Returning after a five-year gap (which, granted, included a box set and a collaborative record with Bonnie "Prince" Billy), Tortoise confronted a pair of age-old musical questions: does anyone really care about an experimental rock group after 15 years, and does said group actually have anything to say after that length of time? After all, the sound of rock's future circa 1994-1996 was beginning to sound tired by the time of 2004's It's All Around You, and the sense was growing that Tortoise should call it quits and begin accumulating enough years of inactivity to eventually be rediscovered, remastered, and reunited. Beacons of Ancestorship neatly squashes all those questions and assumptions, revealing a band that is just as fascinated with sound, just as intrigued by its myriad possibilities, and just as unerring in presenting those ideas in the form of entertaining instrumental music as when it debuted in 1993. The time signatures are constantly shifting, the lights of vitality and inventiveness Tortoise displayed 12 years earlier are completely undimmed, and the reference points for their music are constantly expanding (on tap here, among the dub and Krautrock and minimalism and jazz, is surprisingly abrasive punk for "Yinxianghechengqi"). The opener is eight minutes of bliss, wheeling and turning every few minutes, eventually leading to a great full-band jam that looks back to an earlier age of Chicago post-rock with a closing that's strikingly reminiscent of early Trans Am. The spaghetti Western impressionism of "The Fall of Seven Diamonds Plus One" would be perfect for their excellent TNT LP, and the group gets positively off the wall at the end, with a pair of songs ("Monument Six One Thousand" and "Charteroak Foundation") that pit guitar lines over drums-and-bass tracks that don't sound as if they were recorded for the same selection. It can be incredibly difficult for an experimental group to continue experimenting for years on end without getting stale, but Tortoise achieve that balance effortlessly.
Here we are, six records in and with Beacons of Ancestorship Tortoise have made, by their own esoteric standards, their most straight ahead ‘rock’ record to date. Are Tortoise still relevant? Oh yes. Matt Poacher writes.
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Beacons of Ancestorship dishes out the unexpected; like the kid in high school whose atrocious sense of fashion confounded others in light of his striking wit and intellect. If my brain were made of chips and magnets rather than nerve cells and soft tissue, I might like this album. Reminds us of: Mogwai | Aphex Twin | Boards of Canada Tortoise: (Official / MySpace)tortoise beacons of ancest...
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Tortoise's first album in five years denies us a cinematic arc, replacing it with a feeling of now that runs through the album, making each new sound on the album both utterly surprising and inevitable.
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2009, Thrill Jockey01. High Class Slim Came Floatin' In (Eyeremix); 02. Gigantes Version (Mark Ernestus)"Side A features none other than Eye from Boredoms doing a remix of the album's opening track High Class Slim Came Floatin' In. Side AA features the legendary dub/version master Mark Ernestus of Basic Channel and Rhythm & Sound doing a Version of the track Gigantes."The EP that was released t...
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Here we are, six records in and with Beacons of Ancestorship Tortoise have made, by their own esoteric standards, their most straight ahead ‘rock’ record to date. Are Tortoise still relevant? Oh yes. Matt Poacher writes.
More >
Beacons of Ancestorship dishes out the unexpected; like the kid in high school whose atrocious sense of fashion confounded others in light of his striking wit and intellect. If my brain were made of chips and magnets rather than nerve cells and soft tissue, I might like this album. Reminds us of: Mogwai | Aphex Twin | Boards of Canada Tortoise: (Official / MySpace)tortoise beacons of ancest...
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Tortoise are ready to release LP #6 entitled Beacons Of Ancestorship on June 23rd via Thrill Jockey. Check out two hot new songs premiered this morning by Stereogum and Pitchfork - respectively. Beacons will be their first collection of new material in 5 years. Tortoise - High Class Slim Came Floatin' In Tortoise - Prepare Your Coffin Catch them on tour and @ this years Pitchfork Fest:07/11 -...
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Tortoise’s first album in over five years, Beacons of Ancestorship, is out June 23rd on Thrill Jockey. The band had previously announced some shows around the time of Pitchfork Music Fest, and now they’ve added a some midwest dates to their fall schedule. They’ll also be playing a few shows in Europe and one in [...]
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Tortoise's first album in five years denies us a cinematic arc, replacing it with a feeling of now that runs through the album, making each new sound on the album both utterly surprising and inevitable.
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Tortoise has a new album, Beacons of Ancestorship, coming out June 23! Here are a couple of the new songs I stumbled on today. One is compared to a rave/dance track, and the other sounds like Tortoise making a nu-metal jam:“High Class Slim Came Floatin’In”(mp3 via stereogum)“Prepare Your Coffin”(mp3 via pitchfork)Tortoise is playing the Troubadour [...]
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Two UK tour dates have been confirmed for Tortoise, both spread sparsely apart and both in support of the bands newest record 'Beacons Of Ancestorship'. Their first dates comes August 25th at the London Garage and then four months later, the legendary collective will play at the Ten Years Of ATP Festival in Minehead on December 11th to 13th.
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Tortoise just announced a bunch of new tour dates, including a stop in Japan, Belgium, and then a tour through the Midwest in the Fall.Related posts:Tortoise – New MP3, 2009 Tour DatesTortoise Announce New Album, 2009 Tour DatesTortoise | 2007 Summer Tour DatesRelated posts:Tortoise – New MP3, 2009 Tour DatesTortoise Announce New Album, 2009 Tour DatesTortoise | 2007 Summer Tour Dates
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Tortoise co-founder Dan Bitney discusses the past, present, and future of the band that changed indie rock forever, and continues to thrill their power base on their first original record in five years, Beacons of Ancestorship.
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Tortoise's brand new record Beacons Of Ancestorship is set for release on June 22nd via Thrill Jockey and marks their first long-player in five years. This track, Prepare Your Coffin is taken from the upcoming record and the accompanying video compliments it's atmosphere rather well.
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The first full-length album of new material in five years is nearly here from acclaimed post-rock pioneers Tortoise. The new album - their sixth together - will dock on June 22, 2009. In honour of this news, the band have made a track available from Beacons of Ancestorship for us all to enjoy.
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Five long years has passed since Tortoises' last album 'Its All Around You' hit you in the face with its musical force and finally, news on a new LP has surfaced. The bands latest studio length and sixth album to date has been titled Beacons Of Ancestorship and will hit you in the face with its musical force June 22nd of this very year on the Thrill Jockey label.
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| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 High Class Slim Came Floatin' In |
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| 2 Prepare Your Coffin |
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| 3 Northern Something |
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| 4 Gigantes |
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| 5 Penumbra |
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| 6 Yinxianghechengqi |
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| 7 The Fall of Seven Diamonds Plus One |
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| 8 Minors |
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| 9 Monument Six One Thousand |
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| 10 De Chelly |
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| 11 Charteroak Foundation |
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Click to purchase…
© 2006-2009 Mog Inc. All Rights Reserved
 "Beacons of Ancestorship")
