Ekko pres: Sam Prekop & John McEntire: «Sons of»

Step into a glowing machine landscape.

On Sunday, June 14, Sam Prekop and John McEntire arrive at Østre — two key figures from the Chicago scene who, for decades, have explored the shifting boundaries between rock, electronic music, improvisation, and studio-based sound art.

Both are widely known from The Sea and Cake, but also for their expansive individual practices: Prekop through his modular synth work, photography, and visual art; McEntire as the drummer of Tortoise, as well as a composer, producer, and a defining sonic architect behind numerous projects at the intersection of post-rock, electronics, and experimental pop.

With *Sons Of* (Thrill Jockey Records, 2022), they arrived at their first full-length collaboration as a duo. The album was praised by Pitchfork and stands as a rare kind of electronic record — warm, open, and deeply musical. Modular synths, drum machines, samplers, and effects unfold in long, organic passages where improvisation and precision move in tandem. The result is a form of pulsing minimalism with melodic generosity — a glowing machine landscape where each layer of sound is given space to evolve, shift, and find new direction.

«Sons Of» is music that breathes. The sound of two musicians who know exactly when to build, when to leave things open, and when a single melody is enough to carry the entire room.