Tortoise / Catastrophist, The
Album: Catastrophist, The   Collection:General
Artist:Tortoise   Added:Apr 2016
Label:Thrill Jockey Records  

A-File Activity
Add Date: 2016-04-18 Pull Date: 2016-06-19
Week Ending: Jun 12 Jun 5 May 29 May 22 May 8 May 1 Apr 24
Airplays: 1 2 3 1 2 1 3

Recent Airplay
1. Aug 27, 2017: butterscotch memory
Geseap
4. May 30, 2016: Narnia
The Catastrophist
2. Jul 20, 2016: Brownian Motion
Rock On
5. May 29, 2016: The Prism Experiment
The Catastrophist
3. Jun 11, 2016: Narnia
The Catastrophist
6. May 28, 2016: The Prism Experiment
Hot Coffee

Album Review
Mr. Tumnus
Reviewed 2016-04-16
Post-rock. Tortoise reminds me of the sort of jam sessions that people have in high school, if the people jamming were really really good. A bunch of dudes get together with their instruments and try to make some cool sounds. The rhythms are complicated and intricate, the textures and the layering of the sound is superb, and although it feels improvisational, I’m sure that it’s not. Most of the songs build up complicated, precise rhythms and harmonies, while the melodies are just a few simple notes. Music which is easy to listen to is rarely this rich.

No FCCs. All are great, although 6 is a personal favorite.

1) Intense opening fades into a beautiful ambling track.
2) Juddering opening, like a rock skittering across a pond.
3) Emphasis on the bass here. Funky.
4) Cool discordant clanging in the background. The melody is big power notes. Cool.
5) Exotic beat with quiet piano on top. Near the end, it disintegrates into soft ambient buzzing.
6) Mostly electronic with some drums underneath. Beautiful polyrhythms. Builds into a surprisingly intense jam session.
7) Warmer sound. Funky. Lots of big guitar chords.
8) A track with a vocalist! What a surprise. Earthy alto voice. Low energy, buzzy, quiet, smooth.
9) Lots of electronic accents. Warm, rich sound.
10) Lots of cymbal in this one. Great growly finish.

--Mr. Tumnus

Track Listing
1. The Catastrophist   6. The Clearing Fills
2. Ox Duke   7. Geseap
3. Rock On   8. Hot Coffee
4. Gopher Island   9. Yonder Blue
5. Shake Hands With Danger   10. Tesseract
  11. At Odds With Logic