Whether composing for film or creating records of windswept, spectral pedal steel, Chuck Johnson imbues his music with a sense of mystery and dynamic tension. His latest album is Music From Burden of Proof a soundtrack to Cynthia Hill’s HBO docu-series exploring Stephen Pandos’ investigation into the 1987 disappearance of his sister, Jennifer Pandos.
Author: Justin Gage
Trick Or Treat: Vintage Halloween Mixtapes
Spooky season is officially here. As such, we are uploading each volume of the Grey Haas compiled Trick Or Treat mixtape series for AD patrons (they begin with Volume five). Choice vintage Halloween spookers…
En Attendant Ana :: Principia
It’s always a great feeling when a band hits its stride — and that is the feeling you’ll get when you spin En Attendant Ana’s third LP. Principia makes good on the promise of the Parisian quintet’s earlier work while expanding and enhancing their overall sound, centered on Margaux Bouchaudo’s terrific vocals. There’s a pleasing swagger to the album’s 10 tracks, a confidence mixed with playfulness, whether the band is approximating mid-period Stereolab on “Same Old Story,” getting beautifully wistful on “Fools & Kings,” or — sweetest of all — crafting a towering motorik anthem on “Wonder.” Principia might be the best indie rock record you’ll hear in 2023!
Kuku Sebsibe :: S/T
A marvelous collection of Ethiopian pop from the early 1980s. The Addis Ababa-born Kuku Sebsibe’s beautiful vocals float over classic Ethio soul/jazz backing — elegant keys, breezy brass and melodic bass all wafting through the mix. Though it leans towards the gentler side of things for the most part, things do get fairly funky from time to time. Released on the excellent Little Axe label, it feels like a necessary breath of fresh air.
The Aquarium Drunkard Show (The Halloween Edition)
Broadcasting from the Hollywood Forever Cemetery … The Aquarium Drunkard Show. The Halloween edition, Wednesday night / 7pm California time. SIRIUS/XM ~ Channel 35.
Cactus Lee :: Caravan
On Caravan, his sixth album in four years (not accounting for the crackling Live from the Dry Creek Cafe), Cactus Lee’s Kevin Dehan showcases an incredible and exponentially focused growth in songwriting, an ascent as fast as you can hear his band now play. Expanding out from the lo-fi homespun beginnings of his now classic early efforts, Dehan has embraced a bigger and more studio-based sound that, in part, now reflects the live show that has become so integral to the world of Cactus Lee.
Video Age :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
New Orleans duo Video Age are associated with rhythmic, dream pop pallette, but with their latest album Away from the Castle, songwriters Ross Farbe and Ray Micarelli augment new wave gloss with a heavy dose of tuneful, guitar-based pop—think Real Estate in a particularly sunny mood or Whitney on a heavy Beatles kick. With all that jangle and strum comes a rededication to their core friendship, complete with “Better Than Ever,” a number that works like a platonic love song.
Aquarium Drunkard :: Mailbag, Vol. VI
Long time reader, first time caller? Welcome to Mailbag, our monthly column in which we dig in and respond to your questions. Got a query? Hit us up at aqdmailbag@gmail.com. In this month’s bag: a grip of essential mixtapes, jazz tomes, and overcoming listening burnout.
Transmissions :: Buck Meek (Big Thief)
You know Buck Meek from Big Thief and his solo albums, like this year’s Haunted Mountain. Full of near-death experiences and tender but insistent roots-inspired songwriting, it’s an album that finds inspiration in the mysterious Mount Shasta, long a site of high strangeness. He joins us to discuss Jolie Holland, Judee Sill, Bob Dylan, Big Thief and reciprocity this week on Transmissions.
Joseph Shabason :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
If you’ve ever stepped foot on a skateboard, you’re in the club for life. For Toronto-based saxophonist Joseph Shabason, this revelation provided the inspiration for his latest project: a new album-length score for the classic 1996 skate video, Toy Machine’s Welcome To Hell. With the blessing of company founder, pro skater, and visual artist Ed Templeton (who also provided album art), Shabason’s Welcome To Hell is a passion project dating back to his formative childhood memories.
BCMC :: Foreign Smokes
Bill MacKay and Cooper Crain run in the same Chicago circles, MacKay tilting, maybe, a little further towards folk and blues and Crain of Bitchin Bajas and Cave leaning harder into krautish experimental drone. There’s certainly plenty of common ground, however, judging from this four-track collaboration, as both work to find magic in still, pooling reservoirs of sound that do not move so much as they glisten in unearthly light.
Mark Mothersbaugh :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
On the eve of the new 4-LP Devo retrospective, Mothersbaugh caught up with us from his Los Angeles studio. We discuss the experimental beginnings and future of Devo, the group working with Brian Eno and David Bowie, his fascination with early animation soundtracks, auditioning for Mick Jagger, the NYC scene that brought the band’s breakthrough, the death of the album format and much more…
Bonus Tracks, Vol. 6 :: Talking Heads, Dusty Springfield, John Martyn
We’re breaking out our Case Logic compact disc wallets once again to dig out some of the best bonus tracks from days gone by. This time around, we’ve got visionary Albionic reveries, soothing soul pop and the big band version of Talking Heads burning down the house.
Caitlin Cary & Thad Cockrell :: Begonias
File under: autumnal albums. Released eighteen years ago, Caitlin Cary and Thad Cockrell’s sole collaboration continues to pay dividends, and as collections of duets go, Begonias has rightly earned its place as a modern day classic. Mellow and contemplative in approach, the pair’s vocals ache and yearn as Cockrell’s tenor tangles with Cary’s alto. A traditional country album with a capital T. Now if they would only make another …
The Lagniappe Sessions :: H. Hawkline
This week’s installment of the Lagniappe Sessions catches up with Welsh singer-songwriter Huw Evans who, under the guise of H. Hawkline, has released five records over the past thirteen years. Evans most recent effort, the excellent Cate Le Bon produced LP, Milk For Flowers, dropped earlier this year and the following session acts as a sort of companion set. Expect: unexpected covers of covers, hi-fi nods to Cleaners From Venus, and the majesty of Yoko Ono.