The Sea and Cake is an American

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band with a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

influence, based in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, United States. The group formed in the mid-1990s from members of

The Coctails The Coctails were a musical group from Chicago, who formed while its members were attending the Kansas City Art Institute. The band was active from about 1988 to 1995, with reunions in 2000 as the last band to play on stage at Lounge Ax before th ...

(Archer Prewitt),

Shrimp Boat Shrimp Boat was an American rock band formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1987. After the band dissolved in 1993, Sam Prekop and Eric Claridge formed The Sea and Cake. Ian Schneller and Tom Jasek went on to form Falstaff. Schneller's experience with ...

(Sam Prekop and Eric Claridge), and

Tortoise Tortoises () are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin: ''tortoise''). Like other turtles, tortoises have a turtle shell, shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, ...

(John McEntire); the group's name came from a willful reinterpretation (as the result of an accidental miscomprehension) of "The C in Cake", a song by

Gastr del Sol Gastr del Sol (derived from a combination of the name of a race horse (Gato del Sol) and David Grubbs' previous band Bastro) was an American, Chicago-based band, consisting for most of their career, of David Grubbs and Jim O'Rourke. Between 19 ...

. Starting with 1997's '' The Fawn'', the group has relied on electronic sound sources, such as drum machines and synthesizers, to color its music, but has retained its distinctive post-jazz combo style. The band has shied away from releasing singles, preferring the album format. Contrary to his multi-instrumentalist role in Tortoise, John McEntire almost exclusively plays drums in The Sea and Cake. Members Sam Prekop, Archer Prewitt, and John McEntire each have released solo albums. The cover art of The Sea And Cake's releases are largely paintings by member Eric Claridge and photographs by Prekop. Prewitt has been involved in publishing his own comic books and doing graphic design. In 1995, the band contributed the song "The Fontana" to the

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

benefit album

Red Hot + Bothered Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondary ...

produced by the

Red Hot Organization Red Hot Organization (RHO) is a not-for-profit, 501(c) 3, international organization dedicated to fighting AIDS through pop culture. Since its inception in 1989, over 400 artists, producers and directors have contributed to over 15 compilati ...

. The band was on hiatus from 2004 to 2007. Their most recent album ''

Any Day ''Any Day'' is a 2018 studio album by the Sea and Cake, released on Thrill Jockey Thrill Jockey is an American independent record label established by former Atlantic Records A&R representative Bettina Richards and based in Chicago. History R ...

'' was released in May 2018.

Members

Sam Prekop Sam Prekop (born October 18, 1964) is an American musician in the band The Sea and Cake. He also has released five solo albums. Early life Prekop was born in London, but grew up in Chicago. He studied at the Kansas City Art Institute. Career ...

(vocals, guitar) *

Archer Prewitt Archer Prewitt (born 1963 in Frankfort, Kentucky) is an American musician and cartoonist associated with the independent music scene in Chicago, Illinois. Biography Music Prewitt enrolled in the Kansas City Art Institute and began drumming in ...

(guitar, piano, vocals) *

John McEntire John McEntire (born April 9, 1970 in Portland, Oregon) is an American recording engineer, producer, drummer and multi-instrumentalist, based in Chicago, Illinois. He is a member of both Tortoise and the Sea and Cake. McEntire started playing dr ...

(percussion, drums, some synthesizer)

Discography

All releases on

Thrill Jockey Thrill Jockey is an American independent record label established by former Atlantic Records A&R representative Bettina Richards and based in Chicago. History Richards started the label in 1992 with $35,000 of family and personal capital, while ...

Records unless noted.

Studio albums

* ''

The Sea and Cake The Sea and Cake is an American indie rock band with a jazz influence, based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The group formed in the mid-1990s from members of The Coctails (Archer Prewitt), Shrimp Boat (Sam Prekop and Eric Claridge), an ...

'' (1994) * ''

Nassau Nassau may refer to: Places Bahamas *Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence Canada *Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792 *Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...

'' (1995) * '' The Biz'' (1995) * '' The Fawn'' (1997) * '' Oui'' (2000) * ''

One Bedroom ''One Bedroom'' is a 2003 studio album by The Sea and Cake, released on Thrill Jockey. Track listing Personnel * Sam Prekop – vocals, guitar, synthesizer * Archer Prewitt – guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals * Eric Claridge – bass guit ...

'' (2003) * '' Everybody'' (2007) * ''

Car Alarm A car alarm is an electronic device installed in a vehicle in an attempt to discourage theft of the vehicle itself, its contents, or both. Car alarms work by emitting high-volume sound (often a vehicle-mounted siren, klaxon, pre-recorded verbal ...

'' (2008) * ''

The Moonlight Butterfly ''The Moonlight Butterfly'' is a 2011 studio album by The Sea and Cake, released on Thrill Jockey. Track listing Personnel * Sam Prekop – vocals, guitar * Archer Prewitt – guitar, keyboards, ukulele * Eric Claridge – bass guitar * John M ...

'' (2011) * ''

Runner Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...

'' (2012) * ''

'' (2018)

EPs and singles

* "Glad You're Right" (b/w "Tiger Panther," "Crimson Wing", 7" single, 1995, Lissy's Records ISS1 limited edition of 500) * ''

Two Gentlemen ''Two Gentlemen'' is a 1997 EP by The Sea and Cake The Sea and Cake is an American indie rock band with a jazz influence, based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The group formed in the mid-1990s from members of The Coctails (Archer P ...

'' (12" EP, mainly remixes, 1997) * "Window Lights" (b/w "Setup For Bed" (a solo piece by John McEntire), 7" single, 1999, Hefty Records EF013 also on ''

Reach the Rock ''Reach the Rock'' is a 1998 American comedy drama film directed by William Ryan and starring William Sadler and Alessandro Nivola. It was the last film to be written and produced by John Hughes before his death. Premise A small-town troublemak ...

'' soundtrack, 1999) * ''

Glass Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling (quenching) of ...

'' (CD EP, 2003)

Compilations

* ''

A Brief Historical Retrospective ''A Brief Historical Retrospective'' is a 1997 compilation album by The Sea and Cake, released only in Japan. It consists solely of tracks from the band's first two studio albums, ''The Sea and Cake'' (1994) and ''Nassau Nassau may refer to: ...

'' (CD, 1997, Japanese-only compilation of first 2 albums, plus 7" song "Glad You're Right") *'' Metro: The Official Bootleg Series, Volume 1 2010

References

External links

Official website
*
The Sea and Cake - Video Interview: "What is really important to you?"March 2011 - Métronome / Interview with Sam Prekop (Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sea and Cake, The American pop rock music groups American post-rock groups Musical groups from Chicago Thrill Jockey artists