Bongripper is easily the most notable Doom band from Chicago. Crushing, Instrumental, Doom. Bongripper’s sound is crushing and atmospheric. A void is destroyed, while another one is created in its shell until the atmosphere becomes monolith. I see mountains growing with every strike. Living in Chicago, naturally I had to go see them. I must say Chicago is blessed to have such a unique band, as we’re not big on Doom. Bongripper make up for this.
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The stage at The Empty Bottle was crescent shape and the sound spread along the old brick walls, typical of Chicago venues. I couldn’t distinguish when Bongripper’s set had begun. One of the members was also in the previous band Winters In Osaka, this happened to be their last show. They DJ and that sounded like one of Bongripper’s ambient tracks off of Heroin (2007). Out comes the 5 minutes of feedback. Anybody familiarized with Bongripper will know the song doesn’t start at the first riff, as the feedback is as much part of the experience. Few minutes in, the first strike comes with synchronized stomping. The sound is absolutely deafening and I knew it would stay with me into the next day. The riff carried on. I didn’t know the material, until later I found out from Ron (Bass) it was from their upcoming record. Mid song they hit the delay and tuned for the second half of the song. By this point there was no telling when they begun and no sign of an end. The songs blended with feedback and noise, which we openly welcomed.
This was my first experience seeing Bongripper live and plan to do so at every Chicago show. Unfortunately, the band typically plays Chicago shows, with the occasional festival such as Deathfest this May and the double set at Roadburn 2012. If your ever in Chicago make sure your schedule lines up with a Bongripper show.
Here is a surprisingly decent recording of the first song, the humming fits nicely with the style of music, enjoy.
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Words: Aleksander
The stage at The Empty Bottle was crescent shape and the sound spread along the old brick walls, typical of Chicago venues. I couldn’t distinguish when Bongripper’s set had begun. One of the members was also in the previous band Winters In Osaka, this happened to be their last show. They DJ and that sounded like one of Bongripper’s ambient tracks off of Heroin (2007). Out comes the 5 minutes of feedback. Anybody familiarized with Bongripper will know the song doesn’t start at the first riff, as the feedback is as much part of the experience. Few minutes in, the first strike comes with synchronized stomping. The sound is absolutely deafening and I knew it would stay with me into the next day. The riff carried on. I didn’t know the material, until later I found out from Ron (Bass) it was from their upcoming record. Mid song they hit the delay and tuned for the second half of the song. By this point there was no telling when they begun and no sign of an end. The songs blended with feedback and noise, which we openly welcomed.
This was my first experience seeing Bongripper live and plan to do so at every Chicago show. Unfortunately, the band typically plays Chicago shows, with the occasional festival such as Deathfest this May and the double set at Roadburn 2012. If your ever in Chicago make sure your schedule lines up with a Bongripper show.
Here is a surprisingly decent recording of the first song, the humming fits nicely with the style of music, enjoy.
Bandcamp
Homepage
Words: Aleksander