Borg 64 - Anywhere But Here

To be honest, the only reason I decided to look at Borg 64 is because I’m a die-hard Trekkie and I figured with Borg in the name it’s gotta be good. I opened up the promo materials and saw a song entitled "Late Night at Quarks". WIN! Borg 64 are from Sweden and they’ve been absent from the musical world for about seven years. They have re-emerged with a 4 song 12 minute mind fuck entitled Anywhere But Here released on Discouraged Records.

So this big 10” starts off with this 80s type video game Tron thing happening. Then it segues into some punk rock stuff and then maybe spoken word over bass with ambient blips and bleeps. I don’t know what to make of it. There is so much happening musically you don’t know where to look. Yet all the elements in and of themselves are simple. Before I could get a handle on it I think I’m transported to a Frank Zappa / Primus type vista. Then I get biotch slapped by a scary marriage of electronica and metal. Borg 64’s Anywhere But Here is just stupid crazy. And I say that with a big ol’ smile on my face. It’s such a wide mixture of musical genres. Is that Devo I hear?

"Late Night At Quarks" didn’t disappoint. It’s part South Park, part Ministry, part Atari, all good. The 10” closes with a jaunty tome dedicated to their hometown of Lulea. The song is the most straight ahead composition of the four on Anywhere But Here. I was thoroughly entertained and enthralled by Anywhere But Here.

Anywhere But Here is not for the casual punk rock fan. Nor is it for the staunch dub step electronica fan. You have to be a special kind of crazy to like this. I am that kind of crazy. Sven Engdahl Hamilton, Fredrik “Buffy” Johansson, and Markus Wanler put together something totally cool. There is nothing quite like it on the market today.