Reviews (page 4 of 8)
I think I got through it?
I really like postrock bands like Aereogramme, Explosions in the Sky, An Autumn and Godspeed! You Black Emperor, so I thought this would be a great album. Well, it’s not. And I think it’s more post-baroque/pop than rock. It has its moments, but that’s all
If I saw this band busking I probably would give them a full 15 minutes and then talk about it later. Instead I read all about how much I am required to respect this album and I was locked in for the full 40. A kind of peaceful album, certainly unique. I just had to listen a little longer than I would have in the wild. Marks for interestingness.
Without this list, I don’t think I would’ve ever listened to this album in my life. I gave it a couple of spins. I will play it again while cleaning the house. It restored a bit of faith in this whole project.
This was a fine listen of instrumental music. It definitely isn’t an album you must hear before you die though. 2.75 / 5
Album #75: Millions Now Living Will Never Die - Tortoise Genre (W): Post-rock, jazz fusion Singles: Djed, The Taut and Tame I have not listened to this album before. Thoughts?: This album requires a lot of patience, but you will be rewarded, sometimes, for sitting through it. Despite that, I feel like the album drags on too long to be memorable/enjoyable. Favorite songs: Djed, Glass Museum, The Taut and Tame, Dear Grandma and Grandpa
Didn’t know post rock went back this far. Was fine but I’m never crazy into post rock
I reccomend giving this a listen as this band is the definition of post-rock... "experimental rock that emphasizes texture, atmosphere, and non-traditional song structures over conventional rock techniques." Instrumentals with lots of electronics. Some songs are more experimental than others.
temitas se fondo bueno apruebo
Odd album but surprisingly enjoyable.
It's not what I used to listen to so that's nice
Enjoyable listen.
This was ok. It kind of just all blended together to me, but I didn’t mind having it on.
I had never heard of this band or album before. Listening here, it kind of seemed like they were trying to create a feel like you'd find on The Dark Side of the Moon, but without the vocals. TDSOTM is my highest-rated album on this list (so far), so I support the endeavor. I thought the music was good outside of the vibe, too. I played this while I made breakfast, and I never got too distracted to stop listening. Even without vocals and with the long opener, it kept me engaged. My biggest detractor for this one is that I don't really see it having much relisten value. I enjoyed it this time, but I don't know that I'll be drawn back to it again. Still, I have to say I thought it was a pretty good album. Overall: 3.5
The album and band name couldn't help but remind me of that recent death hoax over the world's oldest tortoise. The album itself was alright, I liked Along the Banks of Rivers most
10 minute plus cresendo-core could go fuck themself. also wdym that the first song is 20+ minutes while the other are 5 and a half minutes maximum? isnt this just a lazy maggot brain ripoff? but yeah although this is not crescendo-core it need to go fuck itself too. 3/5
Very atmospheric and engaging music to play in the background. Is that confusing? Yeah, so is the music.
Took some patience to warm up to.. If post-rock was designed by the world's most chill librarian, this might be it. The intro is basically watching paint dry, but it's pleasant enough background noise. It is peaceful. Spins: 1 Playlist Additions - Djed - Glass Museum - Dear Grandma and Grandpa
Pleasant but not terribly interesting. Some cool rhythmic ideas.
While this isn't bad, it's the wrong side of weird, experimental and ponderous for me. Interesting to listen to once, but no real replay value.
pretty good albeit a little boring at times, but I got the sense that was intended in order to make the more interesting parts more exciting.
Rating: 6/10 Favorite song(s): not sure I have one in particular Review: I don’t have much to say about this one. It was alright. The soundscape wasn’t completely my cup of tea. It was okay, but nothing exciting. And I enjoy ambient music. Listen again?: Probably not
This was really cool, and that's it. Not to undermine what this record has to offer - I think it has strokes of genius in it's composition and pacing at times, while other times... not as much. When this record really has my attention I really love it. The soundscapes created by Tortoise are unique enough where I can see myself coming back to this to turn my brain off for the night and enjoy it's depth and serenity. When it meanders, it's really not for long. I can easily overlook that. However, at 42 minutes and a whopping 6 tracks - it's not a behemoth like Music Has The Right To Children, which I believe this album is very much like in delivery. I am looking forward to checking out other work from Tortoise to see if there's more under the surface. Highlights: Djed, Glass Museum, Along the Banks of Rivers Lowlight: A Survey
Das Album wirkt heute erstaunlich blutleer. Die langen Passagen verlieren schnell an Spannung, viele Ideen bleiben skizzenhaft, und der Flow bricht immer wieder weg. Man hört den Anspruch, aber er trägt nicht durch. Unterm Strich mehr Konzept als Wirkung.
I like a lot of the groups that came along in the next wave of instrumental rock/post-rock, but I see where this was a big influence. I have to be in the right mood, but I enjoy putting this style on as background music.
5/10 Really nice background music at times, but still background music. There was something about 'A Survey' that I enjoyed - the comfort of warm and clean acoustic guitar gently picking over the ambience of crickets in the night. Great track. I didn't connect with the last three tracks at all. Best track: A Survey Will I revisit?: Likely while working or focusing
For me Tortoise always represented the labcoat end of post-rock and as such were not necessarily my favourites of that music critic cooked up genre. I prefer the loud/quiet angst of Slint, the beautiful smothering intensity of Labradford or the elegaic end-of-the-world-sadness of GYBE! I'm not sure any of these bands have that much in common other than a commitment in the 90s to not succumb to rock nostalgia which was everywhere at the time and remains rock's dominant mode up to today. Tortoise probably sound most like they were trying to make prog for people with short hair and no interest in wizards. I can just about relate them to Soft Machine or Hatfield and the North. Nothing wrong in that. I like what they are doing but I feel kept at arms length emotionally. Maybe that's because out of all the big post-rock groups they seem closest to trying to meet the then current challenge of techno's impersonality in the way they use rhythm and texture. I listened to this on streaming but I still had a nanosecond of "this CD is skipping" about two thirds of the way into Djed.
snoozefest but not unpleasant
This was pretty cool.
