–an excerpt from Roots Jam 4: World Beats
For the last half dozen years I have played congas and percussion for a jam band known as Aquarius Victoria. Though we don’t perform live, we record everything on a high-end system and mix down a small portion of the weekly jams for public release on Reverbnation (the more finely engineered tracks) and Soundcloud (the more raw “bootleg”-quality recordings) and keep talking of one day broadcasting live feeds. In the meantime, the spirit of the occasion is about having fun, reveling in the sheer joy of making music together in a supportive environment.
While attendance is fluid, the usual mix is drum kit, bass, electric guitars, keyboard, mandolin, congas/djembe and percussion, and vocals. Musical genres range the gamut: ballads, Celtic, reggae, blues, prog rock, acid jazz, funk, hard rock, dance groove… with nothing prearranged, and everything played strictly in the moment. If there is any unwritten rule we abide by, it’s probably, “No cover tunes.” In other words, we’re constitutionally averse to what Frank Zappa lampooned as “strictly commercial.”
Listen to the “bootleg albums” of Aquarius Victoria at Soundcloud.
Download the new release, My Jamaica, free with Roots Jam 3 & 4 original drumming compositions.
Listen to the EP My Final Stand at Reverbnation.
Read earlier accounts of drumming in electric jams, in Friday Night Jam (free as ebook).
Aquarius Victoria Discography
My Final Stand – EP at Reverbnation
An quality-engineered EP with four unique, original improvised tracks, spanning the globe from China to the Middle East to the hard-rocking West.
Bootleg albums at Soundcloud
These are raw recordings from jam sessions, with basic edits, curated and compiled for your listening pleasure…
House Party (2017-19: LP, 9 tracks, 50 min.)
The best of bootleg recordings from Aquarius Victoria electric jams, 2017-19. These are basic cuts from digital recordings (phone or Edirol), too numerous to make it through the rigorous engineering queue. All original improvised music; no covers allowed!
What’s Your Name (Summer 2019: LP, 10 tracks, 63 min.)
Bootleg recording selections from Aquarius Victoria electric jams, summer 2019 sessions at Prospect Lake. Curated for story/structure, originality, and dance energy.
Jazz Radio (Fall 2019: mini-LP, 9 tracks, 55 min.)
More bootleg recording selections from Aquarius Victoria electric jams, Sept-Oct 2019 sessions at Prospect Lake. Opening to channel all the music we love!
Funklandia (LP, 10 tracks, 55 min.)
Album 1 of selected dance tracks from Aquarius Victoria jams (bootleg recordings). Heavy on the funk and jazz elements, curated for the dance floor.
Spare Change (LP, 12 tracks, 62 min.)
Bootleg album 2 of dance selections from Aquarius Victoria. Prog rock, fusion grooves, world blues and funky jazz, jammed out in 2017-19.
You Are the Groove (LP, 13 tracks, 71 min.)
For dancers only – the grooviest tracks from Funklandia and Spare Change. Vocals take a back seat in this curated compilation of trancy beats for the dance floor.
My Jamaica (mini-LP, 7 tracks, 32 minutes)
Indie reggae fusion, soca funk, and world blues. Say a Jamaican farewell to the chair in the corner: get up and groove!
Chocolate and Whiskey (EP, 5 tracks, 22 min.)
Hot vocals drive indie reggae, groove fusion and acid jazz. The pick of the litter from the 7 November 2019 jam session, featuring (what else?) chocolate and whiskey.
Follow Aquarius Victoria on Soundcloud and Reverbnation
