Singer Yamantaka Eye is the closest the band has to a frontman; his style includes a range of baffling screams, babbling, electronic effects, and very heavy post-production.

Boredoms were formed in early 1986 by Yamantaka Eye, who at the time acted as front man for the infamous and highly controversial noise/performance art act Hanatarash,[4] locally notorious for its extremely dangerous live shows consisting entirely of on-stage destruction and complete disregard for the audience's safety.

The antics of Hanatarash would later be highly influential on the earliest incarnation of Boredoms, which was formed by the remaining members of a band Eye started with Hanatarash drummer Ikuo Taketani, as well as guitarist Tabata Mitsuru (known as Tabata Mara), bassist Hosoi Hisato, and vocalist Makki Sasarato, called "Acid Makki & Combi and Zombie".

In early 1987, Tabata left the group to later join Zeni Geva and was replaced by Seiichi Yamamoto as guitar player.

Shortly after the change Yoshikawa left the group, to be replaced by Chew Hasegawa (now of Japanese funeral doom band Corrupted) and then by Kazuya Nishimura, known by his stage name Atari.

The band's sound from this period was marked by harsh, dissonant punk edited extensively by Eye in the studio, citing Sonic Youth and Funkadelic as influences, among others.

[4] In 1988 and 1989, Eye found himself making friends with Sonic Youth and also worked extensively with John Zorn's polystylistic Naked City project, serving as guest vocalist.

EP and full-length Super æ, the band started to break sharply from their earlier atonal noise rock/Japanoise sound by introducing many elements of sweeping electronica effects and thoroughly constructed psychedelic rock jams into their music.

[4][12] Soon after its initial release in Japan, Super æ was met with a considerable amount of acclaim from the international music press, recognized as a modern-day avant-garde artifact and progressive "masterpiece".

[15] It features psychedelic soundscaping and "cosmic synths",[16] complex tribal drumming, "cathartic celebrations of noise",[15] and Eye's unique power electronic and turntabalistic stylings.

[18] The group's line-up had changed considerably upon its return, stripping down to a much smaller ensemble with Yamantaka Eye on vocals, Izumi Kiyoshi (who had performed on Vision Creation Newsun and Super æ) on synthesizer, and Yoshimi P-We, Nishimura, and EDA playing drums and percussion.

[24] The band also planned to attempt using newly developed contact microphones to record the sounds made by the human body while dancing.

It featured 9 drummers in total, two from Boredoms (Yoshimi and Yojiro) and seven others from prominent experimental music acts, namely Zach Hill (Hella), Hisham Bharoocha (Soft Circle, ex: Black Dice, Lightning Bolt), Butchy Fuego (Pit er Pat), Kid Millions (Oneida), Jeremy Hyman (Ponytail), Dave Nuss (No-Neck Blues Band) and Aaron Moore (Volcano The Bear) In 2010, Boredoms toured internationally including two Boadrum performances at All Tomorrow's Parties curated by Matt Groening at Butlins Minehead, England, in addition to shows in London, Japan, Mexico and as part of the Melbourne International Arts Festival on October 10, 2010.

Notable drummers included Zach Hill, Hisham Bharoocha, Jermey Hyman, Butchey Fuego, and Mat Watson.

The band was chosen by Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival that he curated in March 2012 in Minehead, England.

[33] The performance featured Eye, Yoshimi, Tatekawa, Masuko, and an expanded lineup of drummers and guitarists surrounded by 88 percussionists all playing cymbals.