Standards is Tortoise’s fourth album originally released in 2001. This re-issue is pressed on high quality virgin vinyl with artworked inner sleeve, custom silk-screened PVC outer bag, and download coupon. The tunes on Standards are direct and immediate, yet they maintain the exploratory edge that has always characterized the group’s output. The fusion of instrumental sounds (electric, acoustic, and synthesized) is subtle and subversive. Similarly, the group’s fluency within the studio environment gives the finished work a quality that alternates between artifice and reality.