On the heels of the excellent Fountain Fire, Bill MacKay returns with his second LP of 2019, this time alongside “Chicago’s first lady of the cello,” Katinka Kleijn.
Search Results for: Bill MacKay
Bill MacKay: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Chicago guitarist Bill MacKay returns with another winningly eclectic solo LP for Drag City. Fountain Fire sneaks up on you; its songs are unassuming at first, with a loose, conversational feel to them. Ahead of the album’s release, MacKay joined Aquarium Drunkard to discuss his shifting approaches, cinematic inspirations, and establishing his own musical language.
Bill MacKay & Ryley Walker :: Lonesome Traveler
The stellar Chicago duo of Ryley Walker and Bill MacKay return next month with SpiderBeetleBee , a collection of fluid acoustic freedom flights, floating from Britfolk excursions to hazy rambles into unclassifiable zones. Walker […]
Bill MacKay :: Esker
In recent years, guitarist Bill MacKay has served as Ryley Walker’s six-string sparring partner , built luminous soundscapes with Rob Frye (Bitchin Bajas, Cave) and led the jazz-inflected Darts and Arrows collective. A varied resume! MacKay maintains this healthy sense of adventure on Esker […]
Dynamic Duos :: James Elkington & Nathan Salsburg / Bill Mackay & Ryley Walker
With John Renbourn passing into the great unknown this year to join his six-string brother in arms Bert Jansch, it’s a good time to be reminded of the wonderful sounds two acoustic guitarists in joyous communion can make. These […]
Aquarium Drunkard Presents: The Drop Bear’s Song
At 44 tracks, the digital relief album serves up a massive helping of AD compatriots including, but not limited to, Steve Gunn, Mary Lattimore, James Toth, Sarah Louise, Maston, Bill MacKay, MV & EE, Andrew Tuttle, and loads more.
Mute Duo :: Lapse In Passage
As Mute Duo, pedal steel guitarist Sam Wagster and percussionist Skyler Rowe drift and rage with unusual grace. Best known for collaborations with Ryley Walker, Bill MacKay, Ben Lamar Gay, and Tim Kinsella, the two players stretch out gloriously on their latest, Lapse in Passage, which twists and churns within the heady post-everything frame work that has flourished in their hometown of Chicago, evoking loose-limbed spiritual jazz, inverted exotica, and ragged improv.
Catching Up With Peter Prescott
Author and artist Dmitry Samarov’s new book, Music To My Eyes, was released last month via the Chicago based Tortoise Books. A 264 page love letter to independent music, Samarov’s words and minimalist illustrations flow in tandem, presenting a portrait of fandom and appreciation, from Nick Cave to Bill MacKay. Below, Samarov catches up with one of the subjects of his new book, Mission of Burma’s Peter Prescott.
Elevated Rail 2: The End of Radio
Remember livemusic? Yeah, me too. I managed to catch quite a bit of it back in the Before Times, though, so I’ll at least have my ‘tapes’ to tide me over while we collectively tread water. For this edition of Elevated Rail, we have a highlight reel (loosely in chronological order) of some of the best ChicagoMusics I saw in 2020 before the world imploded.
Aquarium Drunkard :: 2019 Year In Review
Once again, our obligatory year-end review. The following is an unranked list of albums that caught, and kept, our attention in 2019.
Oh, How She Dances: An Evening With Tav Falco & Panther Burns
… I can’t recall if Falco opened that show with “Oh, How She Dances” but it has been his set opener every time I’ve seen him in the intervening decades. The tune is a litany of sideshow freaks, an evocation of forbidden delights, and the de facto theme song of Falco’s 40-years-and-going outfit, the Panther Burns.
Aquarium Drunkard :: 2017 Year In Review
Here it is. Our obligatory year-end review. The following is an unranked list of albums that caught, and kept, our attention in 2017. Let it blurb
About
Originating in 2005 and based in Los Angeles, Aquarium Drunkard is an eclectic audio journal focused on daily reviews, interviews, features, podcasts and sessions. Digging globally, AD bridges contemporary sounds with psych, […]
Joan Shelley :: Rivers and Vessels
Though she’s justly hailed for her own empathic and deep-toned original songs , Joan Shelley brings an undeniable grace to the songs of others. Following her Lagniappe Session , which found the Kentucky songwriter interpreting […]
John Darnielle :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Since forming the Mountain Goats in 1991, John Darnielle has sung about remarkable people: wounded couples, Texas death metal aficionados, doo wop singers, professional wrestlers, horror authors, heretics, prophets, long-dead […]