Tortoise
By Tim Bugbee
Tuesday. Sep 04, 5:37 PM
live at Museum of Fine Arts (Boston, MA) July 5th, 2007.

"We're just gonna improvise tonight," claimed Dan Bitney as Tortoise took over their instruments inside MFA for the first of two sets (looming thunderstorms scratched the outside setting plans). What unfolded was not meandering, aimless wool gathering, but a tightly integrated and intricate musical landscape, one that's expected of the band. Tortoise are one of those bands that have quietly become part of the rock firmament by just diligently going about their business, never making a big fuss over things. Hell, they are mainly responsible for the somewhat obtuse “post-rock” term (though strains of their sound can be found as far back as "On No" from Frank Zappa's 1967 Lumpy Gravy), whatever that means; I think the lack of vocals has something to do with it, but if you really want to know, there's a wikipedia entry you can peruse. The band's changed a bit over the years from when they first started, and I think that can be mainly broken down into a couple of factors, mainly membership changeover. When Bundy Brown and replacement David Pajo left the band, the mood certainly shifted from stark, spidery, almost dub-like creations with flow and ebb dynamics to a more organic and jazz-like approach. That era is when I last saw the band (I caught the first two tours), but Jon McEntire, John Herndon, and Doug McCombs were at the genesis and still remain as vital contributors to the band. The difference in the live setting from back then and now is pretty clear to me: Jeff Parker brought a whole new sensibility to the band's sound, discarding some bits and replacing with core jazz and electronic elements, though I suppose one could argue that the electronic aspect was precisely shaped and honed and not built from the ground up. Tortoise were clearly interested in remixes, overdubs, and analog synth sounds, as evidenced by their involvement in the Mo' Wax label and various collaborations and productions with bands such as Stereolab. They are also likely not strangers to the excellent Chicago record store Dusty Groove.

Staying true to their current lineup, they ignored the Brown/Pajo portion of their back catalog, and focused on songs from TNT onward; the lilting, melodic mouth organ of "I Set My Face to the Hillside" was reminiscent of Augustus Pablo, but without the sub-30Hz bass output set to “rubble.” Majestic songs like "Crest" pulled like a magnet and showed that keyboards were just as important a component to the band's sound as drums. The set also showed just how versatile the band are, as it frequently resembled a Chinese fire drill with all the swapping and position changing going on. Drums (Bitney, McEntire, Herndon), keys (Bitney, McEntire, Parker), guitar (McCombs, Parker), bass (McCombs, Parker), vibes (I think everyone): it was seamless, sonically. Bitney in particular locked in with a vengeance while playing the drums across from Herndon. With a three-year lapse since the last record (It's All Around You), I'd say it's close for another delivery.
www.trts.com

Tim Bugbee

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