An interesting album choice for this project. While it has the same structure as some of the prog rock albums in this collection (including the recent ELP dud "Tarkus")--a super long first track/side with somewhat distinct movements, then shorter (and presumably unrelated) tracks to round out the album--I was really reminded more of Kraftwerk's "Autobahn", no doubt due to the instrumental/electronic focus (especially so with "Djed"). I'm not sure exactly why the Wikipedia entry repeatedly mentioned how they were big in the "post-rock" scene (although my confusion is maybe more about that term, I suppose), but I guess I wouldn't have called their music "rock" in any real sense (except maybe "Along the banks of rivers"), and much of this album seems more indebted to Philip Glass or perhaps the avant-garde aspects of industrial/experimental music. Either way, I enjoyed it, but more as background music than something that kept my attention. I'm also mildly intrigued by the album title, given its connection to a seemingly incorrect prediction by the Jehovah Witnesses that the world would end in 1925 (with salvation for many).
A little Twin Peaks-y, esp the last track, but this isn't bad, just a heads up. Atmospheric but not too in your face and sort of low-key progressive. May also be the source of the vague nausea I've felt ever since starting this for the third time.
This was such a fun listening experience. Most of the time I checked the player and said to myself "its still the same song?!". That's a good and bad thing, but mostly good. I enjoy Post-Rock from time to time. Djed is obviously the standout track, so many movements, it's a full symphony within a song. It's a shame that the shorter songs feel half baked Ideas instead of finished work, mostly sound as if they were demos. The Tout and the Tame was my favorite, reminded me of Stereolab. Curious to listen to TNT and other Tortoise albums, hopefully i'll find something that I like more than the second half of this album
feliz que terei alguns álbuns instrumentais nessa lista, e peguei o meu primeiro. não muito do que eu costumo ouvir quando se trata de instrumental, mas foi bem divertido. ps: ouvi enquanto lavava a cama do meu gato favorita: djed
I didn't mind this. Would make decent focus kind of music.
I am a latecomer to the greatness of Tortoise and finally saw them live at Big Ears last year. This is not music for every mood for me, but seeing it live is pretty incredible.
ehh prva pjesma od 20min....nisu pink floyd...you are not him
3/5
When i saw the band name and year, I was expecting some US alt-rock but what I got was quite different! I've seen it labelled as post-rock but I found a distinct lack of the rock half of that equation, leaning more into immersive soundscapes and jazz-influenced textures. Not that that's a bad thing and this wasn't unpleasant but it would take multiple listens to unwrap it and it's not going to get that time right now.
Quite enjoyable although I couldn’t get completely swept away. Made me yearn for Angelo Badalamenti.
I've always enjoyed this one, though never been swept away by it. Still, there are some nice moments.
Favorite Track: Glass Museum
What I would describe as ambient rock. Favourite track: Glass Museum
post rock has never super been my thing but this was fairly digestible as they come!
Instrumental, but kinda thin in structure and idea. Sounds like music that should have singing over it .
To be listened to
03/03/26
3/5
В песнях нет слов и у меня тоже (но вообще прикольно)
This album led me down the Wikipedia wormhole of post-rock. The music is interesting, but I didn't love it.
Some good stuff in there especially that second (?) song
Not unpleasant but not particularly inspiring
I had listened to “Djed” before after seeing it on Pitchfork’s top 100 songs of the 90’s or some such, but the rest of this was new to me. Chill, non-abrasive, mid-tempo instrumentals are fine with me. They aren’t something I’m particularly into but I have no beef with them. But this album was released on January 30, 1996, and Hanson would put out “MMMBop” on March 24, 1997. If Tortoise had recorded “MMMBop” instead of this then they could have beaten Hanson to the punch and had a hit. The path not taken, you know?
Cool atmospheric post-rock.
Djed didn’t work for me and that song’s half the album. Liked Glass Museum though
When I think something good is gonna happen, nothing does. Then I noticed it's an instrumental album. I mean, there’s nothing surprising or really good about this album, but it’s not garbage either. Maybe someday I’ll listen to Tortoise again.
Caught my ear as a nice background to work, looking forward to another though, 3.5 rounding down with promise of looking forward to more
звучит интересно, но не зацепило, возможно нужно будет вернуться через время и переслушать
Прослушала на фоне, для такого идеальная музыка. Но закончился альбом, и я даже не поняла, что это какой - то другой трек. Поэтому от меня только 3 балла. Также забыла отрецензировать альбом Snoop Dogg. Что со мной сделал этот челендже, если я вижу альбом 1993 года и радуюсь тому, что это новье. Несмотря на год выхода для меня прозвучал современнее недавнего альбома OutKast, который слушали. Качает Снуп классно
It was ok to have on in the background as I drove home. Nothing too offensive and it washed over just nice
At the beginning, I thought I’d dread listening to this album throughout the whole runtime, but once it got that groove going in the first song, it changed my mind. The whole album isn’t like that and I would say less than half of it is exciting to listen to, but it definitely has its moments.
Totally fine. Guys are certainly messing around at times and having a good time, but I didn't find anything really groundbreaking here. Not unlistenable at the slightest, just didn't feel cohesive in any bit. Plus a hugely long song at the start really made me concerned that this album was going to be a real multi hour slogfest, but it's not.
