Episode
Episode 715: John McEntire of Tortoise
- Podcast
- Beginnings
- Published
- Apr 3, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3650
- Processing state
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Summary
On today's episode, I talk to musician and producer John McEntire. Originally from Portland, OR, John started playing drums as a preteen and eventually went to school at The Oberlin Conservatory to study music. At Oberlin, John started playing in David Grubbs post-Squirrel Bait band Bastro. The group then moved to Chicago, and Bastro morphed into the first incarnation of Gastr Del Sol. After their debut album The Serpentine Similar was released in 1993, John left to co-found Tortoise, who he's played with ever since. John also performs in The Sea and Cake and Red Krayola, and as a producer and engineer has worked with everyone from Stereolab to Broken Social Scene to Yo La Tengo, and of course, this is just scraping the surface of John's accomplishments. Most recently, Tortoise released their eighth album Touch through International Anthem and Nonesuch Records, and folks, like everything else they've done, it's wonderful! This is the website for Beginnings , subscribe on Apple Podcasts , follow me on Twitter . Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here ! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here ! Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore ! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace ! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers ! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee !