Posts

Transmissions :: Matt Baldwin

This week on the show, guitarist and psychotherapist Matt Baldwin, who is here to teach you How To Play Guitar. OK, not exactly. But Baldwin is the author of ⁠How To Play Guitar⁠, a series of zines that have been collected into a handsome book edition. If you’re just picking up the instrument, well, Baldwin isn’t writing about how to play a C chord or run scales. These aren’t “how to” guides so much as “why to” prompts, stressing intuition over technique, dismissal of music industry norms, and the imperative to hone a singular, personal philosophy regarding . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts :: Second Song

At 80, Neil Young remains gloriously unfinished. Second Song, his latest with the Chrome Hearts, is a weathered, luminous meditation on memory, mortality, love, and the strange passage of time. With shimmering textures, warm harmonies, wandering tempos, and that unmistakably vulnerable voice, Young looks backward without quite letting go of the future. An elegiac, deeply human record from an artist still searching for the song . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Índio da Cuíca :: Zing Zing

At 70, Brazilian percussionist Índio da Cuíca reinvented himself as one of the country’s strangest musical voices. His cuíca—usually a squeaky rhythmic accent—is transformed into a melodic instrument of uncanny virtuosity, set against samba, capoeira, Afro-Brazilian spirituals and warped pop forms. On Zing Zing, that “avant-traditional” vision expands further, as cavaquinho, pandeiro, berimbau and bandolim collide with guitars, synths and samples. Samba music from some parallel universe . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

HUG :: HUG

Hug is music for the small hours, when the world comes in and out of focus, a record that drifts through the mind’s open windows, carrying with it the sublime and resonant hush of a world at peace in its own unfolding. As warm and comforting as the name implies, Hug embraces you like an old friend, holding space for the warmth of the past, the uncertainty of the future, and the solace of the blossoming present . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Maddy Prior & June Tabor’s Silly Sisters at 50

Maddy Prior and June Tabor’s Silly Sisters is a magical hinge album, a meeting of two transcendent voices and a jolly band of British folk masters. Recorded in 1976 but somehow outside of time, its ancient songs, close harmonies, and loose, luminous performances summon something older than the British folk revival itself. Fifty years on, it remains a timeless gem hiding in plain sight: raw, sophisticated, mysterious, and still not quite given its due . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Radio Free Aquarium Drunkard :: September 2026

Freeform transmissions from Radio Free Aquarium Drunkard on dublab. Airing every third Sunday of the month, RFAD on dublab features the pairing of Tyler Wilcox’s Doom and Gloom from the Tomb and Chad DePasquale’s New Happy Gathering. This month, Chad kicks it off with a roundup of recent 2026 digs. Tyler follows with an hour of existential daydreams and autumnal instrumentals. Sunday, 4-6pm PT . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Bandcamping :: Autumn 2026

Are things feeling autumnal at long last? Not quite. But maybe this selection of recommended sounds, old and new, can help usher in the cooler, crisper season. Bandcamp Friday only rolls around every couple of months. But remember, you can always add a buck or two to the asking price of any album on the platform and voila — every day is Bandcamp Friday . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Nigeria 80: The Explosive Sound World of 1980s Nigeria

The ’70s didn’t end. They just got more elastic. Strut’s Nigeria 80 catches Nigerian popular music in that beautiful, unruly stretch between Afrobeat’s explosion and whatever came next—juju, funk, highlife, reggae, proto-hip-hop, and plenty of glorious cross-pollination along the way . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

The Lagniappe Sessions :: Instrumentals (2016-2026)

Aquarium Drunkard’s Lagniappe Sessions have been rolling along at a steady pace since 2011, bringing together a global lineup of artists to offer up cover versions of a few of their favorite tunes. And some of the most imaginative Lagniappes have been those that deliver purely instrumental pleasures, embracing melody, rhythm and texture.

We’ve gathered together a 90-minute sampling of those covers from over the past decade, which range from MPB bliss-outs to Takoma School dreamscapes, from free-funk workouts to orchestral jazz. And beyond . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

The Aquarium Drunkard Show: SIRIUS/XMU (7pm PDT, Channel 35)

Broadcasting from northeast Los Angeles — the Aquarium Drunkard Show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35. 7pm California time, Wednesdays.

