Millions Now Living Will Never Die

A lot of people remember the experience of plugging in a casio keyboard for the first time and wanting to try out all the presets and features all at once. Most of us don't try to call that an album though.

Really surprising. Never heard of this band before. It's instrumental, something that wouldn't have spoken to me much when I was younger, but I find it excellent now. So much variety and interesting textural and atmospheric sounds. A deep surprise I'll probably find myself listening to again in the near future and maybe explore the band's other work. Djed is the 20min experimental, progressive wild ride that reminds me of Fear of a Blank Planet yet even better strung together. Just awesome find.

Yo La Tengo meets ambient no vocals

tortoise is one of the seminal bands in postrock. this is a must listen album for anyone that likes complex, yet gentle long form songs. in the vein of do make say think, explosions in the sky, godspeed you! black emperor

Wow! This is an album out of nowhere for me, but it rocks! I could have predicted a lot of the shade being thrown its way in the reviews but it's really cool and quirky. An experience as much as anything, the opening 21 min track bending and winding its way through the soundscape.

Very cool atmospheric Math Rock. Will definitely be adding this to my “background music while I work” collection.

"Millions Now Living Will Never Die" is not only a very good album, but it also a very important album - as a genre defining record in the post rock genre. Everything that would become a staple for this style is here, specially the focus on textures and timbre in the place of common rock structures like riffs and chords. It's as if rock and roll was becoming free jazz. "Djed" is a 20 minute masterpiece that shows how well Tortoise work together as a band, crafting songs together to create minimalistic sounds, beautiful to the years. In this record, however, they still sound a little crude and it's their next record (1998's TNT) that would show what they were really capable of.

This album is great. Purely instrumental with a really engaging, low-key, atmospheric sound. 'Along the Banks of the River' has been my favourite so far. 4 stars, easy.

Djed alone is worth the price of admission, which it should be as roughly half the run time of this album. What a cool, eccentric, moody assortment.

Essential Post-Rock album. Opening song Djed spans from electronic buzzing to more rhythmic grooves and driving bass. Pulling in an electric sounding key and devolving into more electronic sound it is the highlight of the album. Halfway through the song it opens into a mix of traditional open guitar and electronic sounds and a xylophone. Background, foreground or whenever you listen to it, it can be on constant repeat.

Beautiful as an instrumental album. Great as background. The first track "Djed" is 21 minute opus that goes in several different directions.

Unusual instrumentals... Can't imagine picking it up to play as an album but still was interesting background filler

Why was this even on the list. Pretty weak.

Krautrock, IDM, Minimalism, and ambient blended expertly…and that’s just the first track. Millions Now Living Will Never Die is one of the best records of the 90’s.

The opening track had me instantly excited and intrigued about this group I’ve never heard of. It was an incredible musical journey that was full of little surprises. The rest of the album did not disappoint. I was having some trouble categorizing it in my head (Is this jazz? Lite rock? Progressive rock? ). Whatever it is, I love the use of the vibraphone. I love the occasional squeak of the guitar string. These helped make this album a lot warmer and human than one might expect from something so modern. Excellent!

I have repeatedly dipped my toe into post-rock, honestly trying to like it, but I am left unimpressed. I generally like a steady driving rock and roll beat that I can bug out to, so the stop-start, weird time signature nature of post-rock gives me the irrits. This album verges on being just a collage of semi-ambient fragments. This has a bunch of influences that I should dig -- krautrock, minimalism, the noisier end of industrial -- but I swear this really just sounds like a gentler, humourless version of Tubular Bells (take that as you will). Post-rock always struck me as prog for pretentious musos that grew up in the alternative scene. I can appreciate the cleverness of what they are doing and there are moments that I dig, but I can't really hum the tunes or dance to it, you know? I think that if I listened to this about 25 times, I could learn to love it, but can I be bothered to invest the time? Here's a giveaway of what I thought of this album; I was listening on spotify, not paying much attention, and suddenly thought 'hey, this song is pretty good, I dig this". I looked up to see that 'Millions Now Living..," had actually finished, and the algorithm had moved on to play 'Seeland" by Neu. Which is like Tortoise but better and 20 years earlier. 2.5 stars, rounding down because the cover art seems like it was ripped off from Severed Heads' Hot With Fleas 12" from 1987: (https://www.discogs.com/release/335126-Severed-Heads-Hot-With-Fleas-Canine)

