American Aquarium

For nearly two decades, American Aquarium have pushed toward that rare form

of rock-and-roll that’s revelatory in every sense. “For us the sweet spot is when

you’ve got a rock band that makes you scream along to every word, and it’s not

until you’re coming down at three a.m. that you realize those words are saying

something real about your life,” says frontman BJ Barham. “That’s what made us

fall in love with music in the first place, and that’s the goal in everything we do.”

On their new album The Fear of Standing Still, the North Carolina-bred band

embody that dynamic with more intensity than ever before, endlessly matching

their gritty breed of country-rock with Barham’s bravest and most incisive

songwriting to date. As he reflects on matters both personal and sociocultural—

e.g., the complexity of Southern identity, the intersection of generational trauma

and the dismantling of reproductive rights—American Aquarium instill every

moment of The Fear of Standing Still with equal parts unbridled spirit and

illuminating empathy.

Host or Publisher GoldenLight Cantina