The Music of Moonlight

Barbara Lewis MoonlightPosted on

Allow us to join the resounding chorus in praising the remarkable new film Moonlight.

Written and directed by Barry Jenkins, based on Tarell Alvin McCraney's play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue, it's an undeniable work—soulful, crushing, and moving. Jenkins' deft hand hovers over each scene, guiding terrific performances by Naomie Harris, Mahershala Ali, André Holland, Janelle Monî¡e and Alex Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, and Trevante Rhodes, who play the protagonist, Chiron, at three different points in his life. We watch Chiron grow and navigate a world set against him, struggling with his mother's addictions and the emergence of his own sexuality, but the film never becomes merely representational—every character is viewed as a whole, complex human—and the movie lingers with hard and beautiful truths.

In the world created on screen, music plays a vital role. The film's striking score comes from composer Nicholas Britell, whose "Little Theme," filled with gentle piano chording and a lonesome trumpet melody, feels still and tentative, contrasted by the sweeping "The Middle of the World," which soundtracks one of the movie's most gorgeous scenes, Ali's Juan teaching a young Chiron to swim in the ocean, its strings floating like the waves Chiron crests above.

Likewise, music supervisor Maggie Phillips fills the film with incredible songs. Opening with Boris Gardiner's "Every N****r Is a Star" (as heard on Kendrick Lamar's "Wesley's Theory"), the film mines soul, R&B, tropicî¡lia, and gospel vaults, featuring Goodie Mob's "Cell Therapy," Caetano Veloso's "Cucurrucucu Paloma," a chopped and screwed version of Jidenna's "Classic Man," the Supreme Jubilees' "It'll All Be Over," Edge of Daybreak's smoldering "Our Love," and more.

But no moment hits harder than the reunion of Chiron and Kevin at a diner, scored by a gently glowing jukebox playing Barbara Lewis' 1963 single "Hello Stranger," a song selected specifically by Jenkins. Over a humming organ and gentle doo wops, Lewis sings with an aching voice.

Barbara Lewis :: Hello Stranger

"How long has it been?" she asks, her background singers responding, "It seems like a mighty long time." Chances are after seeing the film, listening to Barbara sing her haunting song will cause tears to well up in your eyes. Likewise, the eloquent grace of Moonlight will inspire similar devotion. words / j woodbury

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Acid Bird :: A Robyn Hitchcock Companion – The First 20 Years

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The following playlist is a celebration of Robyn Hitchcock's first 20 years of recordings; specifically ones that, while they may be ‘accessible’, still showcase the singular nature of his creativity.

Hitchcock spent his university years in the early 70s busking while seeking a band that fit his vision. The pieces were in place when he formed Dennis & The Experts, a group which then morphed into The Soft Boys in 1976. The Soft Boys were a vehicle for Robyn’s psychedelic vision, and their earliest recordings exhibit a noisy chaos that is equal parts Barrett and Beefheart (see: 1977’s Give It To The Soft Boys EP). "Hear My Brane" showcases the guitar chemistry of Robyn and Kimberley Rew, and matches a very Beefheartian vibe with a bridge that foreshadows the shape of melodicism to come.

The band's debut LP, A Can Of Bees, was released two years later in 1979, and while the element of chaos was still present in tracks such as "The Pig Worker", Robyn began to allow his gorgeous (and quintessentially English) melodic sense to come to the forefront on such tracks as "Human Music". The Soft Boys split soon after their 1980 masterpiece, Underwater Moonlight. As a record its sound was incredibly influential within the alternative rock scene of the 1980s -- "Queen Of Eyes" alone works as a blueprint of jangly college rock, and the title track stands as one of the most unique and imaginative tracks of the decade; an ode to the ocean falling in love with a human being and the ensuing drowning.

While The Soft Boys may have been finished in name, all of the members soon appeared on Robyn’s solo debut from 1981, Black Snake Diamond Role. Here, Hitchcock went full bore into psychedelia for the LP’s classic track, "Acid Bird", itself one of the artist's most enduring tracks and a staple of live shows. 1982 saw the release of Groovy Decay, which was perhaps an effort to ditch the psychedelic elements in order to be more "contemporary". Whatever the motives, Robyn wasn’t happy with the record and re-envisioned it a few years later by substituting several demo versions billed as Groovy Decoy. Both editions contain the brilliant "America", a stand-out composition that succeeds in its dense, synthesizer and horn driven production.

