- Photo courtesy of Hear Now Publicity
- Bill Corbin, casualty of rock ‘n roll, preps for surgery
American Aquarium —Raleigh’s favorite whiskey-besot, country-rocking semi-romantics— release their new album, Burn. Flicker. Die., today. Many of you might have had a taste of the record at the band’s sold-out CD release show down at the Lincoln Theatre Saturday night. Though it maintains the bitter, boot-stomping intensity of previous American Aquarium efforts, Burn. Flicker. Die. sees the scars of their road-warrior existence wearing a little more heavily than before. In one song, singer BJ Barham longs for the mundane existence of a policeman or a lawyer and not his current life as a “casualty of rock ‘n’ roll.”
But somehow the band keeps going, and there was evidence of that determination Saturday night. Bassist Bill Corbin had his appendix out the afternoon before the show, getting sewed up and immediately heading over to the venue for sound check. The outfit’s publicist sent out this summary of Corbin’s Saturday schedule:
Bill checks in to ER at 1pm on day of CD release show.
Bill goes into surgery at 3:15 for emergency removal of appendix.
Bill arrives at Lincoln Theatre at 5:30 for soundcheck.
Bill steps onstage to sold out crowd at 11:15pm and rocks the house.
Sunday, he slept.
If a member playing a show after major surgery doesn’t prove that American Aquarium has the will to make its rock ‘n’ roll dreams come true, then what can?
