Jonathan Richman on his latest LP, SA, the inner and outer conversation that is music, his ongoing, episodic project Just A Spark, On Journey From The Dark, the devotional music aspect to the new record, y mucho más.
Category: The AD Interview
Fruit Bats :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Eric D. Johnson reflects on 20 years of Fruit Bats, working with The Shins and Bonny Light Horseman, and his new album, The Pet Parade. Johnson joined us for a discussion about the new album, home recording, the pandemic, and how it feels to walk his musical path for two decades.
Sunburned Hand of the Man :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Sunburned’s latest record, the exhilarating Pick a Day to Die, comes out in early March on the Three Lobed Label. It’s the quintessential pandemic project, pieced together out of what’s at hand in a long, solitary lockdown. We talked to one of the founders, John Moloney, about his long-running band, their influences, their process, this current album and how and when music can get back to normal.
Arab Strap :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
The return of Arab Strap. A few weeks before the album’s release date, Aidan Moffat shared his thoughts on the reunion, long-term relationships, the utility of nostalgia and the hope for at least enough normal to return so that Arab Strap can tour again.
Princess Demeny :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
In the late ’80s, Montréal poet, filmmaker, painter, and musician Princess Demeny recorded a series of electronic avant-garde and new wave recordings. Now, from Séance Centre Records commemorates her “New York Grief” with a 7″ single.
Natalie Bergman :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Creative expression and religious witness abide side by side in Natalie Bergman’s music. On her solo debut Mercy, the Wild Belle vocalist marries psychedelia and gospel, drawing inward to fill her ghostly psalms with beauty and power.
Gary Lucas :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
With a new career-spanning collection in tow, guitarist Gary Lucas joins us for a discussion about his work with Captain Beefheart, Jeff Buckley on his Grace album, and teaming up with Arthur Russell and…Vin Diesel?
Gwenifer Raymond :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Gwenifer Raymond is a virtuoso guitar player, born in Wales but extraordinarily adept in the American Primitive tradition, which she learned from Stefan Grossman tab books, John Hurt records and a guitar teacher who introduced her to John Fahey. Her latest album, Strange Lights Over Garth Mountain, is steeped in folk and blues, but imbued with a bit of Welsh folkloric strangeness, which she distinguishes from other UK traditions for its violence and its dark humor.
Buck Meek :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Big Thief guitarist Buck Meek sets out on his own with Two Saviors, an album filled with songs he calls “little prayers and visions from within the constant flux of pain, healing, and discovery.”
James Yorkston :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Songwriter James Yorkston answers questions from Aquarium Drunkard, Simon Raymonde of the Cocteau Twins and crime novelist Ian Rankin, concerning his spontaneous new folk rock album The Wide, Wide River, and beyond.
Makoto Kubota :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
When asked what he’s most proud of in his five decade career in music, the answer doesn’t come easy for Makoto Kubota. The prolific Kyoto-born singer, songwriter, and producer has never been one to look back at his past work, and like his longtime friend and collaborator Haruomi Hosono, Kubota remains eternally humble, preferring to let the music do the talking. Until now.
We had a long, wide-ranging conversation with Kubota, lasting until the wee hours of the morning. Below are excerpts from the four hour chat—one of very few interviews with Kubota that has been translated into English.
God Is Not Your Fault :: An Interview with Alabaster DePlume
A week or so prior to the US election our pal (and International Anthem founder) Scottie McNiece and I were discussing the nuances of one of our favorite albums of 2020 — Alabaster DePlume’s To Cy & Lee: Instrumentals Vol. 1. A sort of audio balm, the lp’s tones and textures have been a constant companion throughout this pandemic. As McNeice helped birth the project, we asked him to check in with the artist on our behalf…
Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983-1987
Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983 – 1987 gathers 28 gemlike tracks from bands that are mostly now forgotten. Some of the artists went on to commercial success, but that was clearly never the goal. We caught up with the comp’s curator, Mike Sniper, to learn how he found this music, what it means to him and why the world needs more bands, even now in the age of isolation and self-recording.
Dan Lacksman :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Daniel Lacksman has pioneered European pop and electronic music for decades. Now Real Gone Music reissues his early work. He joins Robert Ham for a look back at his long and varied career, early synthesizers, and getting to Eurovision by making fun of Eurovision.
The Narrative Is Always a Broken Narrative :: Rob Mazurek on Dimensional Stardust
On November 20, Rob Mazurek returns with Exploding Star Orchestra and a new album of sci-fi poetry and avant-jazz, Dimensional Stardust, via Nonesuch and International Anthem.
Aquarium Drunkard’s Jason P. Woodbury reached Mazurek to correspond via email over the last few (eventful) weeks to discuss occult science fiction mysteries and the desert.