Sons Of

The caveat with mentioning the 30 years of history John McEntire and Sam Prekop shared before making *Sons Of* is that the album doesn’t exactly sound like anything they’ve done before. McEntire is the drummer of the adventurous, anything-but-rock band Tortoise and the Prekop-fronted Sea and Cake; Prekop is a singer-songwriter who rebutted the harshness of ’90s indie rock with music influenced by lounge jazz and bossa nova. *Sons Of*, by contrast, is made up of four lengthy synth improvisations combining early house, indie pop, and the spacey, ruminative side of IDM. The connective tissue is in the approach, which is somehow adventurous but gentle, experimental but restrained. And while everything here has narrative momentum, their shared language is thick enough that they sound better the longer they go (the sunglasses-indoors sci-fi of “Ascending by Night” and the 24-minute “A Yellow Robe”).

The first duo record from the longtime Sea and Cake bandmates exemplifies the ramshackle, improvisatory spirit that’s at the heart of modular synthesis.

AllMusic provides comprehensive music info including reviews and biographies. Get recommendations for new music to listen to, stream or own.

Sam Prekop and John McEntire are composers and instrumentalists who have long been integral to Chicago’s alternative music scene.

Likewise, at first glance you might not think much of Sons Of, the latest collaboration between Sam Prekop and John McEntire.