Tortoise: New Record, Summer Tour

It's been five years since Indie icons Tortoise have dropped an album on the unsuspecting public, but now the hiatus has come to an end. The band will release Beacons Of Ancestorship on June 23rd, and support it with a some-of-the-world tour, at least to start off with. Luckily for San Franciscans, we made the cut and will be seeing the band live and in person on Jul 13th at Great American.

While we'll freely admit not to be connoisseurs of the Tortoise back catalog (our interest arose from the involvement of The Sea and Cake's John McEntire), we can tell you this: we got our hands on a copy of the new record, and it truly rocks. The disc manages to create a sound palate that is simultaneously droney, jammy, jazzy, and fuzzy, while at the same time still managing to rock out like there's no tomorrow. Not only is it getting repeat plays on the ol' iTunes, but it seems ideally suited for the live environ as well. Highly recommended.

Tickets are on sale now

mp3: Tortoise - Northern Something

Tortoise Summer 2009 Dates
MAY 29 BUFFALO, NY / TRALF MUSIC HALL
MAY 30 BROOKLYN, NY / BELL HOUSE
MAY 31 NEW YORK, NY / WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER WINTER GARDEN
JUN 12 ATHENS, GREECE / SYNCH FESTIVAL
JUL 11 LOS ANGELES, CA / TROUBADOUR
JUL 13 SAN FRANCISCO, CA / GREAT AMERICAN MUSIC HAL
JUL 15 AUSTIN, TX / THE MOHAWK
JUL 17 CHICAGO, IL / UNION PARK PITCHFORK MUSIC FESTIVAL
JUL 19 WASHINGTON, DC / BLACK CAT
JUL 20 PHILADELPHIA, PA SANCTUARY AT FIRST UNITARIAN CHURCH
JUL 24 TOKYO, JAPAN FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL 2009
AUG 14 ST. MALO, FRANCE / LA ROUTE DU ROCK
AUG 22 HASSELT, BELGIUM / PUKKELPOP