{{Infobox album | name = No | type = studio | artist = [[Boris (band)|Boris]] | cover = Boris_NO_2020.jpg | alt = | released = {{start date|2020|07|03|df=yes}} | recorded = 2020 | venue = | studio = | genre = {{hlist|[[Hardcore punk]]|[[crust punk]]|[[metalcore]]|[[Noise music|noise]]}} | length = 40:15 | label = Fangs Anal Satan | producer = Boris | prev_title = [[Love & Evol]] | prev_year = 2019 | next_title = [[2R0I2P0]] | next_year = 2020 | misc = {{singles | type = studio | single1 = Loveless | single1date = June 26, 2020<ref name="COS"/> }} }}
'''''No''''' (presented as '''''NO''''' in conjunction with its follow-up album ''[[W (Boris album)|W]]''<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ruiz|first=Matthew Ismael|date=2021-11-30|title=Boris Announce New Album W, Share New Video|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/boris-announce-new-album-w-share-new-video-watch/|access-date=2022-01-21|website=Pitchfork|language=en-US}}</ref>) is the twenty-fifth studio album by Japanese [[experimental music|experimental]] band [[Boris (band)|Boris]], released 3 July 2020 on the band's label Fangs Anal Satan.<ref name=":1"/>
== Background == ''No'' was written and recorded quickly in March 2020 when Boris entered self-isolation due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref name=":0" /> Inspired by current international political trends, Boris described the album as "a mirror that gathers and reflects people’s negative energy at a different angle, one that is positive. That is the power and potential of the dark, extreme, and brutal noise music that we have experienced up to this point."<ref name="COS">{{Cite web|date=2020-06-24|title=Boris announce new album NO, share blistering single "Loveless": Stream|url=https://consequence.net/2020/06/boris-new-album-no-single-loveless/|access-date=2020-09-27|website=Consequence of Sound|language=en-US}}</ref>
Unlike the lengthy experimental tracks that dominated the band's last few albums, ''No'' consists mostly of short, [[hardcore punk|hardcore]]-based songs.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Boris: NO|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/boris-no/|access-date=2020-09-27|website=Pitchfork|language=en}}</ref> It includes the cover song "Fundamental Error" by 1990s Japanese hardcore band Gudon.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|date=2020-07-02|title=Boris Showcases Poignant Video for the track Anti-Gone|url=https://knotfest.com/boris-showcases-poignant-video-for-the-track-anti-gone/|access-date=2020-09-27|website=Knotfest|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=2020-06-25|title=BORIS Announce New Album 'NO' to Be Released Via Bandcamp|url=http://theobelisk.net/obelisk/2020/06/25/boris-no-release/|access-date=2020-09-27|website=The Obelisk}}</ref> Japanese hardcore guitarist Katsumi makes a guest appearance.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-06-25|title=Boris Detail New Album, Release Searing New Single 'Loveless'|url=https://ourculturemag.com/2020/06/25/boris-detail-new-album-release-searing-new-single-loveless/|access-date=2020-09-27|website=Our Culture|language=en-GB|last=Pappis|first=Konstantinos}}</ref> The album was self-released.<ref name=":3" />
==Composition== With ''NO'', Boris craft "thrashing and exhilarating" [[Hardcore punk|hardcore]].<ref name = P-T /> It is also seen as a "harsh", "violent" fusion of [[crust punk]] and [[metallic hardcore]].<ref>{{Cite web|url= https://beatsperminute.com/album-review-boris-w/|title=Album Review: Boris - W {{!}} Beats Per Minute|website=[[Beats Per Minute (website)|Beats Per Minute]]|access-date=February 16, 2022|last=Wohlmacher|first=John|quote=But then, to everyone's surprise, the band released the harsh crust punk record NO in 2020, a violent barrage of metallic hardcore.}}</ref> [[D-beat]], [[Sludge metal|sludge]] and [[Thrash metal|thrash]] also appear, all wrapped in "thick squalling" [[Noise music|noise]].<ref name = AMG />