Automatic 5 from me, this is just so ... me. Delightfully atmospheric. Faves: Djed, Glass Musuem, and Along the Banks of Rivers

Mmmmmm, Tortoise. I first became aware of them in the very early 00s from reviews in the Onion AV Club - they sounded otherworldly, and were completely unobtainable in any of the record stores I had access to, so I had to piece together some of their albums on limewire and napster. I have a slight preference for "TNT" over this one, but yes, otherworldly was what I wanted, and otherworldly was what I got. Listening to a Tortoise album is like going on a little safari to an alien world or an alternate dimension. There's flashes of familiarity but everything's in a strange context. Fave tracks - "Djed" is a delightful little odyssey. "Along the Banks of Rivers" and "Gamera" are also stand outs....

i love you post-rock

Gear: DCA ÆON 2 Noire Artwork: 🐟🖼️ Mix: Feine Sahne Fischfilet mit besonders solidem Fundament Musik: Post Rock Monument Wertung: 🐟🐟🐟🐟(🐟)/5

21 minute 90s alternative song - sign me up. I'm all about this nonsense. 10 stars. millions/5

Centered around a twenty minute opening salvo that combines glitchy electronica, ECM jazz and muted post-rock, Millions Now Living Will Never Die sees Tortoise take their place amongst the ever changing landscape of alternative rock (or whatever remained of it) and forging fertile ground in the process.

Great, experimental, easy going, never boring.

I dig it. It's very hard for me to put into words what I got out of the album but I think it's fairly representative of what this album achieves. There's just loads of good composition, arrangement, choice of instrumentation, and it all creates a really wonderful texture for my brain to get lost into. Lots of mental images, feelings, the kind of abstract things you might feel that you know would be unbelievably contrived to try to articulate. Will probably revisit this album as well as the rest of the Tortoise discography. I'm genuinely surprised I didn't discover and adore this album in high school, it would have been right up my alley. I guess this is post rock? The thing that really strikes me is the obvious krautrock influence, and I fucking love that genre of music. It's what immediately pulled me into the album. Good post rock is usually devoid of obvious, masturbatory build up and crescendos behind walls and walls of reverb and delay as a lazy attempt to create some kind of effective aesthetic and feeling of catharsis. This is a fine example of how to make stunning post rock without those cliche's. I wish I had better words to describe. There are a plethora of moments in this album that really get me into the moment and I'm in that holy trance of jam. There are a lot of unexpected left turns and stylistic choices but they don't clash at all, it never feels inconsistent. Tons of variety. I love this album actually.

Theres a quote from Pitchfork on Tortoise's spotify bio, it reads "Tortoise floats free, a planchette moving over a Ouija board guided by 10 sets of fingers, where everyone watches the arrow float in one direction but no one is quite sure how it gets there or who is doing the pushing", I think that sums Djed up quite nicely. It's not a song so much as it's an audio experience. It's a spectrum of textures, it's almost tactile. The strength and driving energy of the album as a whole sound like a source of inspiration for bands such as Public Service Broadcasting.

I had forgotten about these Testudinidae and enjoyed hearing them again. I find the three 5 minute tracks to be the highlights but it's all good. Quite an anxious listen; I had to check the streaming version to see if my original had been corrupted from its transfer from CD (it had, briefly). Was very disappointed to discover the origin of the title, previously hoping that eternal life was a fringe benefit for those who purchased it upon release. We shall see.. High 4. It's not quite as illustrious as its reputation (and likely influence) but lovely all the same. Please don't yell at me Mark!

