The iconic ensemble Tortoise release Touch (International Anthem/Nonesuch), the first new album from the groundbreaking group since 2016, on all streaming platforms via following last month’s release on LP, CD, and digital download. The band also shares an animated video, by Selina Trepp, for focus track “Rated OG.”

With Touch, the Tortoise band members — Dan Bitney, John Herndon, Douglas McCombs, John McEntire, and Jeff Parker — harness their collectivist songwriting approach, a slightly anarchistic but resolutely egalitarian process where ideas triumph over ego towards an abstracted muscularity. While there are still excursions into the dusky, elegantly gnarled jazz ambience that flourished on landmark works like Millions Now Living Will Never Die and TNT, Touch is perhaps most remarkable for Tortoise’s unapologetic embrace of grand gesture. Aerodynamically re-engineered Krautrock, hand-cranked techno rave-ups, and pointillist desert guitar panoramas are all imbued with Tortoise’s now-signature internal logic — equally alluring and confounding, a puzzle to be savored rather than solved.

The stylistic diversity is also a reflection of the band’s current operating circumstances: With two members now in Los Angeles, another in Portland, and just two remaining in the band’s Chicago hometown, their creative process has shifted dramatically from when they lived together in a loft space in the late 1990s, honing their sound over endless hours of collective experimentation. Recorded between the three cities — Los Angeles, Portland, and Chicago — Touch is the result of an intentional effort by these five musicians to reconnect, re-center, and reinvigorate their sound for what is perhaps the group’s most diverse release to date.

A series of special live shows is planned through the end of the year, including the performance with Chicago Philharmonic, a three-night weekend stand at NYC’s Bowery Ballroom, and two shows at the Barbican for EFG London Jazz Festival. Tortoise will then embark on European tours in early 2026, with more dates to be announced soon. The full list of confirmed dates and ticket links is below.

TOUR DATES

Chicago IL – Tuesday November 11th – The Auditorium w/ Chicago Philharmonic – tickets
Lexington KY – Wednesday November 12th – Singleton Center for the Arts – tickets
New York NY – Friday November 14th – Bowery Ballroom – SOLD OUT
New York NY – Saturday November 15th – Bowery Ballroom – SOLD OUT
New York NY – Sunday November 16th – Bowery Ballroom – tickets
London UK – Saturday November 22nd – Barbican – 1st show SOLD OUT, matinee show added
Bristol UK – Sunday November 23rd – The Prospect Building – tickets
Leeds UK – Monday November 24th – The Irish Centre – tickets

Helsinki FI – Tuesday January 20th – Tavastia – tickets
Stockholm SE – Wednesday January 21st – Fasching – tickets
Karlsruhe DE – Thursday January 22nd – Tollhaus – tickets
Lille FR – Friday January 23rd – Aeronef – tickets
Brussels BE – Saturday January 24th – Brussels Jazz Festival – tickets
Perugia IT – Sunday January 25th – Teatro del Pavone – tickets
Frankfurt DE – Monday January 26th – Zoom – tickets
Köln DE – Tuesday January 27th – Kantine – tickets
Paris FR – Wednesday January 28th – Le Trabendo – tickets
Berlin DE – Thursday January 29th – Großer Sendesaal des RBB – tickets
Dresden DE – Friday January 30th – Beatpol – tickets
Hamburg DE – Thursday April 9th – Kampnagel – tickets
Den Haag NL – Friday April 10th – Rewire Festival – tickets
Brugge BE – Saturday April 11th – Cactus Club – tickets
München DE – Sunday April 12th – Technikum – tickets
Salzburg AT – Monday April 13th – jazz:it – tickets
Graz AT – Tuesday April 14th – Orpheum – tickets
St. Gallen CH – Wednesday April 15th – Palace – tickets
Fribourg CH – Thursday April 16th – Fri-Son – tickets
Braga PT – Sunday April 19th – Theatro Circo
Lisboa PT – Monday April 20th – Culturgest 

Sydney AU – Wednesday May 27th – Oxford Art Factory – tickets
Adelaide AU – Friday May 29th – Lion Arts Factory – tickets
Melbourne AU – Saturday May 30th – The Corner Hotel – tickets
Brisbane AU – Sunday May 31st – Crowbar – tickets
Osaka JP – Tuesday June 2nd – Club Quattro – tickets
Nagoya JP – Wednesday June 3rd – Club Quattro – tickets
Tokyo JP – Thursday June 4th – Zepp Shinjuku – tickets