Perhaps it was the distaste left behind in the wake of Decay that sent Robyn inwards for what is perhaps his greatest record -- 1984’s I Often Dream Of Trains. While the album's strongest tracks clearly channel Hitchcock's heroes (Syd Barrett, John Lennon), they also match the excellence of those legends. "Flavor Of Night" pairs a Lennon-like lyric and melody with a piano line that sounds downright classical. The title track, sparse as it is with only voice and lone electric guitar, is completely satisfying in its poetic brilliance. "I Used To Say I Love You" (inexplicably left off of the original vinyl LP) deftly captures of the feel of heartbreak, one that is both universal and incredibly real.

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Posted on Mixtapes Robyn Hitchcock The Soft Boys

Anthology Recordings :: Behind The Surf Archive Series

Anthology Recordings Keith AbrahamssonPosted on

For over a decade, Anthology Recordings has revived and unearthed rare album collections and reissues for the good of vinyl hounds and culture junkies near and far. Their Surf Archive Series focuses in on the left-of-center golden days of surf, which manifests itself today through touch points like fashion and board design, to the aesthetic at corner surf shops and, of course, current surf docs and their accompanying soundtracks.

These iconic films and their ‘of-the-moment’ soundtracks include: Morning of the Earth (Falzon), Crystal Voyager (Greenough/Elfick), Litmus (Kidman) and more... And - through the work of the Brooklyn label house - they’ve justly seen the light of day and received the proper outlet for consumption up and down the coasts (and beyond).

We recently caught up with label founder, Keith Abrahamsson, on the heels of two new reissues (the Witzig directed Sea of Joy and Evolution), and got the general scoop on what they’re all about.

Aquarium Drunkard: Give us a brief bio... Where you at? What are you up to? I believe you're in NY - how's the surf?

Keith Abrahamsson: I'm here in Brooklyn...transitioning into Fall, waiting for the swell to show up. We had a little taste this past weekend.

AD: Let's get to the root of the Surf Archive Series. How did you get interested in these soundtracks...was it the films? The artists? Inspired by the surf? Lay it all out from inception to where we're at today.

Keith Abrahamsson: I suppose it was all part of my evolution as a music fan. I was pretty OCD about the fuzzy, heavy jams for awhile there...maybe 12 years ago or so, and dove deep into the more 'collectible' end of the spectrum. You can't really get outta that world without bumping into bands like Tamam Shud, Sky Oats, Peter Martin & Finch, etc. Once I got hip to those bands, I just kinda let myself fall further in and I discovered my love for many of these soundtracks. Once I hit upon Morning of the Earth, I was just completely melted (in a good way).

I didn't think to start reissuing them until 3 or 4 years ago and knew MoTE had to be first along w/ the Greenough/Elfick classic, Crystal Voyager. We've had some strong support and enthusiasm from lots of folks in the surf community and beyond, which has allowed us to continue with our vision of getting as many of these great soundtracks back onto LP as we can.

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Posted on Anthology Recordings Keith Abrahamsson

SIRIUS/XMU :: Aquarium Drunkard Show (Noon EST, Channel 35)

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Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can be heard twice every Friday — Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST. Chris Robinson guests on the second half of the show, his mixtape can be found here.

SIRIUS 455: Jean Michel Bernard — Générique Stephane ++ Kikagaku Moyo - Green Sugar ++ CAN — I’m . . .

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Farewell Green Leaves: UK Autumnal Folk (A Mixtape)

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The year has 16 months: November, December, January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, November, November, November." Danish poet, Henrik Nordbrandt

The days become shorter and the summer heat gives way to crisp nights. Autumn is the mellowest of seasons, a time of introspection and reflection, a slowing down before the transition into another year. Below: UK folk and acid folk from England, Scotland and Ireland, especially of the late 60s/early 70s variety -- all of which mine this often . . .

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Chris Robinson Brotherhood :: Anyway You Love, We Know How You Feel

Chris Robinson The AD InterviewPosted on

A fitting title for the recently released long player from The Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Anyway You Love, We Know How You Feel features original members Chris Robinson, Neal Casal and Adam McDougall along with the recent addition of drummer Tony Leone. Since their humble beginnings in 2011 The CRB, as they are fondly referred to, have recorded 4 studio albums and a soon to be released 5 song EP, If You Lived Here You Would Be Home By Now. All this while maintaining a tour schedule that fills the majority of the calendar year, something parallel to Northern California touring giants the Grateful Dead.

