Instant Boner – Perfect Sunday (self-released, 13 April 2014)

 

Instant Boner – Outburst (self-released, 21 January 2016)

 

Instant Boner – High Place Phenomenon (self-released, 25 September 2020)

 

Happy Bandcamp Friday! If you’re looking for some new music to check out, I’ve got what you need right here.

Instant Boner are a Greek band I’ve been digging for quite a while now — actually about seven years, I guess, since shortly after their debut came out. There’s a good chance many of you will feel the same way. But you’ll want to be especially careful searching for them by name, or you might find some websites that perhaps aren’t exactly what you were looking for…

Luckily, I’m here to help you out, and you’ll find links directly to each of the band’s first three albums down below. You’re welcome!

 

 

The five-track debut, 2014’s Perfect Sunday, showcases a band in the process of figuring out whether they want to pursue a gritty stoner/desert rock path, or head in more of a dreamy psychedelic direction, ultimately deciding to incorporate both, along with some hints of dark-toned heavy blues rock. The album’s centerpiece is its 13-minute title track, where we find lots more psychedelic elements, plus some groovy/funky segments, as well as the occasional ethereal synth and a rather prominent sax solo.

After a bit of shuffling of members over the next couple years, 2016 saw the release of five-track follow-up Outburst. Right from the outset, we find the saxophone to be more in the forefront of these newer songs, which also trend somewhat heavier with more metallic riffs (especially the title track), but also somewhat funkier (especially the title track). Later, “Falling Stars” has more of a laid-back, smooth psychedelic blues feeling (for the most part), while “Lady Sin” drops everything else in favor of just straight-up blues (for the most part). But then putting a bow on the record is the Hendrix cover at the end, which sees the band going full-on, unapologetically psychedelic.

Instant Boner then found themselves taking a bit of a break for a while, before returning in 2020 with a brand-new vocalist and brand-new LP High Place Phenomenon. With six tracks and nearly an hour total running length, this would be the longest of their releases to date. Here the band really started to embrace the longer track duration — especially the new version of “Perfect Sunday, Revisited,” which has now grown to well over twenty minutes. Throughout the album we find more funky, heavy rock; not only is the sax still featured, but sometimes there are multiple parts complementing each other (like a soprano and a tenor at the same time, if I’m not mistaken). Continuing to add colors and textures to their repertoire, “Desert Hills” sounds like straight funk rock for the first half, but then develops into kind of a country/western/blues direction, while the following song “Mid Air” develops on that even further with a more expansive, almost Earth-like sound.

 

Each album may be found on Bandcamp:
Perfect Sunday (download), Outburst (download/CD), High Place Phenomenon (download/CD)
 

 

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http://instantboner.bandcamp.com
http://www.instagram.com/instantboner_band
http://www.facebook.com/instantbonerband