It was Wednesday afternoon, May 17, 2017 . We were in front of the Billboard Tokyo stage before the doors opened. In a quiet space where you could almost hear the sound of falling drops, five Americans were setting up their instruments with serious expressions on their faces. Their name is Tortoise. It has been 27 years since the band was formed in Chicago. The members of the band did not exchange a single word with each other, but worked silently with their instruments, and there was an air of tension and tension in the air. However, when the interview began, the atmosphere changed drastically. They welcomed us in a relaxed mood and answered our questions sincerely and uniquely. What we present here are their real-life words, and their will and attitude.
Shortly after the rehearsal, we were taken to the artists' dressing room. There we were able to see the members of the band relaxing. Unfortunately, one of the members, Dan Bitney, had other commitments and was unable to join us for this interview, but Doug McCombs, John Herndon, Jeff Parker, and John McEntire were available for our interview.
The first thing I wanted to ask was about the name of the band, Tortoise. Who named the band Tortoise? John Herndon pointed at Doug, making a jokey face. The look on his face was as if to say, "He named the band Tortoise on his own. Doug was the first to open his mouth.
."At first, we were going to call the band "Mosquito. . but there were already people who wanted that name, so we all came up with different names. So we came up with a bunch of different names. We had a lot of suggestions, and we ended up with 'Tortoise'.
There is diversity in the music played by Tortoise. While each piece of music is perfect, what can be heard throughout the album is a variety of musical genres. For example, some of the songs are devoted to electronic music, while others play jazz, some are rock, and some are focused on rhythm alone. . And each of the seven albums released so far can be read with a distinct color.
."When we make an album, we don't have any kind of theme. . but I understand what you mean. . I can see a kind of consistency in the songwriting process, a commonality between songs. . I mean, the similarities between the songs. I think it's important to have a sense of unity when you look at the album as a whole. . But that is not something we decide at the beginning, but something that comes out on its own as the songs are being written. Do you understand? It's something that comes out of you.
."In our band, each member has a seed of an idea, and we all water and nurture that seed as we write songs. The reason it takes us so long to make an album is because we put a lot of energy into the editing process. We balance the songs by adding and subtracting well.
What elements do they value in their songwriting?
.". it's almost all the elements that make up music. Melody, rhythm, instrumentation, and imagery ....... . but it varies from song to song. As John mentioned earlier, we all find the core of the song through the process of watering the seed" (Doug McCombs).
Their songwriting process is like looking at a treasure map, rather than assembling a single song with a complete diagram prepared. Because they go in search of what they do not know is there, they create songs that are not bound by conventional frameworks and that have never been heard before. . And as a result, it is something that pleases fans all over the world.
.". Every time we make an album, we try something new. If you keep playing the same sound all the time, you will get bored, right? . We get tired of playing the same sound all the time. If we do that, we will never be able to play fresh music. That's why it's important to challenge yourself in everything you do.
Tortoise enjoys a strong following among musicians around the world. How do they perceive their music?
."We make songs not only for ourselves, but also for others. We are conscious of the fact that it is not a one-way street, and we try to communicate with each other through our songs. I think the music that Tortoise plays is unique. We always go back and forth between different genres. Rock, jazz, Latin, blues, electronic music, etc. We take certain aspects of these genres and mix them together in one song. By doing so, we are able to bring our music to all kinds of people, whether they are rock fans or jazz fans. I think that's why so many people like our music.
Including this visit to Japan, Tortoise has been to Japan three times in the past year. When I asked Doug why, he kindly replied, "To promote the new album that was released last year. When we saw them perform live, we were overwhelmed by the quality of their performance. We felt two main things.
First of all, the tone. . It's obvious, but it's quite different from listening to a sound source. Each note played has its own meaning and necessity. There exists a music that only the five of them can play.
.". there is an energy on stage, and all members of the band are consciously focused on the live performance. In recording, we are capturing sounds that can only be made in the studio. There are sounds that can't be played live. But, on the other hand, live performances are playing sounds that can only be produced in a live setting. And live performances have a strong improvisational element. We try out all kinds of things on stage. We try things out on stage, and we do it with feeling. We can't break a song, so we only play the intro, chorus, and outro. Outside of the climaxes, I just enjoy playing, changing the style, rhythm, and pattern a little bit.
