Peace or Love, the first new music from Kings of Convenience in over 11 years, picks up right where they left off with 2009’s Declaration of Dependence. The cozy harmonies and guitar melodies are still as lush and inviting as ever, and pleasantly augmented by touches of violin, keyboards, and a light smattering of percussion. We recently caught up with principals Erlend Øye and Eirik Glambek Bøe in anticipation of the album’s release.
Category: The AD Interview
Kevin Richard Martin (The Bug) :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Kevin Richard Martin joins us for a discussion about his alter ego, The Bug, his methods of collaboration, the pandemic, and his new album, Return to Solaris.
The Goon Sax :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Three albums in, the band has made a bold, surprising statement in Mirror II, an album that showcases three very different songwriting sensibilities and significantly expands the scrappy, jittery aesthetic that the Goon Sax has presented up to now.
Wire :: The AD Interview
Wire singer/guitarist Colin Newman and former guitarist Bruce Gilbert join us for a conversation about PF456 Deluxe, released June 12 for Record Store Day, which documents the band’s transitory turn at the start of a new century.
Steve Cropper :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Over the last 60 years, guitarist Steve Cropper has helped defined the sound of soul, rock, R&B, and pop. That’s his clipped rhythms in “Green Onions,” that’s him losing it onstage at Monterey Pop behind Otis Redding. He joins us for a discussion about his history and his new album, Fire It Up, and discusses the secret to fashioning a great R&B instro.
The Chills :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
New Zealand icons The Chills have a new LP, their seventh, out this month entitled Scatterbrain. We caught up with founding member Martin Phillips to discuss the history of the group, their sonic trajectory, being an “autarchic on the mend”, the new record, and more.
“There have been a lot of wasted years, being down and out, and, you know, drug addicted,” says Phillips. “This time for the first time, I feel that we’re back where we should be and we’re able to move forward. I’m excited about it.”
Rosali :: The AD Interview
“Doesn’t belong to me like it used to,” proclaims Rosali Middleman on “Mouth,” the opening track to her new album, No Medium. With members of the David Nance Group soaring behind her, Rosali sheds many a demon on this new work. Her arc on the record is a steep one, confronting addiction, heartbreak, and loss with raw intensity.
We caught up with Rosali at her sister’s place in Michigan to talk about the new record and more.
Iceage :: The AD Interview
After a decade of honing their sound, Iceage returns with their fifth LP, Seek Shelter — out May 7th on Mexican Summer.
Recorded in a dilapidated studio in Lisbon, Portugal, days of heavy rainstorms leaking through the roof informed the session’s mood, forging an album rife with themes of searching for shelter during treacherous times. We caught up with vocalist Elias Bender Rønnenfelt to discuss the album’s creative path, recording with Spacemen 3’s Sonic Boom, and more.
Bad Brains :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Daryl Jenifer, the founding bassist and author of many of the band’s signature blistering riffs, spoke with Aquarium Drunkard about Bad Brains’ beginnings, their influences in punk, reggae and Rastafari culture and the fearless creativity that he hopes will be the band’s lasting legacy.
Bonnie “Prince” Billy & Matt Sweeney :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Will Oldham and Matt Sweeney join us for an exploration into Superwolves, their long-awaited follow up the 2005 classic lp Superwolf.
Teenage Fanclub :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Teenage Fanclub founders Norman Blake and Raymond McGinley on keeping magic alive in the recording studio, why their tour might require extra practice and playing with Alex Chilton, Edwyn Collins, Jad Fair, Frank Black, and De La Soul, and more.
Frank “Poncho” Sampedro :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Crazy Horse’s Frank “Poncho” Sampedro joined up with Neil Young in 1973 and remained firmly in place until 2014. He joins Aquarium Drunkard’s Tyler Wilcox for a look back at his time in the Horse—at times dosed, at times dazed, but always tapped into the mythic rock and roll spirit that drove the band.
Reigning Sound :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Greg Cartwright had pretty much invented a certain kind of rowdy, country-blues garage rock by the time he was a teenager playing with the Compulsive Gamblers and then the Oblivians. We caught up to discuss his latest album, A Little More Time With Reigning Sound, what it’s like to have the original band together again and the difficult, occasionally harrowing circumstances, that knocked these songs loose and into the world.
Apifera :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Like most musicians that work in the nebulous worlds of jazz and beat music in Israel, the four members of Apifera have been crossing paths with one another for years. With Overstand, they tap into that deep sense of connection with a blend of spiritual jazz, psychedelic R&B, and J. Dilla-inspired beats.
Archie Shepp :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Over the course of six decades, Archie Shepp has blazed new trails. To celebrate his latest, Let My People Go, a collaboration with Jason Moran, he explores personal standards. Shepp was interviewed by Sarah Louise for Aquarium Drunkard.