Started off extremely annoyed but ended up pleasantly surprised. That’s math rock, baby
One of the few entirely instrumental rock projects to be included in the book, Millions Now Living Will Never Die is an interesting amalgamation of genres. It's the first of two albums by Tortoise to feature Pajo of Slint fame on bass, uncoincidentally being their two best albums by a long shot. The album starts out slow and smooth with Djed, taking a few minutes to get warmed up before jumping into some lush yet soothing atmospheric Post-Rock. I love the minimalism influence on this record, particularly on Djed, but also on Glass Museum and Along the Banks of Rivers. I think playing around with monotonous and repetitive elements while letting the atmosphere move around them is a great idea when well-executed and I think they did a fair job executing it here. My biggest critique is shared with the other Pajo album TNT; there really isn't much direction or growth throughout the record. Slow builds and crescendos are absolutely my favorite part of Post-Rock as a genre, and though there's some dynamic contrast MNLWND is relatively stagnant, remaining in that mezzo piano softness and rarely leaving. It's relaxing and meditative to be sure, but lacks much intrigue or excitement. Overall though the textures are really nice and the soundscapes they make are lovely. They lose me a little bit near the end of the record, but I feel like this record is designed (or at least best suited) for background listening, and I'm not just saying that because it's instrumental.
Hmm not sure what I think about this album.🤔 Giving it three for creativity
Interesting album, wouldn’t say I would seek it out but it was cool to have on to sort of set a mood
Listen I like weird stuff but this was just random sounds and stuff the album
Weird again. Not sure how I felt about it really. Listenable, background music. Nothing too exciting though.
Det här är behagligt, även om det mer är något som jag skulle dra på i bakgrunden än aktivt lyssna på. Att låta första låten vara halva albumets längd är också helt klart ett val.
För historielös vad gäller postrock för att sätta högre, men det är ju najs det jag hör!
I had no idea what to expect from this album and now that I have listened to it I have no real idea of what to say. It’s a lot of prolonged variations on musical themes and I think it’s worth listening to, but I also had a hard time staying focused on it and often felt my mind wander. Still glad I gave it a spin overall.
A bit boring.
Choppy, instrumental, mildly-jazzy electro stuff. Interesting, sure. Just not that exciting or memorable. And I'm a guy who likes instrumental post-rock.
Many years ago, when I was on college radio, I accidentally played Tortoise when I was supposed to be playing jazz because I grabbed from the wrong shelf. The music was inoffensive but not what I wanted. Same goes for this one. I will say that this record would be much MUCH more enjoyable if they took that opening track ("Djed") and stuck it at the end instead of the beginning. I assume they lose 90% of potential listeners in the first two minutes because of that; the rest of the record is better. So if you're struggling, try skipping that one.
No standouts, but inoffensive
Here's the Bandcamp link if you want to avoid the warmongering and AI-shitified Spotify https://tortoise.bandcamp.com/album/millions-now-living-will-never-die
Cool! Not something I would have found on my own. I might be going back to this one later.
2.5
big video game vibes. the jehovah witness background made me laugh. Not great but I vibed
This was pretty nice, but it did get a little too chill for me, like to the point where I get distracted too easily. There was a wasp in our kitchen and I had to open the windows. You know, that sort of thing. I really like post rock, but I like it as it is quite exciting and in your face. This is neither. It's not bad, it's just nice and relatively forgettable.
In a sense, post-rock went where prog never could, i.e., besides the best of Floyd or King Crimson, the progers were too early to the party of strange & experimental notions. Tho 'rock' was still a possibility at the time Tortoise emerged, following the lessons of Talk Talk, the group understood that it could all now be reengineered. In reality, this record has next to nothing to do w/ rock, being more of a conflation of techno, jazz, and European forms, and really only the ideas of those genres. Even when the electric guitar is the most predominant instrument, I think of Sun Ra more than Jimi Hendrix. And yet, tho I respect and enjoy this more than records by ELP or Rush, it ultimately suffers from the same defects: it's boring, it's dead, it's snooty.
Never heard of this band before, was surprised to see a 90s indie rock band on this list I’ve never even heard of. This is apparently a really influential post-rock album. First track was 20 minutes long and bored me to death but the rest was perfectly fine and quite nice at times. Felt like a more boring and mellow take on one of those turn of the millennium emo-leaning math rock bands. Like Polvo or Don Caballero or something. It was pleasant to listen to but I didn’t really connect with it that much.
3.5 Ambient music with the slappy clappy drum and a myserious pseudo-philosophical title has been done so many times
Come for Djed and stay for...well, come for Djed.
You know it’s very ok when I forgot to do my review after listening and can’t remember what the album even sounded like. I think this was just ambient music with no vocals that was kind of relaxing. 5/10
Quite relaxing to listen to overall. Can’t say I’ve ever come across these guys before. Feels a bit like being in a fancy coffee shop with some pleasant ambient background music but there are better choices to listen to if I want something like this. Technically competent but a bit uninspiring. 3.5*
This is the least offensive album I’ve had of the last 3 by a landslide. I’m conflicted about rating it. It really feels like nothing more than background music. It’s good background music, but do I need to hear background music before I die?
Honestly when it gets jammy, I do kind of like this album, but the more experimental "fun with white noise" bits kind of lose me for the most part. (6.8) ★★★
3.5
Hay que saber meterse en el post rock. Y te tiene que agarrar en el mood indicado. 6/10
Pretty good instrumental music, sounded kind of like a low-key version of Weather Report to me. Little too laid back for my tastes.
Fav: Along The Banks Of Rivers Least Fav: A Survey Interesting mix of atmospheric, relaxing stuff followed by some lovely jazz. Wish the jazz stuff was the whole album but as my first post-rock album, it’s left me interested in seeing what else it has to offer
A lot more chill than the title suggests. I'm actually going to add this to my personal collection for some great ambient tunes at work.
A very original album, but no less interesting; I was surprised but enjoyed listening to it.
