We Could All Use a Bit of Borgore in Our Lives, Even You Grown Folks

Keep Houston Press Free
I Support
  • Local
  • Community
  • Journalism
  • logo


Borgore Stereo Live June 5, 2014

It was right about the time that Borgore dropped the modern brostep classic that is Skrillex's remix of Nero's "Promises" that I found myself on the second level of Stereo Live thinking about young-adult novels. I realize this is a weird thing to be thinking about while those perfect noises play, but hear me out.

There's a really dumb article over at Slate that argues that grown folks shouldn't read young-adult novels because there are plenty of grown-folks books that you could be reading instead. I found myself wondering if this extends to music as well.

Here I am, up at 12:40 a.m. on a work night in a packed crowd listening to Borgore spin all manner of bass tracks, and I've never once listened to a Bob Dylan album, don't know a single Smiths song other than "How Soon Is Now?" and the only thing I know about Neutral Milk Hotel is that that guy really loves Anne Frank.

But you know what? YOLO. Borgore puts on a damn fun show, and -- revoke my music critic card if you must -- sometimes that's way better than sitting at home listening to the classics.

It should come as no surprise that Borgore puts on a high energy, throw-your-hands-in-the-air performance. That did surprise me is how... well... wholesome isn't the right word for it, but I'm not entirely sure what the opposite of ratchet is. I mean, sure there were your couples grinding up on each other, spilling beer and making fools of themselves, but I think I expected a little more sound and fury. Borgore is, after all, a dude who collaborates with Miley Cyrus and used to be in a deathcore band. You know he's seen some pretty epic shit in his days.

And yet, when he did that thing where he asked the crowd to turn in to a mosh pit, nothing really happened. People kept putting their hands in the air, which is really all you can do when you're packed in ass-to-elbows. That's fine, but I guess I was just expecting there to be a little bit more chaos. The sound was certainly there, but the fury was not.

His set was firmly rooted in bass music, jumping between the various genres associated with it; some dubstep here, a splash of trap there, basically exactly what you'd expect. The dude can mix, there's no doubt about that, and his song selection is pretty on point. From time to time you would hear something that really drove home his heavy-metal roots, but I'm not sure that's because that's what actually was happening or if it's because I look up every person I'm going to see on Wikipedia and then wait to see if the performance matches what I read online.

I think it was the former though, which means if you ever feel the need to play air guitar at a Borgore show you should go ahead and shred away.

Review continues on the next page.

I went to what some folks call a suitcase college, so the idea that people party hard on a Thursday night isn't exactly foreign to me. And if you were going to put the money down on concert tickets, alcohol and a nifty tank top, you could do much, much worse than Borgore. But hey, if the man asks you to mosh, don't be afraid to live a little.

I mean, you're not sitting at home listening to the classics for a reason, ya know?

Personal Bias: Hate is a strong word, but I've had a bone to pick with Borgore ever since I heard his awful remix of one of the greatest songs of all time.

The Crowd: It is officially tank top, tutu and furry-boot season.

Overheard In the Crowd: The following conversation takes place in the Stereo Live parking lot at approximately 10:05 p.m.:

A: What time is it? B: Early.

Random Notebook Dump: My kingdom for a security guard who knows how to properly attach a wristband. Some of us have delicate, hairy arms.

So How Was the Opener? If you don't know the name Parker Clark, you should probably write it down and keep him on your radar. Being the opening DJ on a show like this can be a bit of a bummer: sure people show up early, but it's only so they have a good parking spot and/or vantage point to watch the show. The opener is mostly there to play music that they'll talk over. But to his credit Clark managed to get the crowd in to his set quite a few times. Dude has a hell of a one-hour mix, which is why it's a shame he was on for an hour and half. I will say this: the guy's buildups and drops were stellar. Would definitely show up early to hear him spin again.