A signal from the afterlife of the ’60s—soft-focus surrealism, garage psych, baroque pop, pastoral folk, English eccentricity, studio alchemy and outsider visions.

SIRIUS 899: Intro ++ Jefferson Airplane – Embryonic Journey >> Today ++ The Rolling Stones – Citadel ++ The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band – Smell Of Incense ++ The Creation – Painter Man ++ The Chocolate Watchband – Baby Blue ++ Marc Nolan & John’s Children – Desdemona (Version #2) ++ The Creation – Making Time ++ Billy Nicholls – Girl From New York ++ The Millennium – I Just Don’t Know How To Say Goodbye ++ The Association – Never My Love ++ The Kinks – Nothin’ In The World Can Stop Me Worryin’ Bout That Girl ++ The Rolling Stones – She Smiled Sweetly ++ The Rolling Stones – I Am Waiting ++ Bobby Gentry – Seasons Come, Seasons Go ++ Nancy Sinatra – Summer Wine ++ Curt Boettcher – Lament Of The Astral Cowboy ++ The Lovin’ Spoonful – Coconut Grove ++ The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band – I Won’t Hurt You ++ The Velvet Underground – Ride Into The Sun ++ King Crimson – I Talk To The Wind ++ Cream – Anyone For Tennis ++ Lee Hazlewood – Califia (Stone Rider) ++ Nico – I’ll Keep It With Mine ++ Roy Wood – Wake Up ++ Harpers Bizarre – Witchi Tai Go ++ The Beach Boys – Wind Chimes ++ The Cyrkle – The Minx ++ Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66 – Righteous Life ++ Marc Benno & Leon Russell – Hello Little Friend ++ The Yardbirds – Stroll On ++ The Association – Wantin’ Ain’t Gettin’ ++ Kevin Ayers – Shouting In A Bucket Blues ++ The Advancement – Child At Play ++ Donovan – Get They Bearings ++ Scott Walker – 30 Century Man ++ Alexander ’Skip’ Spence – Books Of Moses ++ MC5 – Let Me Try ++ Robert Wyatt – Yolanda

I Will Die In This Jean Jacket :: Hang From A Cloud

Minneapolis lifer Jim Blaha goes it alone on Hang From A Cloud, a raw, bedroom-recorded set of wistful garage-psych and punk songs that crackle with romantic desperation. From the breathy “Some New Day” to the furious, sotto voce anthems of “D.O.A.,” Blaha distills decades in the underground into something intimate, ferocious, and beautifully unvarnished . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Transmissions :: James Austin Johnson

This week on the show, comedian James Austin Johnson joins us to dive into the music nerd obsessions of his new comedy special ⁠He'll Yeah⁠. You've likely seen JAJ on the TV. He's known for portraying Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and occasionally, Bob Dylan, on SNL. But He’ll Yeah’s vignettes and on-stage footage find Johnson creating a more "indie rock" styled special. Along the way, we talk Bob Dylan, the perils of political comedy, and much more . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Dollar Brand/Don Cherry/Carlos Ward :: The Third World-Underground

A live recording of three jazz masters in transitional phases of their careers, The Third World-Underground captures Abdullah Ibrahim (Dollar Brand), Don Cherry and Carlos Ward embarking on a joyous, lyrical and profoundly stomping set of tunes, teeming with fanfares, shouts and unruly dances. Newly reissued and remastered, this once Japanese-only release is ready to find its rightful audience. Where Ibrahim, Cherry and Ward are going, they don't need bass or drums . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Wendy & Bonnie :: Genesis

Stunning psychedelic baroque pop meets Latin-influenced west coast jazz. The story of teenage sisters Wendy & Bonnie and their sublime 1969 record Genesis is one for the books, recorded on the Skye label of family friend and vibraphone extraordinaire Cal Tjader and Gábor Szabó. Brimming with gusto and the sisters' youthful ambition yet confident and chilling sunshine pop harmonies, the duo's lone album is a maturely stunning accomplishment on several fronts . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy :: Ghosts of American Psychonauts

Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy’s live show can be any number of things—a solo acoustic ramble through covers and oddities and absurd stories, an electrified duo with Superwolves’ Matt Sweeney, or, occasionally, and if you’re lucky, a full-band interpretation of old and new songs that makes you think of them in new contexts. Ghosts of American Psychonauts is very much the latter, eight songs recorded at the Pico Union Project in Los Angeles in February 2025 . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.