More than two years following their eight-track album Summer in Algiers, Fredericton Band Tortue have brought listeners a short-but-sweet Boxing Day treat in the form of a two-track EP titled Slither. Coming in heavier and groovier than ever, Tortue are releasing their latest work to let us know what they have been up to lately.
It’s no secret that Tortue have been less active over the past couple of years. After having their bass player Connor MacAulay move to Toronto, resulting in far less practice time and ability to book shows, the band recently underwent another major change; Jamie Comeau of Jamie Comeau & the Crooked Teeth has taken up seat as the group’s new drummer. This change seems a natural once since Tortue frontman Aidan Bullock plays bass in Comeau’s band as well.
Though it only has two tracks, the EP spans 14½ minutes, divided into nearly equal parts.
“They were my latest songs I had come up with and the only two that don’t have recordings yet,” says Bullock.
The title track, “Slither”, leans more towards a sort of psychedelic surf rock. It starts out with a mellow, ambient vibe and progresses into a heavier, more upbeat garage-rock sound. By the time you reach the end of the track, the music has only a small semblance of how it sounded at the beginning—but only after it takes many gradual twists and turns to get there.
“’Slither’ came to be after listening to a lot of psychedelic music like King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and Tame Impala, and I kind of put my own heavier spin on it. That style of music plays a big part in my writing,” continues Bullock.
The other track, “Homecoming,” also starts out soft and slow. But in its progression, the music becomes heavier and finds itself fitting in somewhere more along the lines of progressive and even doomy sounds. It’s certainly a track audience members could get lost in, headbanging. At the same time, however, it achieves the expression of some of life’s more tender and heavy sentiments through the vocals, which don’t greet us until past the three-minute mark. In addition to King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard influences shining through here as well, the sound can also be likened to a less-heavy iteration of heavy-psych bands like Elder.
“’Homecoming’ is more of a personal track for me just since it is about losing family members and learning how to cope with the loss of someone really important to you.”
Slither was recorded by Corey Bonnevie in Saint John, mixed by Jay Merle at Marshall Studios and mastered by Bullock himself with additional help from Oscar Tecu. Calling on varied production efforts has resulted a more clean and polished sound in comparison to the band’s earlier releases, which were entirely self produced.
Putting a heavy spotlight on riffs, Slither is “definitely much heavier and louder sounding” than the band’s previous work. It’s the type of music that listeners can easily get lost in, as most psychedelic music is, but it maintains an original and dynamic sound that helps it stand up on its own.
Currently, the band’s future does not have a clear-cut path. Since bassist MacAulay is two provinces away, there is no telling if or when any new material will follow this EP.
“If he does move back, you can probably expect more material. If not, that’s just the way she goes.”
But for now, you can catch the Tortue at either of both of their upcoming release shows: December 28th at Pepper’s Pub in Saint John and December 29th at the Capital Complex in Fredericton. The band will also have a limited quantity of Slither tapes available on these dates.