excellent use of its lyrics, always the lyrics are hugely fun and this is the main appeal of the music here. The vocals are ferociously sung out by the band; instrumentally however the music is also highly impressive. The instrumental performance of the band here is hugely interesting; the guitar sounds are excellent and the synth sound also is exceptional. The synth provides the music with an authentic Nintendo feel, the sound created by the band is highly entertaining and instrumentally the music always has much to offer. The 8-bit synth sound here is absolutely brilliant, instrumentally the music sounds like it could easily fit in an early Nintendo Game Boy game and if you love Nintendo computer games then you'll find the lyrical use here to be absolutely excellent.

With 'Cutsman' the band speak of Cutman from the Megaman series, with the tracks 'The Immense Defecation of the Buntaluffigus' and 'Pol's Voice' however the lyrical subject is that of The Legend of Zelda. The bands music refers directly and indirectly to characters from the Nintendo series of computer games, the music is great fun to listen to and if you have a fond love for Nintendo computer games of past and present then you should greatly appreciate the lyrical content of this album. Musically the tracks here are not always great, it's experimental hardcore and there are times when the music is a little too experimental. On the whole this album works really well though, this debut album from the band is well worth listening to and if you have a fond love for Nintendo and hardcore music then this will be an absolutely perfect album for you to listen to.

'R. Borlax' is far better an album than the bands second release 'The Mechanical Hand', it's much more entertaining to listen to and instrumentally also the music is far more approachable here. The lyrics are great fun to listen to, this is not the best album that has ever been released but it's certainly one that provides for a fine 40 minutes of music entertainment nonetheless. If you don't like harsh shouted vocals then it's probably best to avoid this album from the band, if you don't mind them however and have a great appreciation for all things Nintendo then you should absolutely love this album from the band. The twelve track version of this album can currently be bought from Amazon for a price of £15.49, it's quite an expensive rate for a mere 40 minutes of music; as the album is only available on import however it is to be expected that you have be pay slightly over the odds in order to purchase this album from the band. If you use iTunes it will probably be cheaper to download the album from there, personally I like to actually physically own albums however so if like me you're one for owning albums then my suggestion would be to listen to a few clips of the bands tracks (this can be done at Amazon) and then if you like what you hear then definitely invest in 'R. Borlax' as its the best HORSE the band album to have been released thus far.

Summary: 'R. Borlax' is an excellent album to listen to for fans of Nintendo and hardcore music alike.