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- Date Released: January 1, 1994
- Genre: Alternative/Punk
- Style: Post-Rock, Indie Rock, Alternative Experimental, Electronic Experimental
- Label: Thrill Jockey
Post rock, pre-buzz — dreamy, dubby dynamite.
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We Say...
Emerging in grunge's twilight, Chicago-based post-rock band Tortoise stripped down melodic elements to focus on refined textures and meticulous rhythms. With a distinctive dual bass, vibes and drums format, they literally rebuilt rock from the bottom up, and the swirling studio-savvy sound that resulted provided a way forward for adventurous bands like Mogwai and Radiohead.
The band drew its members from veterans of the Northside indie rock scene, and its influences from Jamaican dub, Krautrock, European and American minimalism, Southside's black power free-jazz and underground hip-hop's low-end theory. Their 1994 debut begins with unfocused squall, then settles into ambient structures and funky vamps which allow the band to explore its diverse signposts. The Slint-like opening of "Ry Cooder" gives way to a Sunday afternoon jam that nods equally to Roy Ayers and Sonic Youth. The album's peak, "On Noble," captures a soaring conversation between Bundy Brown and Doug McCombs via bass line. At once cerebral, elegant and grooving, it's a strange album that repays repeat listens. -
They Say...
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, and the Sea and Cake. In subsequent releases, Tortoise 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.
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| 01. |  |
Magnet Pulls Through |
4:38 |
|
| 02. | |
Night Air |
3:50 |
|
| 03. | |
Ry Cooder |
7:06 |
|
| 04. | |
Onions Wrapped In Rubber |
6:40 |
|
| 05. | |
Tin Cans & Twine |
4:23 |
|
| 06. | |
Spiderwebbed |
8:34 |
|
| 07. | |
His Second Story Island |
2:42 |
|
| 08. | |
On Noble |
4:09 |
|
| 09. | |
Flyrod |
3:28 |
|
| 10. | |
Cornpone Brunch |
4:44 |
|
10 Total Tracks, 50:14 Total Length
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Credits
- Tortoise - Main Performer // Brad Wood - Synthesizer // Brad Wood - Engineer // John McEntire - Engineer // John McEntire - Mixing // Douglas McCombs - ? // Bundy K. Brown - Assistant Engineer // Dan Bitney - ? // Sam Prekop - Cover Design // Johnny Herdon - ? // James Warden - Photography
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