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Tortoise
Tortoise in Bloomington, MN
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An album that not only set the tone for the new Chicago
prog rock
, but also cemented the musical niche for
Thrill Jockey Records
. Here, multi-instrumentalists
John McEntire
,
Dan Bitney
John Herdon
Douglas McCombs
, and
Bundy K. Brown
share equal responsibility and trust in each other, pouring out a thick stew of meditative grooves, light production experiments, and rusty guitar-string ambience -- the likes of which have rarely sounded so approachable, but this is not to say the album is a sellout leap into commercialism. There are a couple head scratchers and murky moments that fail to make much of an impact, but the quintet have spun such a rich web of mood and personality that any fall from grace barely changes altitude. Steady frontman
McEntire
wades confidently through uncharted waters, and his strength as a producer keeps a few odd moments from sinking.
Tortoise
sounds like a dark and wonderful garage full of dusty instruments. It's like looking at
Avedon
photographs -- the crevices and quirky imperfections are so richly explored that they become things of beauty. Disjointed twangy guitar riffs, distant harmonic overtones, bass mumblings, and a heartbeat make up tracks like
"Flyrod,"
and
"Ry Cooder"
ebbs and flows organically through multiple key changes, tempos, and moods: foreboding, tense, plodding, explosive, hip, jazzy, cool, and funky (a signature piece for the band).
"Cornpone Bunch"
briefly tips its hat to
the Who
before unraveling a roll-the-credits finale to the disc: a bittersweet dialogue between bass, vibes, and drums than builds wonderfully to a close. The modest success of this CD proved to be a launching pad for several offshoot projects (several of which included founding members of this band), like
Directions in Music
Isotope 217
Trans Am
Rome
the Sea and Cake
. In subsequent releases,
evolved to be a collective rather than a set roster of players. The ground broken apart by this solid debut would be tilled and cultivated by their outstanding follow-up
Millions Now Living Will Never Die
. Roll the dice for either album; you can't lose. ~ Glenn Swan
prog rock
, but also cemented the musical niche for
Thrill Jockey Records
. Here, multi-instrumentalists
John McEntire
,
Dan Bitney
John Herdon
Douglas McCombs
, and
Bundy K. Brown
share equal responsibility and trust in each other, pouring out a thick stew of meditative grooves, light production experiments, and rusty guitar-string ambience -- the likes of which have rarely sounded so approachable, but this is not to say the album is a sellout leap into commercialism. There are a couple head scratchers and murky moments that fail to make much of an impact, but the quintet have spun such a rich web of mood and personality that any fall from grace barely changes altitude. Steady frontman
McEntire
wades confidently through uncharted waters, and his strength as a producer keeps a few odd moments from sinking.
Tortoise
sounds like a dark and wonderful garage full of dusty instruments. It's like looking at
Avedon
photographs -- the crevices and quirky imperfections are so richly explored that they become things of beauty. Disjointed twangy guitar riffs, distant harmonic overtones, bass mumblings, and a heartbeat make up tracks like
"Flyrod,"
and
"Ry Cooder"
ebbs and flows organically through multiple key changes, tempos, and moods: foreboding, tense, plodding, explosive, hip, jazzy, cool, and funky (a signature piece for the band).
"Cornpone Bunch"
briefly tips its hat to
the Who
before unraveling a roll-the-credits finale to the disc: a bittersweet dialogue between bass, vibes, and drums than builds wonderfully to a close. The modest success of this CD proved to be a launching pad for several offshoot projects (several of which included founding members of this band), like
Directions in Music
Isotope 217
Trans Am
Rome
the Sea and Cake
. In subsequent releases,
evolved to be a collective rather than a set roster of players. The ground broken apart by this solid debut would be tilled and cultivated by their outstanding follow-up
Millions Now Living Will Never Die
. Roll the dice for either album; you can't lose. ~ Glenn Swan
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