Millions Living Will Never Die I’m sure I’ve heard the name Tortoise but I don’t think I know anything about them. My assumption is that they are a kind of grunge alt rock band? The first track was a bit of a surprise on that basis though, and I absolutely loved it, the first 10 minutes kind of reminiscent of Neu! with its motorik rhythm, mesmeric bass line and keyboard lines, before becoming slightly more abstract and ethereal, and then heading off into more of a textured sound collage, before circling back to the feel of the first part. Great track. Glass Museum feels rather prosaic in comparison, although it is pleasant enough it doesn’t create a particularly interesting atmosphere. A Survey however is great, again very krautrock with it’s mesmeric simplicity. The Taut and Tame is a bit of a grower, the persistent riff and the rhythm pattern in the middle section are pleasingly steady. Dear Grandma and Grandpa feels a lot like some of the Neu! Album tracks, the occasional fluttering rhythm and dubby bass giving it a gentle calming atmosphere, before segueing into the excellent Along the Banks of Rivers with its cinematic sounding guitar and jazzy organ creating a dreamy, woozy ambience and a great end to the album. I really enjoyed this, particularly after expecting something more grungy, it was great to get something so interesting and immersive, encompassing those Eno and Krautrock influences, and Djed really is a corker. It’s a solid, high 4 and will definitely go on my list of work/focus albums. 🐢🐢🐢🐢 Playlist submission: Djed

Surprisingly enjoyable

This album is an incredible example of experimental and innovative instrumental rock. While this album has its high highs, sometimes it falls short of its expectations, and has very low lows. I loved the songs Glass Museum and The Taut and Tame. By far a good album.

background music, and in this case, that's not a bad thing.

The first track is enthralling for being such a long song, although that may be due to its hyperactive nature, being more like four or five songs in one. Then the second track is even better, instantly blasting you away only to tease you with that high for the rest of the song, and it leaves you itching for what else this album can come up with for its shorter tracks. It proceeds to, unfortunately, kind of lose me after that. The album was atmospheric and mellow background music before the drop-off, but it still felt like any moment I could tune in and find something great, but after the second track Tortoise lean into the background music nature of it all, and it becomes something more similar to acts like NEU! or Boards of Canada. Luckily, the final track ends us off on a haunting, devastating spaghetti western of a track that fills me with so much cinematic despair. It's a great closer and perhaps my favorite on the album, but the more ambient tone that takes up about ten minutes of the album does a lot of damage for my enjoyment. I think had they committed to that ambient tone more thoroughly, I would be singing a different tune, but as is it leaves me wishing we got more post-rock instrumental wonders, and less Kid A demo backing track.

Very slow, and kind of monotonous, yet also kind of dreamy. Would put something like this on a sleep playlist. Best: Glass Museum Worst: Djed 2.5 stars

This is sonar rock. Felt like I was listening at the bottom of the ocean in a nuclear sub.

It isn't the worst albulm I've heard, but I'm not that big of a fan of it

joa, so im Hintergrund ganz nett; hat für mich ehe den Status "Fahrstuhlmusik"

Millions Now Living Will Never Die? More like Millions Now Regretting They Hit Play. Starting your album with a 21-minute instrumental is less “bold artistic statement” and more “cruel endurance test.” It’s like being stuck in traffic while someone softly noodles on a guitar in the passenger seat. Sure, maybe there’s some experimental charm buried in there somewhere — but I didn’t have the time or patience to dig it out. If your opener is longer than most EPs, you better make it worth it. This didn’t even come close.

Why? Agree with those who suggest it sounds like something a Casio would pump out.

Really enjoyed this. Some very nice ambient work, will definitely revisit

Love this. TNT was my first intro to Tortoise and is still my fave, but I’d be happy with this as the alternative any day.

An excellent band's best album. I hadn't listened to this for a while, and it's almost perfect.