A worthy comparison considering the melting pot of influences and inspirations both bands have successfully conjured during each of their tenures. The sum of these parts include elements of 60s and 70s psych, touches of prog, funk, soul, country, doo-wop, gospel, and beyond. All these ingredients trailblazing a wonderfully refreshing slice of “Rock N Roll’ music. Not the “Rock’” music that has been diluted to a commodity or pushed down a hole of nostalgia. This is never more evident than on “Forever As The Moon”, a rollicking number that hearkens to Goats Head Soup era Stones, with Robinson singing “Let’s open the door to tomorrow’s hidden charms and gaze in the wonder.”

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Posted on Chris Robinson The AD Interview

Donovan Quinn :: Dad Was Buried In His Leather Jacket

Donovan QuinnPosted on

With New Bums rolled up and tucked away, Donovan Quinn returns to the streets of new weird America with Dad Was Buried In His Leather Jacket - his first solo outing since 2012’s criminally underrated Honky Tonk Medusa. Albeit a 4 song EP, the fun loving, yet slightly nefarious, characters within spin a dark lyrical web in the twilight hours...as questionable decisions begin to wear off and daybreak . . .

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Xylouris White :: Black Peak

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As one third of Dirty Three and on performances with Cat Power, Bill Callahan, Will Oldham and countless others, Jim White has long been known as one of the most powerful and distinctive drummers on the scene. But he outdoes himself on the title track of Xylouris White's sophomore LP, building the song into a righteous gallop that's thrillingly thunderous and devastatingly precise all at once. A tour de force that'll make other drummers hang their heads in shame.

White's . . .

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An American Artist: Catching Up With David Phillips

David Phillips The AD InterviewPosted on

David Phillips is an American artist whose work has shown at over 50 galleries throughout the United States. You may also know him as wino-strut. Bold, conceptual, avant garde, I've been following his work for the better part of a decade. Multidisciplinary, Phillips medium constantly remains in flux, at any given time, working with canvas, wood, metals, film and beyond.

The following conversation took place over the better part of a year in and around LA -- topics spanning Phillips initial arrival in Los Angeles 15 years ago, his inspiration, the cities changing art scene,  how oil remains "alive" and his native Oklahoma's enduring influence.

Aquarium Drunkard: Let’s start from the beginning. What brought you from your native Oklahoma to LA? What year was it?

David Phillips: I moved to Los Angeles about 15 years ago. I had been making a lot of paintings towards the end of school and there was nowhere to show them in Oklahoma. I packed my Honda Prelude up with a bag of clothes, my guitar, a cooler full of Coors Light, turkey sandwiches, Diet Cokes and a shit ton of Camel Lights. I told my family I wanted to visit LA but in my mind I was already gone. I just knew I’d live here. I had never visited Los Angeles. I had never been to California. I had $500 cash, no cell phone, and nothing to lose. I suppose I was chasing the great American West…or at least the idea of it. I don’t know. At this point it’s kind of a blur. All I knew is that I wanted to show my art to a large audience. I knew something drastic had to be done.

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Peter Buck :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview

R.E.M. The AD InterviewPosted on

R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck isn't especially geared toward nostalgia.

Since the pioneering alternative group  disbanded in 2011, Buck has operated at a prolific clip. He's released a string of vinyl-only solo albums on the venerable Mississippi Records label, played with the Baseball Project, and worked with Joseph Arthur. Recently, his band Filthy Friends -- featuring  Corin Tucker of Sleater-Kinney, Scott McCaughey of the Minus 5,   Kurt Bloch of the Fresh Young Fellows and drummer Bill Rieflin (King Crimson, Swans, Ministry) -- released a rager,  "Despierata," as part of Dave Eggers' anti-Trump musical campaign 30 Days, 30 Songs. And just last week saw the release of Alejandro Escovedo's Burn Something Beautiful,  which was co-produced and co-written by Buck.