I struggled a bit at first because those long, very long atmospheric stretches feel a bit like prog self-indulgence, or a rehearsal jam that doesn’t end. But then tracks like Glass Museum and The Taut and Tame finally bring some breathing room with clear tones, real grooves, and musical technique that actually shines. That part is genuinely great. So I’m pretty torn. But it’s the kind of record I can come back to and I will, along with their other albums.
Langsam und ruhig - perfekte Hintergrundmusik (auch wenn das die Musiker selbst wohl ungern hören)
Enjoyable
nearly a 4, a bit too woo woo for me
Kind of enjoyable, soothing.
instrumental
Really like this. Super interesting
Yet another random noise album. Felt all over the place. Reminded me of Death Cab instrumentals. Unclear why it's here, had some nice moments though, 3*
Whelming
Cool album Definitely would put this on again
I love instrumental albums. I love ambient music. I do like mine with a bit of more drums or faster tempo. Is this why this didn't click? I really, really wanted to like it. Opening 20 minute track is good only in parts, the rest are fine, and the last one is the best on the album so at least it washed away the major disappointment I felt while listening.
This is quite interesting, I don't know why I was expecting yet another indie album. However as interesting as this is, I am not so huge on post-rock despite obvious influence of this band. A lot of ideas here but feels kind of loose. Probably right in the middle for this one.
Big fan of post-rock but not the Tortoise brand of post-rock. Early post-rock like Tortoise or Bark Psychosis tends to be a little too monotonous for my taste, and I heavily prefer the crescendo-driven approach popularized by bands like GY!BE. I remember listening to TNT and not enjoying it very much. However, this album I liked a lot more. It is also very relaxed, but I found the texture and atmosphere more enjoyable. The guitar work is great, and all the extra electronic elements work well. Still not really my type of music, but this albums was good. 7/10
Good background music. Not something that I could just sit and listen to the whole album Of just because
I like the sounds, especially the spaghetti western guitar. Really cool rhythmically, gets you into a vibe. But combine minimalism with a 20-minute piece and it kinda sounds like a Shine on You Crazy Diamond demo tape, a little half baked. I just wish it had more melody. But that’s a genre thing, these guys sound good.
The 20 minute song starts off really well, and I could see it slowly turning into a super epic explosive song, but instead it just kinda turns into a wet fart of nothing. Around the 11 minute mark the beat changes to something more interesting, but not as exciting as the opening led me to believe. I want to like this album so much more than I actually do. I can see a lot of elements from albums I love, but it never quite takes their ideas far enough to be interesting. Some of the albums this reminds me of are: Slint - Spiderland, Can - Tago Mago, and Soft Cell - Third. High 3.
first half is banging. id rather be listening to bcnr tho. 3.5
Some of it was really good, some of it annoying. Split the difference.
Weirdly interesting instrumental jazz rock.
Man, add some lyrics in here and maybe you'll have something. As it, it's fine.
post-rock-y, tud ez jobb is lenni
hat en ezt nem tudtam hova tenni. de voltak jo pillanatai
Highlight Song/s: Glass Museum This is quite a texture-rich album, great vibe to it. Such as The Taut and Tame reminds me of something off of Seventeen Seconds (The Cure.) Other than that It is just quite underwhelming for me; just doesn't strike a chord. I can see why someone might like this album.
only beats; no vocals still beats were good
Great listening for when in mindless spreadsheet land.
this album is a bit hard to describe. it's jazz... math... rock? i think? it's so loose in terms of genre and all the tracks, you'd have to find your own meaning if you turned it on yourself. very minimal, very ambient... it's seriously difficult to describe this album, but it's definitely the kind of weird, quiet krautrock that an alternative or indie group would try to make when they're bored. i'm trying to get a good feel for the sound, but more often than not, i lose interest. there's something here, but i'm still trying to figure out what it is.
Alright background music
Jag skulle vilja ge detta album 2,5/5. Skickliga musiker men kanske inget jag lyssnar på igen. Inslagen av flera minuters skrapiga grusljud som är så typiska för ambient musik är inte riktigt något för mig. Ett album som försvinner i bakgrunden medans man pysslar med annat.
It's fine, you can hear the influence of this on other rock instrumentalists but I just don't think it's a genre that lends itself that well to instrumental songs. 3*
I don’t know why
Sort of charming. I was quite enjoying Djed until 14 minutes in when it decided to become annoying.
Album No. 0033 on my list. Never heared of Tortoise before, but I can definitely see why this is considered an important record. For me, this was an enjoyable listen overall. The whole album is pretty groovy, and even though it does not have any singing parts, it did not bore me at all. On the other hand, its instrumental nature makes this something I'd rather listen to in the background instead of properly listening to this album just for the sake of itself. "Djed", the first track, which makes up around half of the album itself, was my favorite track, despite its length. 3/5 stars!
Cool interesting instrumentals, but not engaging enough for me to listen to the whole song
Good, atmospheric instrumental album with interesting layers, perfect for background music.
Superb!
Never heard their stuff before but a like it
Never heard this before, great stuff!
Middle of the road
Interesting. Need to relisten
Sounds
First time listening. I almost didn’t make it through the opening track, Djed. It started off ok, but then it turned into a kind of noise that made me want to drive my car into a wall. After that, it is was smooth sailing the rest of the way. Glass Museum, A Survey, and The Taut and Tame were proggy goodness. I also enjoyed the spaghetti western feel of Along The Banks of Rivers. Would probably listen to again, but I’m skipping the first track. 3.5/5
En la U tenía un compañero que escribía puros jeroglíficos en las pruebas para que lo citaran a "leer su prueba" y así subir sus notas. Necesito que los chiquillos estos de las tortugas vengan a explicarme ese primer track de casi 21 minutos. Sin él habría amado el disco. La onda de The Taut and Tame está buenísima, pero no puedo superar los 20:57 de algo que sonaba muy a nada, la verdad.
