Heavy Rocks is the fourth album by Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese metal band Boris

Boris (band)

is a Japanese experimental rock band, known for often combining and switching between different music genres including drone metal, sludge metal, noise rock, psychedelic rock, ambient and pop...

. Unlike the previous albums, which were laden with doom

Doom metal

Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...

 and drone

Drone music

Drone music is a minimalist musical style that emphasizes the use of sustained or repeated sounds, notes, or tone-clusters – called drones. It is typically characterized by lengthy audio programs with relatively slight harmonic variations throughout each piece compared to other musics...

 sounds, this music departs wholesale from Boris's previous efforts and emphasizes punk

Punk rock

Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...

 and stoner rock

Stoner rock

Stoner rock or stoner metal is a subgenre of heavy metal, combining elements of psychedelic rock, blues rock, traditional heavy metal and doom metal. Stoner rock is typically slow-to-mid tempo and features a bass-heavy sound, melodic vocals, and 'retro' production...

. Despite this, the album was and is still well received by fans, and is the "base sound" for their releases on Diwphalanx.

Music videos were shot for "1970" and "Korosu", both of which formerly could be viewed on FoodUnited's website. Both videos can be found on the DVD Live at Shimokitazawa Shelter

Live at Shimokitazawa Shelter

見殺し塔からずっと: Live at Shimokitazawa Shelter is the first DVD release by Japanese band Boris. It was captured on their Black Summer tour on July 12, 2003. The first ten tracks are songs from the show, which are mostly from the Akuma no Uta and Heavy Rocks albums. Tracks 11-14 are music videos made by...

.

Heavy Rocks was going to be released on vinyl by Man's Ruin Records

Man's Ruin Records

Man's Ruin Records was an independent record label, owned and founded by Bay Area artist Frank Kozik. After the 1994 release of Man's Ruin's first record, entitled Experimental Audio Research : Delta 6, Kozik worked with artists who he wanted to release; he also designed all of the sleeve art for...

 but the label folded before it happened.

A single was released by Inoxia Records

Inoxia Records

Inoxia Records is a Japanese record label that is closely related to the Japanese band Boris. In addition to releasing material, they also distribute other Japanese labels such as Daymare Recordings, Pedal Records, and Diwphalanx Records.-Discography:...

 featuring alternate takes of the songs "1970

1970 (song)

"1970" is a single by Japanese band Boris released by Inoxia Records. It features alternate/extended versions of two of the songs from Heavy Rocks on 7" vinyl. The single was limited to 500 copies on black vinyl.-Pressing history:...

" b/w "Wareruraido."

Alternate takes of "Korosu" and "1970" appear on Variations.

Limited copies were made for this album and has since been a very rare and obscure album

In 2011, Boris released another album called Heavy Rocks

Heavy Rocks (2011 album)

Heavy Rocks is the sixteenth studio album by the Japanese experimental band Boris. The album was released on May 24, 2011, through the label Sargent House. Its original release date was April 26, but this was pushed back. This album has the same name and cover style as their album released in 2002...

featuring the same cover style in purple.

Track listing

Unusually, only a few tracks on the original release are in Japanese (4, 8, and 9).

Guests

• Lori (Acid King
  Acid King
  Acid King is a stoner metal band from San Francisco, California. It was formed in 1993 by frontwoman Lori S., drummer Joey Osbourne and bassist Peter Lucas. Acid King have since recorded three studio albums and three EPs with a series of bassists....
  
  ), "Heavy Friends"
• Maso Yamazaki (Masonna, Christine 23, Space Machine), "Dyna-Soar"
• Masami Akita a.k.a. Merzbow
  Merzbow
  is the main recording name of the Japanese noise musician , born in 1956. Since 1979 he has released in excess of 350 recordings.The name "Merzbow" comes from German artist Kurt Schwitters' artwork, "Merzbau”. This was chosen to reflect Akita's dada influence and junk art aesthetic...
  
  , "Death Valley"
• Eddie Legend (Mad3), "Koei"
• Komi (Abnormals), "Kane"

Pressing history

Year	Label	Format	Country	Out of Print?	Notes
2002	Quattro/UK Discs	CD	Japan Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...	No (Original pressing sold out. Reprinted in 2009)	-