In the middle of all that, Buck helped assemble the 25th anniversary edition of Out of Time, the record that took R.E.M. from a cult Athens, Georgia, rock band to a pop cultural force. Packed with hits like "Losing My Religion" and "Shiny Happy People," along with  meditative songs like "Belong," "Country Feedback," and "Low," the group's seventh album blended folk, funk, country & western, and power pop influences to help establish the template for what "alternative rock" would become at the start of a new decade. Available November 18th, the deluxe retrospective edition of the album features  alternate takes, demos, music videos, and a live set from Mountain Stage.

Buck admits he's not the most backward looking guy by nature, but still says revisiting the album was "a gift," representative of a shift in the group's career and an increasing willingness to blend genres and styles. Speaking with AD via telephone, Buck discussed his interest in hip-hop, taking on Donald Trump through song, and the experience of revisiting Out of Time. The conversation has been edited for clarity and condensed.

Aquarium Drunkard:  You  seem focused primarily on the present. Was going back and putting the  25th anniversary edition of Out of Time  a strange process for you?

Peter Buck: It's strange but it's also a gift. Because, prior to the band no longer working together, there was a continuum. Each vignette was   dependent on what the previous thing was, and the later thing, and what happened ten years later. Now it's history, for better or worse. It is what it is.

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Posted on R.E.M. The AD Interview

Sevens (Politiko) :: Drive-by Truckers – Ramon Casiano

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(In October of 2008 we flipped the script on our Sevens column with Politiko, focusing solely on political songs until the general election. It’s now 2016…and we’re back.)

"It all started at the border / and that's still where it is today / someone killed Ramon Casiano / and the killer got away." The opening line to "Ramon Casiano" sounds as much like the invocation of a Cormac McCarthy novel as it does the lead track from a Drive-by Truckers album. But the first song on the Truckers' most thoroughly political album, American Band, opens with what seems like ought to be its most salient detail. Instead it becomes something much larger in the details.

The titular person was a 15-year-old Mexican boy killed in a disagreement with a 17-year-old American named Harlon Carter in 1931. Carter was convicted and sentenced to three years before an appeal overturned his sentence based on the judge's instructions to the jury before deliberation. He was never re-tried and the incident itself stayed buried until Carter was confronted about it in 1981.

This doesn't sound like an intensely important event, aside from the lack of justice, until you trace out Carter's life afterward. Throughout his adult life, he served as a border patrol agent and even became the head of all federal border operations during the time of the infamous Operation Wetback during the 1950s. He also became an active member of the National Rifle Association, then a fairly benign group dedicated to promoting sports shooting and hunting activities. But that would change in 1968.

The Gun Control Act of 1968 was the first legislation passed to restrict gun sales and transport in some way since the 1930s. The NRA leadership found itself supporting some parts of the law and not others, but Harlon Carter was insistent that the NRA should opposed all gun legislation at all times. As a piece from the Washington Post noted about Carter: "Asked in 1975 if he would rather let convicted violent felons and the mentally deranged buy guns than endorse a screening process for gun sales, Carter did not hesitate to say yes. That’s the 'price we pay for freedom.'"
Carter would lead a revolt from within the ranks of the NRA, and in 1977 he would become its president. Over the eight years of his leadership, he would push the NRA to become one of the most powerful lobbying organizations in the United States - powerful enough to almost permanently derail more serious consideration of further gun control.

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SIRIUS/XMU :: Aquarium Drunkard Show (Halloween Edition)

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Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can be heard twice every Friday — Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST.

SIRIUS 454: Count Chucula - Intro ++ Bob Mcfadden & Dor - The Mummy ++ The Blue Echoes — It’s Witchcraft ++ The Tomko’s - The Spook ++ The Gories - Casting My Spell ++ Screaming Lord Sutch — She’s Fallen In Love With A Monster Man ++ Elvira - End of Side One ++ The Five Blobs - The Blob ++ Baron Daemon & Vampires . . .

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Elvis Presley :: And The Grass Won’t Pay No Mind

Elvis Presley Shangri-La SuitePosted on

Tomorrow sees the limited theatrical release of my first feature film, Shangri-La Suite. It tells the story of two lovers-on-the-run during the summer of 1974. Their names: Jack Blueblood and Karen Bird. Their aim: to kill Elvis Presley. It stars Emily Browning, Luke Grimes, Avan Jogia and Ron Livingston (as the King). Burt Reynolds narrates. The trailer can be . . .

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Posted on Elvis Presley Shangri-La Suite