Metro y bus, a las 3 de la tarde en septiembre. Relajante y retador. HIPNÓTICO
Essentially ambient shoegaze, with a little jazziness thrown in. Perfect for my current debugging session.
Need to listen and rate it.
Quite an interesting listen! This is what this project is for. 3/5
OK so . . . the album is about 50% the first song - the parts that sounded like Kidsmoke (Wilco) I liked a lot, the parts where it sounds like their studio equipment was breaking down and they said, 'Fuck it, keep recording' I liked a lot less. Had they just stuck with the heavy bass line I think I would have really grooved to this album but . . . At one point they appeared to have snuck in the some naval sub pinging sonar for some reason. I feel like this is one of those bands you really have to spend some time with to fully appreciate. Didn't hate, don't love it. Do love Wilco! Closest contemporary in the genre that came to my mind is God is an Astronaut.
Very long drawn out jamming not my tea but good for them
A very cool instrumental album. No single track stood out, but the overall effect was quite impressive.
Ambient, nothing crazy
Very good. A clear influence on bands like Mogwai. Pleasantly hypnotic. One to revisit
Electronic... Prefer shorter songs
This was different but I kinda liked it. I feel like this album with great headphones would sound amazing. Interesting instrumentals but a strangely nice listen.
I enjoyed this, but there were times it came close to annoying me. The first half of the first song felt like "what if we just took the first 10 seconds of a normal song and blew it out for 10 minutes." But the later half of the album kept me interested. When it played like a cool soundtrack to a movie I hadn't seen, if worked. When I felt like it was asking me to look at it as some intellectual activity to be "appreciated," it left me cold.
'Glass Museum' is definitely the strongest song, but (besides the movie soundtrack score of the opening song) the rest of it mostly sounded a bit more noodly and experimental. For me, it ultimately was not all that compelling altogether.
Very good, a chill background sounds ape that was innovative for its time
I would never seek this out. But for instrumental / electronic music, it is pretty good / not bad. But I’ll probably never listen again.
If I had a pound for every time I'd tried to get into post-rock I might be able to afford a pint outside of London. This was the second pound earnt from this record. Sam Jennings first introduced me to it and when he did I listened to it every day for a week or so. This was the first I'd revisited it since. Lots of cool moments but hard to give it a four.
A bad I have never heard or heard of. Starting out with a 20 minute mood piece is definitely a bold choice, but I'm enjoying it more than I would have expected.
I enjoyed it much more than I expected.
Almost sounded like video game music. Another where I wish there were decimals, would have this closer to a 4
My definition of post rock was always influenced by Godspeed! You Black Emperor's euphoric highs. So on my first listen of this, I was wondering why this was characterized as post rock. It was all over the place and though some melodies caught me, they never built to a climax. I'm a person that is infamously into a band that jams on a repeating phrase over and over again and yet it didn't stick the first time. That's when I researched the genre of post rock in general and what I read was that post rock is supposed to be music built on texture and without structure. There's the build up of course, but when I thought of the word "texture", I decided to give it a second listen. It's nothing spectacular, but I can at least give it some respect. This is not an album meant for conventional listening, but rather, light background music that makes some sort of impression. Maybe it's my Stereolab senses tingling. (5/10, 3/5 on this scale)
Post-rock put me off straight away but I gave it a go anyway. It was fine. The first track is distressingly long but the rest plinky plonk their way along quite quickly. It is blandish background music that occasionally lets out a squeal to make sure you are still there. It’s nothing that I will revisit but it was better than “post rock” would imply.
I saw Tortoise live in a warehouse in Dubuque, Iowa, in maybe 2010, which was awesome. They had some synth I’ve never seen before or since that was played like a marimba.
This is the song that doesn't end. Yes it goes on and on my friends. It might make good cleaning music though
Some interesting sounds and a 21 minute opening track. 1st time for everything.
Sparse and sumptuous. I lost track of time, in a decent way.
Trippy
I wish I could find more just instrumental stuff like this. Really good, I hear there next album was even better
5/10 It isn't bad, its just I didn't notice when the music stopped. plus there are some annoying noises in the first track. 8-6-2025
This was ok. I guess the fact that it sounds like pretty much all the other Post Rock music I've heard makes sense as this pretty much defined the genre. In terms of significance, I suppose that makes this album very significant. In terms of listenability, I could listen to it again in the right mood though I think the first track could have cut out much of the last 5ish minutes. 3/5
The 20-minute intro to an album in a genre I didn't know existed felt like I'd voluntarily stumbled into a rather aimless abyss. I can see why this is categorized as post rock. It kind of sucks all the fun and grit and words out of rock and mostly leaves a gentle, calming experience with rock instrumentals instead. It was fine enough though, nice ambient mood music.
7/29/25. Wasn't expecting an instrumental, but interesting nontheless. Cool, atmospheric sounds in this one, last track had to be my favorite.
Didn't initially grab me, but the songs did start to grow on me. Can't fault the technical playing and instrumentation.
Never heard about this band before and it was an OK listen, as it was intrumental and great for background music, but Im not a massive fan of post rock. There are some good instrumental bits but most of it was forgettable. 2.5 but making it to a 3. Meh
There are some really good parts on this album, especially in the 20+ minute opener. It’s textured, creative, and builds nicely, but like the rest of the album, it tends to drift once it gets somewhere interesting. That’s kind of the story throughout: ideas appear, then wander off before they fully land. All in all, this album feels more like a sketchbook of cool sounds than a fully satisfying listen. Honestly, the first track gave me most of what I needed.
Not. Ad
Solid
Solid 3.5, good ambience but not particularly memorable.
Kann man machen
Not bad. I was working with it on. I'll have to read about what was so great about it. If I had it on in the car or something I think it would be fewer stars
I...think I enjoyed this? I don't know why I'm so unsure. Parts of it can be a bit irritating, but overall the ambient-ish vibes are appreciated.