Wow, dit is echt origineel. Krautrock, jazz, rock, echt geweldig!

Kid: Mum, can we have Godspeed You! Black Emperor? Mum: no, we have Godspeed You! Black Emperor at home. Kid: that's ok, Godspeed You! Black Emperor are such an amazing band, that even a slightly worse version of them is still some of the most amazing music I have ever heard.

very cool

Bloody excellent

this was exceptional. almost ambient at times, almost industrial at times. very musical without sounding very instrumental if that makes sense. i had no expectations going in but they were blown out of the water

Very good, rather like some Mogwai.

All vibes, super chill

Solid, no vocals very chill post rock

Immaculate album, I enjoyed every second of this listen. Djed was an epic by itself, and every song had its own unique vibe. 9.5/10, definitely would listen again

Wow. Just wow.

Dormito per 3/4 di album, ma gran bei pisoloni Would sleep again

Less a language and more a way of just being in the universe.

wonderful shimmering, shifting, evolving, driving music - this works both as a main listen, and also as music in the background.

Love it

This is so cool!! I’ve always heard how cool they were but just never listened. My mistake! Djed is a 20 minute song and is too short, or actually, just perfect!

THIS is the kind of album I joined this project for! I’d never heard of Tortoise before but I really connected with them; I don’t often reach this level of engagement with an artist on the first listen. Djed was completely mystifying, it took me to a faraway land. The Taut And Tame sounded hypnotizing with the background helicopter. But my favourite was the closer, Along The Banks of Rivers. That twangy guitar is sublime. I have their subsequent album, TNT, queued up to listen to next. I'm very conservative in awarding 5/5's. So far, such an honour has only gone to a very select few classic records that I have a deep level of familiarity with. I'm happy to announce that Millions Now Living Will Never Die is the first album I'm offering 5/5 to upon first listen. Seriously, this was great. I'm genuinely impressed with this discovery.

A perfect example of a really creative band taking influence from a wide range of artists, and creating something excellent from it. The 20 minute opener is truly special, and the rest is just as moving.

Hell yeah. Perfect for every chill moment.

There's a lot going on here and I think I enjoy most of it. It's a sort of liminal album, existing in the space between genres. I can definitely see myself listening again, and exploring Tortoise more.

mindblowing

One of the best albums of all time

This feels like the direct predecesor to Explosions in the Sky and I love it so much. Pitch perfect.

Beautifully cinematic yet tight ambient-ish album.

never heard of these before but love this. I have started to delve into the back catalogue to see what else is in there .

It took me a while to decide how many stars, but at the end of the day this allowed me to discover TNT, Djed is a great track, Tortoise are my new favorite band and I think all of this deserves a 5

What a masterpiece. I was questioning whether I was going to even like this, but over the course of the 20 minute opener it slowly started winning me over, and throughout the album won me over more and more, and when the final track starts it was settled. Love the marimba incorporation as well

Really enjoyed this one. I used to listen to ambient music a lot when studying (and still do for working). The likes of American Analog Set, Röyksopp, Goddamn Electric Bill etc. got me through more all-night essay writing than I care to remember.

Great- five star

Very chill, perfect for early morning work background music or late night chill mode. Some might not like it or find it boring if you want something with high energy.

There's no reason I should like this at all. And yet I do. Immensely.

cool

It's been way too long since I listened to Tortoise. Perfect post rock noise scapes that grate and entice. This album is sloppy at times which threw me a little as I am more familiar with TNT which has laser sharp precision. I wonder if they are fans of Barry Adamson's Moss Side stories or maybe they share the same influences. Either way both Millions and that record share a muddy dirge that feels like the sound is smothering me.

5/5 AWESOME

Over the past 15 years I've listened to a little Tortoise off and on (mainly TNT). Never a deep dive, but they always stand out as a band worth noting. I'm happy to sit with this album. Oh... I'm 100% into this. I'll probably spend all day listening to related Chicago indie and jazz. Stuff like The Sea and Cake, Brokeback, Isotope 217, Chicago Underground [duo, trio or whatever], plus whatever Rob Mazurek is up to nowadays

This might be my coolest find in this project. Djed on it's own is already a complete journey and they just keep going. It gives me that rare sense of wonder.

