Quote:
Originally Posted by Engine
Those are valid comparisons but what about the fact that Mogwai was making their loudest, most cathartic music within a couple of years of Spiderland? Was that album even very well-known in Scotland at the time? It wasn't here in the US where Slint lived. Most people I knew at the time didn't even seem to notice them until the Kids soundtrack. I could be wrong but I have a hard time giving Slint that much credit for Mogwai's music.
And Tortoise? I just don't hear such an obvious influence. However, again, if there is one it would have to have occurred really quickly as Mogwai were recording Young Team at almost the exact same time that Tortoise made Millions Now Living.... Similar basslines isn't enough for me to recognize Tortoise as an obvious influence.
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I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for Slint. But Tortoise's actual style of using basslines as the music's focal point, to express the key aspects of each song, is a definitive impact on Mogwai's sound. It's not 'similar basslines', it's the exact same aesthetic. I never said the basslines sound the same, but in both Mogwai and Tortoise the bass represented a lot more than in other acts. It'd be only natural for Mogwai to pick up something off of other acts.
Tortoise's first album (1994) is where you hear the similarity at its peak, anyhow, far before
Young Team was released. Also, Mogwai have mentioned Tortoise in various reviews, showing that they have had knowledge of their existence.