Enjoyed this, and am glad to know of its existence. Relaxing, but also interesting. Probably a seven, but I'm rounding down because I can't think when I'd want to listen again.
This sounds as though it was recorded in 1976, not 1996. I think it's all the better for it. I'm softening in my own older age. I've become a bloody hippy.
At first it was very “background music for an educational film about how microscopes work,” but by the end I was enjoying it as being actually good, not just quirky good.
it's alright. it starts off so interesting but floats into the background
Favorite Track: Along the Banks of Rivers
If you’d never heard Radiohead, this would be incredible. Now I’m not going to be churlish. They’re a little before Radiohead, and they’re not bad. But they’re not great. Too obsessed with their cleverness to quite get to clever. I do like the album title. 2.5
Labelling themselves as "One of the most influential bands of the last 40 years" at the beginning of their Spotify profile... 3 stars
Absolutely didn't notice when YouTube went on to generic synthwave
Not EVEN atmospheric or background musicscapes like I've heard it might be, I found this 6 track (42 minute) collection refreshing and an easy first listen.
Better than the average instrumental album. Hands on very progressive and aggressive play bass is insane, whole album is good. Great musicians whoever they are. First song way too long so had to listen in 2 segments because of a conference call twice so didnt flow as it should have yet found it great a little weak at some parts but for a 20 minute song it was superb.
This was ok. Not much to say about it one way or the other.
There is an innovative quality that sets this apart from other ambiance-heavy, dream-like jazz rock. It’s great music to work to. Driven and not distracting. Ultimately, it fades a bit into the background. A live show would probably be pretty inspiring.
An experience as much as anything, the opening 21 min track bending and winding its way through the soundscape.
Not sure I’m the right audience for a 6-song 42 minute album but the first song is 21 of those minutes. Definitely some interesting background music for my book, but not something I’m gonna go back to.
Alternative for silence
Opener meanders a bit more than it earns, otherwise the album had some good moods that invite you in and swirl around you
Decent instrumental album. Sounds pretty innovative for its time. I probably wouldn't listen to this very often though. Glass Museum is an iconic song however and I do think it is the best.
Never heard of this group, in spite of their apparent influence on others. It was intriguing and I would probably listen to them more.
i don't knowww… skipping the first one i kinda like the ambient vibes? weird to be on this list though
Interesting album, great ambient background sounds but didn’t hold my interest all the way. I’m not against long form tracks like ‘Djed’ but it didn’t really move far from where it began, I would have rather had a journey with some change happening. Shorter tracks were fine. Overall 2.5/5 middle of the road, my rating may differ on another day
A soundscape sort of thing. I zoned out and forgot it was even playing for a while. Sort of enjoyable when I was paying attention. Whatever, a 3 I guess.
Интересно, но не вау
Stuck in the middle with this one. Enjoyed it in parts but would have to force myself to sit down and listen intently to get anything further from it. Noise rock in its early stage but has been done better since this. 02/05/25
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
There were moments throughout that perked my ears - a lot of the rest was solid background music. Why do you need a song that long to start off the album?
6/10…experimental rock
Went in cold with no idea what to expect with this one and I was quite happy with what I got. A nice blend of Radiohead, The Foals, and Umphrey's McGee with some weirdness, math-rock jamming, and soaring instrumentals. I particularly liked the xylophone usage. It did slow to a Tortoise crawl at times but it works well when in chill mode, working at my desk, easy drive to work, lounging, nodding off for the night, etc. I let the Spotify run after the album ended and everything that popped up in this vein I enjoyed. This is the type of stuff I see myself playing a lot more of in my old age instead of slow jazz. Thanks list...3.15 stars for MiNyL WiND.
Never heard of Tortoise so I didn't know what to expect when this hit the list. After the listen I really appreciate the blend of various alt-genres that I just heard. This is listed as post-rock jazz fusion but I'm not really sure that paints the right picture. I'm not sure how I would refer to it that would capture the mood but regardless it was a very nice blend of a various instrumental segments some of which provide some great vibes. It's no easy task to create a 20+ minute song that keeps the attention of the listener all the way through. Tortoise managed to do that with the opening track on MNLWN. I would call Djed the high point of the album basically encompassing the first half. There are some other nuggets within the remaining tracks that I also enjoyed, but also some stuff that could go (axe A Survey please). All in a all a very nice entry on the list from a completely unknown artist and style. 3.21 stars
Just why not… very chill but quality music
Fairly forgettable.
This ended up being a fairly *background* listen for me, with the majority of tracks neither grabbing nor bothering my ears. I generally like this sound - and used to listen to much more of it - but it doesn't seem to hold my interest as much these days.
In another version of this life, I’m a man in his mid 40s, in a band like Tortoise, getting ready to go on tour to celebrate the 30th anniversary of this record. I think this is what I would be doing if I had just kept on being in bands
Meh, 3 stars
I mean, at least it has melodies. Solid 3 Stars.
It felt like I was listening to a bland video game soundtrack.
Nice instrumental rock jam album.
It's not bad at all, but I don't have the patience. It's slow instrumental soundtrack music for arthouse movies. Would have been better with the arthouse movie, but as I said, it's not bad at all. Favorite song: the taut and tame.
Glass Museum reminds me of Twin Peaks music.
I couldn't find a way to pull the cartridge out so I could blow on it and put it back in hoping for it to work. It would be decent ambient noise if not for the constant Nintendo skipping fuzz noise.
good post rock, fairly standard tho
Seemed closer to ambient than post-rock to me. But it was decent.
Breakfast ready
Sounds like a great band doing their just alright, routine warm-up. But hey, it's still far more interesting than many of the rock 'n roll albums on here, so it's getting a solid three stars.
