Magical musical musings care of the marvellous John Matthews.

Growing up in the 1970’s my first serious gig going exploits were based very much around the tail end of punk and attempting to persuade the security staff of Central London’s pubs and clubs that I was at least four years older than my fourteen year old self looked (fortunately i.d. wasn’t a thing back then). It wasn’t however until the early 1980’s, when I started earning a  small but steady wage, that I began to regularly attend all kinds of musical happenings in London which, luckily for me, coincided with the evolution of post-punk. Many great books and articles have been written on the subject but for me the term post-punk represented musical freedom and experimentation which, in many cases, was light years away from the restrictive three minute thrash that punk had comedically morphed into. It  was the  experimental qualities of post-punk music that I found most compelling and how the bands and artists managed to incorporate so many different styles into their musical landscape. Post-punk introduced me to jazz, krautrock, dance, dub reggae, industrial and goth. By way of the artist’s influences I retrospectively sought out the music of Can, Neu!,The Stooges, Miles Davis, The Velvet Underground and many, many more. Post-punk pretty much laid the foundation on which my musical tastes are built. 

Fast forward to 1994 and my future wife and I are crammed tight into the tiny back room of the Water Rats pub in Kings Cross in London. We are watching five amazing multi skilled musicians from Chicago play the kind of abstract, melodic, genre defying,  atmospheric instrumental music that transports me back to when I first discovered post-punk.  Except the music is possibly even more experimental, with individual song structures being completely disregarded in favour of dynamic, and constantly changing, freeform pieces. And it isn’t just the music that’s changing. The musicians are also swapping their instruments during the set. It is without doubt one of  the greatest virtuoso band performances I’ve ever witnessed. It is also my first introduction to Tortoise. 

Over the subsequent twenty plus years Tortoise went on to become pioneers of post-rock (a more rock based version of post-punk, often without vocals) and released seven studio albums. From their bass-driven and direct self-titled debut through to the genre classics Millions Now Living Will Never Die, TNT and Standards, Tortoise were making experimental but extremely listenable music that consistently pushed the  boundaries. The multilayered slow burner It’s All Around You followed before Tortoise decided to confound the critics who had accused them of making melodic elevator lift muzak by releasing the experimental rock album Beacons Of Ancestorship. Their last record The Catastrophist (which featured possibly the worst album cover of all time) was way too dense and uninteresting for my tastes so it was with some trepidation that I approached the band’s first album in nine years, Touch. 

The first thing I notice about Touch is that it’s released on the International Anthem label. Could this signal a leaning towards a more jazz based sound? The answer is a definite no and I’m delighted to report that Touch features a concise and immediate set of compositions that feel very much like an update of Tortoise’s early classic albums. With the five band members now geographically dispersed, the album was made across three cities,  Los Angeles, Chicago and Portland, and sees the outfit reconnecting remotely and recording individually. Ironically, however, to my ears Touch sounds very much like a cohesive body of work. 

The album opens with Vexations which begins with a steady drumbeat played over a rock(y) guitar riff. The production (by the band’s genius multi instrumentalist John McEntire) enhances the sound of the music being played live and this is further accentuated with the introduction of a dubby off kilter organ. A slightly  distorted baritone twang guitar solo follows before even more distortion leads the track into an almost prog rock climax. It’s classic Tortoise and gives a lovely, comforting feeling that the band are very much back on form. Layered Presence is next. Deep drumming and squelchy, mid tempo bass with a woozy, spooky organ. It’s a beautiful tune with a catchy, unbalanced melody. Works And Days features a mid tempo drum machine and echoing guitar which is followed by a dub sounding  flute refrain and the introduction of the vibraphone, which immediately revives the distinctive Tortoise sound. Jazzy drums and crashing cymbals enter the fray before radio static and background talking provide an atmospheric and tense finish. Elka is the closest the album comes to dance music with rhythmic sequences and a futuristic sounding electronic pulse, before one of the album’s highlights, Promenade A Deux, arrives with its minimal wave synths and exotic strings. As a reminder that nothing is straightforward in the world of Tortoise, the track changes halfway through with a killer distorted “Summer Breeze” Ernie Isley-esque guitar solo being played over an almost, but not quite, reggae rhythm. It’s an absolutely brilliant track. Axial Seamount revives the krautrock sound and unpredictability that Tortoise’s music is well known for and provides yet another highlight. A Title Comes has the feel of past collaborators Stereolab, with an edgy `50s horror movie vibe and Rated OG features stop start bass under aggressive guitar and fast drumming, which continues into the next track Oganesson. A furious groove chugs beneath a hypnotic blend of sparse guitar chords before a distorted electronic interjection. It’s compelling stuff and again, classic Tortoise. Night Gang provides a beautiful finale to the album with its Phil Spector-ish atmospheric intro,  swirling proggy psychedelic organ and spaghetti western guitar before ending by sending that backwards amongst squealing feedback. 

Touch undeniably has the hallmarks of being the  quintessential Tortoise album I’d hoped for after their almost decade long break. At barely forty minutes long it ditches the longer meandering pieces of previous albums and presents a  band that sound as if they are really having a lot of fun playing together again. It certainly feels good to have them back. 

Tortoise’s Touch can be ordered directly from  International Anthem.

Footnote: Tortoise (one of my all time favourite live bands) have chosen the Barbican Hall (my current favourite space in which to listen to live music) as the venue for their upcoming London gigs at the end of November. It’s a mouth watering prospect and an event not to be missed. I absolutely cannot wait.