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It's All Around You Image
Metascore
68

Generally favorable reviews - based on 31 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 14 Ratings

  • Summary: The Chicago post-rock instrumentalists add vocals (courtesy of Kelly Hogan) into the mix for the first time on this, their fifth LP.
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 31
  2. Negative: 0 out of 31
  1. The music is consistently fresh, fascinating, and evocative... the band’s best album to date.
  2. The LP as a whole is a remarkable collection of ideas, which manages to be overwhelmingly creative, but intrinsically listenable.
  3. Tortoise may be the only band that can match the everything-mashup steez, sonic skills, conceptual ambition, and breakbeat heat of the Roots.
  4. The Wire
    70
    Although there are no new dimensions here,... this still feels like musical fresh mint. [#242, p.67]
  5. Too many tracks on It’s All Around You don’t quite measure up to the compositional quality or imagination of previous works.
  6. Alternative Press
    40
    A dozy dud. [Jun 2004, p.98]

See all 31 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 9
  3. Negative: 1 out of 9
  1. Jessie
    May 5, 2007
    10
    Excellent!
  2. joshm
    Apr 21, 2004
    9
    Anything from the lads in Tortoise is a welcome experience. In fact, it's always a new experience depending on how receptive one is to Anything from the lads in Tortoise is a welcome experience. In fact, it's always a new experience depending on how receptive one is to their lens of how music can transport, inspire and enhance. It's All Around You marks just one more beautiful and enchanting chapter in the indelible and magical book that these creative and musical auteurs have published, and I can only hope that when the conclusion finally arrives, it will cap off every great tune from Cornpone Brunch to Glass Museum to I Set My Face to the Hillside to Seneca and to Five Too Many. Expand
  3. peterS.
    May 21, 2004
    9
    this is their best cd yet
  4. MIKEW
    Jan 23, 2006
    9
    one of the best albums as a whole i've ever heard. the songs piece together as in Pink Floyd's dark side of the moon. there is no one of the best albums as a whole i've ever heard. the songs piece together as in Pink Floyd's dark side of the moon. there is no star of the band in tortoise. the band is one solid mass that can communicate better than most bands without using a single word. Expand
  5. DugginsB
    Nov 14, 2006
    9
    Excellent album.
  6. wackyman
    Apr 27, 2004
    8
    instead of focussing on experiment and small details tortoise have focussed more on the songs themselves on their latest is that a bad thing? instead of focussing on experiment and small details tortoise have focussed more on the songs themselves on their latest is that a bad thing? not really, althoug some critics. will disagree cause they are more accesible with this album Expand
  7. FuCKOff
    Dec 26, 2005
    0
    One of the worst albums ever released.

See all 9 User Reviews