Message 'vo Muziek, minder 'vo
I usually love Post rock but this was too much ambient and not enough noise for me. But still very influential.
krijtje tegen een schoolbord dit album is heel erg Mother Earth's Plantasia
Utterly forgettable but pretty chill.
Almost okay.
Fine. Sounds like something late-‘90s-me would be into. Reminds me of Slint, but I remember liking Slint more than this album.
I liked this and would buy the vinyl if I saw it in a record store. It didn’t light my world on fire, but has a cool vibe. I had never heard it before.
Not sure how to describe this, indie kids trying to make a lofi dance along extended instrumental. Either way it kind of works, kind of
The album became more interesting once the first track was over. I did save "Glass Museum" but I likely won't relisten to this album as a whole.
Motorik beat, jo!
I generally like this form of music but this particular album "went down too easy" i.e. it's a bit more like aural wallpaper than it is music. I like my tunes a bit more forward.
That one with the bass was pretty cool 3.5
I rarely hear music that is interesting and dull at the same time: interesting concepts, but so simple that I found myself thinking of listening to Kansas, who, 25 years earlier, did this much better.
I didn't mind this as background music.
This was reasonably good background music. Some parts were interesting and they outweighed the mildly irritating parts.
New to me pretty cool. That first track was looooooong.
Dit gaat wel meer richting de postrock die ik ken: wat langer uitgesponnen nummers, die heel langzaam opbouwen door elke keer nieuwe instrumenten of andere geluiden toe te voegen en juist weer weg te halen. Het toont wat dat betreft ook wel enige gelijkenis met sommige dancemuziek. Het openingsnummer Djed bouwt in de eerste 5 minuten lekker op, vervolgens komt er wel een saai stuk, dat meer om een beat draait. Ik mis daar scheurende gitaren, een resonerende bas tel ik niet mee. En na 10 minuten krijgen we een stuk "zet je cd-speler uit", waarop vervolgens het nummer vrij elektronisch voortborduurt. Totdat de plaat expres begint te haperen na 14 minuten. Het tweede nummer Glass Museum zit lekker vol sfeervolle gitaar met een fijne opbouw erin. Op het eind hoop je dan dat het even lekker losgaat, maar het gaat juist weer terug naar rustig. Gelukkig laten ze de elektronica hier wat meer op de achtergrond. En zo wisselt het vervolgens een beetje af, de ene keer draait het wat meer om de drums of een (elektronische) beat, dan weer om een gitaarriff of een basloopje. Ik mis bij alle nummers de climax, de uitbarsting, de ontlading. Een band als Oceansize heeft dat wel in zijn nummers van het album Effloresce. En die ontlading, daar zit ik op te wachten. Het is nu een onvervuld verlangen, opgekropte woede. Buitengewoon frustrerend. Terwijl het zoveel potentie kan hebben. Het zit tussen de 2 en de 3 in, maar doordat ik er toch met veel interesse naar heb geluisterd (ipv dat het op de achtergrond een beetje doorkabbelt en je het 5x aan moet zetten omdat je elke keer vergeet dat de muziek aanstaat), rond ik het af naar een 3.
Interesting.
This was really interesting and I’d never heard of them.
Interesting to say the least
Electronic
Aika erikoinen levy! Täytyy kuunnella uudemman kerran. Sopi tällaiseen sumuiseen aamuun kyllä! 3/5
Miellyttävä postrock-levy, mutta olen kuullut parempiakin. 3.5/5
Chill laid back instrumental. Sounded great in background to reading. Weird transition towards end of first song, where I thought my streaming service was getting spotty connection.
It was literally impossible not to zone out to this and I don't know if that was the intention or not
Somewhat alternative and interesting. But probably won't listen to this again.
I really enjoyed certain parts of this album, particularly "Glass Museum" and "Along the Banks of Rivers", but it was mostly too repetitive for me. The opening track had no need to be so long, especially since there was not a lot of interesting stuff happening in there. It's nice background music but I doubt I'll replay this. 3 stars
For a while I've been meaning to listen to "TNT" which was the album Tortoise released after this one so this was a nice introduction to the band. This is just a nice chill album. Perfect for a snowy day like today. kind of reminded me of Fishmans which is a favorite of mine. This album didn't knock my socks off but I could see myself revisiting it. Favorite track: Djed
запомню ли я что построк иногда не имеет слов? тбд! альбом милый, местами напомнило культиста, местами эффект Кандинского
Instrumental
First listen. Decent.
Interesting post-rock (a couple of post-hardcore sounding moments). Lots of rhythmic patterns. I enjoyed it overall. Would take more listens to decide if I'm really into it.
Not exciting
This album sounded very similar to the title and how the cover looked. Background music core
mostly indie atmospheric instrumentals, some annoying repetitive bits. okay to work with
Was not familiar with Tortoise - but had looked at the Global reviews and was rather looking forward to this. Unfortunately whilst I did like Djed I found the rest very bland and lacking any emotional heft or connection and all a bit vanilla and plodding.
Deserves a star for the album title alone. Otherwise, not great, not bad.
The album kind of lulls you into it. It started but once the first song ended then it was like the album was done. Not necessarily bad but also not a great sign overall. It was fine.
Something to have on in the background. Someone else chose to put it on though.
