10 Best Instrumental Rock Music Albums Of All Time
5. Millions Now Living Will Never Die - Tortoise
As album titles go, this 1996 release from American post-rockers Tortoise (on Thrill Jockey), must surely be up there with the best. The phrase is a reference to the early days of the Jehovah's Witness faith, and in a strange way does a grand job of pinning down the mysterious, questing music to be found on this album.
Indeed, Tortoise have been consistently (and rightfully) singled out as being one of the first and most influential bands of the post-rock genre. The term post-rock, like all such labels, is as limiting as it is enlightening, but just a few seconds listening will convince you that MNLWND is an exceptional record.
This is music which seems to come from everywhere and from nowhere. Atmospheric? Certainly, but there's much more going on. Tortoise reach for places, low and high, which other artists don't even notice. Glacial rock butts against found-sounds, introspective (but never self-indulgent) guitar explorations, shimmering trip-hop, menacing bass-lines and racing jazz-soundtracks.
MNLWND stands as a wonderful reminder of the sort of far-reaching, ambitious music which flourished in the latter half of the 1990s.