Essential, seminal post rock album, so influential on so much amazing shit, another easy 5. The club is on fire this week!

Nothing like any other post rock album I've heard, which is exactly what the genre should be going for at all times. Score is reflecting where it'll be in like half a year most likely.

Wow. This is a fantastic album.

My go-to album for calming my brain. Djed is perhaps my favorite song ever.

This is such a good headphones album - I walked my dog while listening to the opener, the 21 minute long "Djed". It was so hypnotizing that I kept my headphones in and took in the rest of the album on my couch. The combination of really driving almost punk drums, with textural guitar and bass, playful and jazzy xylophone, and electronic atmospherics made for a uniquely cool listening experience. Loved it!

These are exactly the kind of albums I was hoping to discover through this list

First ever listen to these guys, love this album.

I found this one so interesting, and I think I probably played it every day for 2 weeks before deciding how to rate it. So much going on - bass harmonics - well all the bass playing, drummer going wild, melody just wandering around aimlessly and then coming together. Loved it, will check out their other work.

Halfway between Mogwai and Boards of Canada, but with its own jazz thing going on. Another one I should have been listening to at the time.

An enthralling piece of sonic doom ambience.

along the banks of rivers

I had this album for 20 years in my collection and heard eventualy a little bit of it. Now I'm exited to recover ist again. It's excellent.

Excellent

Went in with an open mind knowing nothing about this, but I’d be lying if I didn’t feel some slight dread seeing that 20 minute opening track, especially since I knew NOTHING about what was ahead of me. But this is fucking amazing, scratched an itch that I didn’t realise was there. This album placed me in a state of total, dreamy euphoria throughout the entire 43 minutes. Extremely calming, gorgeous instrumentals, I actually needed this today.. I don’t really know what else to say, out of all the albums I’ve had from this project so far, this one is my favourite. 5/5

5/5. A really great post-rock album, slow-moving and hesitant without ever feeling boring. The best song is the first 20-minute long Djed but the second side of small ideas is also great. They all feel urgent yet basking in their patience hoping the audience will relax with them, and if you do allow yourself to calm down, your experience will be heightened. Although I wouldn't say I would enjoy this all the time, this was one I couldn't really find fault in.

Descent album solid 5

Hard to believe it is almost 30 years ago this was released. I liked it then and I like it now. Favourite song: Djed, of course.

I hadn't listened to any Tortoise in a long while, but this is still a great album. They have this unique sound that I absolutely love.

Very interesting. This is ostensibly music for the head, as opposed to the heart, yet in its unhurried deconstruction of rock music, it can be quite beautiful. First track 'Djed' sets the scene, dissonance morphing into some pretty cool Krautrock before twisting into yet another sound pretzel - a recurrent theme throughout. Sometimes these shapes are ugly, but always stimulating. And that's not to say that this is a difficult listen; far from it. 'Glass Museum' has a dreamlike quality to it, whilst closer 'Along the Banks of Rivers' could be the dust-spattered soundtrack to a spaghetti western showdown. So - an album that privileges texture and tonality above all the usual business of rock music. It could have been a mess. Instead, it's a triumph.

Listen again!

Something about the sounds on the song "The Taut and The Tame" remind me of Land of the Lost, specifically the 70s tv version since that's the only one I've seen. There's also something dark and mysterious about the final song on the album that I'm really into. I'm very much into this album.

Djed was such a nice track..

I forgot how much I loved Tortoise. TNT was on pretty frequent rotation for me back in high school and early college, but I never got around to their other stuff. I'm happy this led me here!

Quite a trip of an album, and honestly surprised by the atmosphere on display.

I'm not normally one for superlatives but this was a masterpiece