==Critical reception== {{Music ratings | MC = 84/100<ref name="MC"/> | rev1 = [[AllMusic]] | rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="AMG" /> | rev2 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' | rev2score = 7.7/10<ref>{{cite web |last1=Haver Currin |first1=Grayson |title=Boris: NO |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/boris-no/ |website=Pitchfork |access-date=26 February 2021 |language=en}}</ref> }} Upon its release, ''No'' received mostly positive reviews. At [[Metacritic]], which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an average score of 84, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 6 reviews.<ref name="MC">{{Cite web|title=Critic Reviews for NO|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/no/boris/critic-reviews|access-date=2020-12-01|website=Metacritic}}</ref> ''Sputnikmusic'' noted the album's differences from its immediate predecessors, which could turn off longtime fans although the album "plays to enough of Boris’ many strengths that longstanding fans will be quick to pounce on it."<ref>{{Cite web|title=Review: Boris - NO {{!}} Sputnikmusic|url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/81674/Boris-NO/|access-date=2020-09-27|website=www.sputnikmusic.com}}</ref> ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' called ''No'' the best Boris album in a decade, squeezing the band's many interests into "these breathless 40 minutes."<ref name=":0" /> ''Treble'' magazine noted that the album "cuts right through the feedback and drone in the interest of a more direct delivery of thrashy riffs and crust-punk intensity."<ref>{{Cite web|last=Terich|first=Jeff|date=2020-06-29|title=Boris - NO|url=https://www.treblezine.com/boris-no-review-album-of-the-week/|access-date=2020-09-27|website=Treble|language=en-US}}</ref> ''[[Post-Trash]]'' noted that the album is likely to satisfy both longtime Boris fans, plus fans of [[hardcore punk]] and [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]].<ref name="P-T">{{Cite web|title=Boris - "NO" {{!}} Album Review|url=http://post-trash.com/news/2020/8/1/boris-no-album-review|access-date=2020-09-27|website=[[Post-Trash|POST-TRASH]]|language=en-US}}</ref> A reviewer for ''[[Metal Storm (webzine)|Metal Storm]]'' noted that Boris is still capable of delivering surprising new sounds like those on ''No'', after more than two dozen albums.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Boris - No review - Metal Storm|url=http://www.metalstorm.net/pub/review.php?review_id=15993|access-date=2020-09-27|website=www.metalstorm.net}}</ref>
In a review for [[AllMusic]], Thom Jurek claimed that "While hardly a political album, ''No'' reflects the frustration, anger, fear, and helplessness of the 2020 pandemic in a global zeitgeist. While its stylistic hallmarks are undeniably part of the band's musical signature, here they pay homage to the past while simultaneously reflecting the tense uncertainty of the present and future, directly and consistently, making ''No'' the band's strongest, most visionary outing since ''[[Pink (Boris album)|Pink]]''."<ref name="AMG">{{Cite web|title="NO" - Boris - {{!}} Songs, Reviews, Credits|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/no-mw0003442466|access-date=2020-11-25|website=AllMusic|first=Thom|last=Jurek|date=2020-07-03}}</ref>
==Track listing== {{track listing | total_length = 40:15
| title1 = Genesis | length1 = 6:28
| title2 = Anti-Gone | length2 = 2:57
| title3 = Non Blood Lore | length3 = 3:41
| title4 = Temple of Hatred | length4 = 2:06
| title5 = Zerkalo | length5 = 5:03
| title6 = HxCxHxC | length6 = 2:42
| title7 = Kikinoue | length7 = 2:06
| title8 = Lust | length8 = 2:51
| title9 = Fundamental Error | length9 = 2:44
| title10 = Loveless | length10 = 6:41
| title11 = Interlude | length11 = 3:00 }}
==Personnel== *Takeshi – bass, guitar, vocals *Wata – guitar, vocals, effects, echo *Atsuo – drums, vocals
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Boris}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:2020 albums]] [[Category:Boris (band) albums]]