. The second is that each time a song changes, the band members come and go on stage and change instruments. One minute one of them was playing a synthesizer, and the next he was sitting in front of the drum set playing the drums. On the next song, the bass guitar strap is drawn over his shoulder, and the bass guitar resonates. In this way, each one of them became a multi-instrumentalist, playing a variety of instruments on a variety of songs. The sight of them makes everyone in the live concert hall focus their eyes on the stage. They never let the audience get bored, not even for a second.
."When we started the band, we started out with 2 basses and 2 drums. But to make the music more enjoyable, we needed to add more instruments. So we started playing synthesizers, guitars, vibraphones, and other instruments. They were all bad at first. . It didn't start out as, "I can play this instrument, so I'll add it," but rather, "I want this tone, so I'll add it. . We didn't know how to play the instruments in the first place. . I practiced by hand and did my best to learn how to play it. The spirit of challenge won out.
Most of Tortoise's music is played instrumentally, and there is no vocal voice or message in it. What direction are their emotions directed toward when they are on stage?
."I'm just counting the beats, just counting the beats, incessantly, all the time," (John McEntire).
."Don't make mistakes, don't make mistakes, don't make mistakes . I keep repeating it all the time" (Doug McCombs)
."Since I have played the same tune so many times, my body remembers the tune and my fingers move on their own. . Sometimes I play unconsciously. . then there is a blank space in my head, and I think about something completely different. . but that can be fatal to the performance. So I try to concentrate as much as possible on the performance, on the gig.
.". my fingers are moving on their own," says John Herndon. . because they were formed in 1990 and have accumulated a career spanning 27 years. So what is the secret to being a band for that long?
.". we are good friends before we are band members. We share many things besides music. So I understand the other four members, and they feel the same way about me. . Because of this trust, if I have a complaint, I will voice it, and if I have a good point, I will praise it. That's the answer to your question.
.". 30 years ago, there was a time when we lived together. . but now we have our own lives, so that's not possible. Dan and I, who would be here today, live in Chicago, and Jeff and the two Johns live in LA. We are far apart, but we still see each other outside of the band.
I asked them, "What's your common language besides music?" John jokingly replies, "Alcohol!" John jokingly replies, "Alcohol! John jokingly replied, "Alcohol! All the members laughed and showed us how well they get along with each other.
.". we talk about music, movies , and stupid TV shows. . the same topics as the rest of the world. . but lately I've been drinking more alcohol. I guess it's Trump's fault."(Doug McCombs)
Donald Trump was inaugurated as President of the United States this year. All members of Tortoise are "NO" to the current U.S. administration.
."I want you to be sure to write this one down. That guy is SH Fat T." (Doug McCombs)
."His recent statements have been even worse, and even people who originally supported Trump have started chanting anti-Trump like it's the palm of their hand. I think it's about time his administration came to an end.
."No one believed that Trump would become president. . but it has become a reality. After the president was elected, my heart sank. I wondered how it could have happened, and I came up with an answer. He became president because of the age of social networking. This is just my subjective opinion, but I think that people who use social networking services, regardless of their age, tend to create their own personal worlds. The boundary between reality and the void is fading fast. These people supported Trump for his ideals alone.
When Jeff said this about social networking, John opened his mouth again.
."SNS is a world that you curate. Only what you think is cool or beautiful exists there, and you can only catch information that you like. But the real world is different. Ugly, dirty, and cruel things exist everywhere. . that's why we are moved when we see something beautiful. The world should realize that.
."At any time and in any movement, it is important to express oneself. It is necessary to transmit one's will in order to live. I hope you know that.
. I looked at my watch and saw that we had only a few minutes left for the interview. With a sense of regret, I asked the members of Tortoise one last question. What are your plans for the future?
."We will continue to tour. No plans for releases, hmmm...not at this time.
.". but we'll release it at some point (laughs). . speaking of plans, when the tour is over, we are going to start writing songs. Because we are a band . Keep going . We're going to keep going until we fall over.