A fun little foray into instrumental post-rock. The "post-" genres are usually executed very poorly, whether due to too much experimentation or sheer boredom while listening – but Tortoise's effort here is solid. The first track being one 21-minute-long epic is unnecessary here, given that the transitions between sections are just as jarring as if they'd been separate tracks. Side 2 is better in this regard, and Tortoise makes some pretty great atmospheres. Fancy time signatures (including the rare 11/4 and 14/8 rhythms) are seen in The Taut and Tame and Glass Museum. A Survey goes full-on acoustic, incorporating various melodic elements from the blues genre. Along the Banks of Rivers creates a calm guitar-/synth-based atmosphere that reminds me of later-era Pink Floyd instrumentals. Glass Museum is similar, and also my favourite track on here. For all its merits, though, Millions Now Living Will Never Die is a little dull, particularly for close listening. A severe limitation of instrumental albums is that there's very little replayability. Good for background listening, but no more. 3/5 Key tracks: Glass Museum, Along the Banks of Rivers
I didn't mind this. It was chill background music for driving, but not something I'd choose to put on again. A 21 minute long song to start the album though, woof.
Meh
Der er nogle interessante elementer. Særligt den monotone rytmesektion. Men det bliver også lige lovligt avangate i udtrykket til tided
I didn't dislike it. Some parts I quite liked and overall wanted to enjoy it more, but it was just a bit boring. Maybe OK as background music.
I didn’t hate it, it was nice while I was doing a jigsaw. Maybe not what Mr Tortoise was aiming for but I’ll add it to my jigsaw rotation
Atmospheric, ambient and melancholic. A nice album for background music.
Thoughts before listening: Cool, abstract indie rock instrumentals. I went through a phase where I was really into Tortoise, but its been a long time since I have listened to these guys. Review: So this album starts out with Djed which is one of Tortoise and the genre of post-rock's most celebrated songs. Its okay. There are definitely some interesting parts, but as a whole I find it to be too long and abstract to be one of my favorites. I do however enjoy quite a bit of this album. Its certainly a journey and takes some patience to make it through, but I find it quite rewarding. There are very interesting textures and styles being incorporated throughout, especially with the shorter songs. 3-stars
Välgjort men är nt för intresserad i instrumentella album som inte är jazz
Some Explosions in the Sky vibes at times which I liked but overall it was just alright
It's a difficult listen, but rewarding in some ways. The odd instrumental lineup (I think they have like 2 bassists and 3 drummers) takes some getting used to, and the fact that almost none of the tracks have any sort of normal musical arrangement is likewise strange. The 20+ min opener is more like 5-10 short semi-musical interludes connected by rhythmic noise. A few tracks have some genuinely interesting grooves in them, and I appreciate the constantly changing odd time signatures. Not something I would probably listen to again, but intriguing.
Enjoyed it enough.
Ikkje så verst, men revolusjonerte ikkje livet mitt heller
Very interesting production. Definitely could hear and appreciated how it influenced post-rock. Could be kinda boring at times, but there's a lot here to enjoy.
Very experimental album. Yes, I remember the band with what felt like 20 drummers. But I was expecting a bit more sonic power. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be my cup of tea.
Strange post rock album that lacks some heft
They are very talented, but I am not a huge fan of the music.
Interesting, but for a different time in life.
It went by so fast, I didn't even notice
Post-rock, huh? Definitely new for me. I didn’t love this but it wasn’t terrible to listen to. Light 3.
Honestly pretty vibey. Not sure I could listen to this without it being in the background, but I didn't mind it at all.
This was really interesting. It's very meditative, something good for laying peacefully in a dark, quiet room. I love when Djed starts glitching out around 14 minutes in. I thought the aliens were intercepting for a hot sec.
3.5☆/5 09.24.2024
Was okay. Could listen to while getting some work done. 3/5
Pretty cool
I'm going up to 3 on this one even though it doesn't appeal to me as an album. I checked out the group and live and there is definitely an appeal there.
this is like, perfect background music for me. i already kinda forget what it sounded like. 3.5
I accidentally autoplayed twenty minutes of another Tortoise album so I'd say it felt samey
Hm, irgendwie abseitige Klangfummelei. Hat mich zuerst an Kraftwerk erinnert. Aber ich muss zugeben, ich habe das Album 2x angehört und ja, hat mich dann doch angesprochen. Unerwartete 3*
Interesting album, but not exactly my cup of tea. Would not return to this album or group.
Interesting
I didnt outright /like/ it but I appreciate it. for once it wasn't the same and I enjoyed the process of listening to it
#335. Decent enough, kinda background musicky. I didn't really like the first song all that much, and unfortunately that's about half of the fucking thing. I did think the rest of it was pretty good though. 3/5: decent
Instrumental post rock that screams "ignore me and write emails." I love it.
Who? Apparently it's Post-Rock/Jazz-Fusion which immediately puts me off, but I gave it a chance. First track, "Djed", is just under 21 minutes long, but reminded me of early Kraftwerk. The second track, "Glass Museum", reminded me of Gentle Giant. Overall, I quite liked it, but I wouldn't buy it.
Great ambient album, left me loving the unique sequences after each listen. Favs: Glass Museum The Taut and Tame
Stop me if you've heard this before... I mean stop this, I keep hearing it over and over. I dug the first song, until it droned. Then noticed the next song drone. Repeat. Then while cleaning the kitchen, it set a numbing vibe. But I was not high, so it diminished. But that brief stretch gets it an extra star.
2.9 listened 2x
It grows on you after the first 20m track.
This is basically ambient rock--layers building upon layers, like a parfait. No, an onion. Is that even a touch of modern classical I hear there? It goes from warm, round tones to razor-thin scratches. Soothing throughout.
First track is fantastic, the rest of the album can't quite hit those heights. Can see why this was mega-influential. Er...not a lot a else you can say. 3.5 really.
I liked this more than I expected I would after the first ten minutes. Glass Museum had a desolate vibe to it, I felt myself becoming entranced in it. The Survey and Djed didn't do much for me. The Taut and the Tame was alright. Dear Grandma and Grandpa felt like floating through space in outer wilds. Along the banks of the river was like good, bad and the ugly in space. Songs that take you someplace are special but there were some duds here too, overall enjoyed
Soundscapes. The music became entirely background.