A band possibly running a little late for a sound check doesn’t bother us an iota. Hell, if they miss sound check entirely, most bands aren’t even all that worried about the consequences. Sometimes sessions run longer than they should. They never drag, but they run longer, into the valuable driving time that a band might need to get from here to Champaign or Chicago, etc. We don’t mean for it to happen, but even with gold medal intentions, things sometimes don’t go as planned or close to it. We don’t stress about it. We’re just hauling ass to get home for dinner – five minutes from the studio. The band is hauling ass to a payday in whatever Midwestern city is next. They always get there. They always get paid, even if they’re tardy. So we’ve stopped worrying. If they’re not worried, our troubled minds are useless. We wash our callous hands of the problem. What we do worry about are those bands who visit our studio as the last thing they’re doing on tour – brimming with that desire to get home as quickly as they possibly can. Come hell or high water, they’re going to get there fast and they’re going to do it in one fell swoop, driving through the night and sacrifice straight eyesight for a familiar bed and the cat that nudges them for attention every night at 3 a.m., like clockwork. The Vampire Weekend guys left here at 9 p.m. to head home. We thought their insanity should be checked and their temperatures taken, but Pat’s told us a number of times that he’s made that drive straight through and it’s not all that bad. When Seattlites Aqueduct planned to drive straight home from here, after finishing a tour with labelmates Smoosh, Luke Temple – who was also in on that first week of August, worried us before we ever could. He said something to the effect of, “Be careful driving through those mountains over there. It can be easy to just drive off them if you’re tired.” We knew they were tired and Temple freaked us out. They were the third band to record that day – after Smoosh and Temple – and we feared for them. But they made it home in their sweaty shirts, no problem. – Sean Moeller

First song
Keep It Together (Aqueduct) [3.34MB] [1922 downloads]


— original version appears on Or Give Me Death
Ultimate Yacht Rock

Second song
Just the Way I Are (Aqueduct) [3.67MB] [1798 downloads]


— original version appears on Or Give Me Death
Equally the most epic and dorky song on the new record. This song was tentatively titled “Knee-slapper” when I was writing it for the new album.

Third song
As You Wish (Aqueduct) [3.30MB] [1817 downloads]


— original version appears on Or Give Me Death
This song pays homage to the great movie “The Princess Bride.” And by pays homage I mean I actually took the script and made a collage of its dialogue as the lyrics. Cleverly, the lyrics are disguised just enough for only fans of the movie to pick up on, leaving the rest of the listeners wondering if I’m one creepy motherf*&#er.

Fourth song
Split the Difference (Aqueduct) [2.52MB] [1848 downloads]


– original version appears on Or Give Me Death
This is the fastest Aqueduct song ever recorded, so far. 202 bpm. Hardcore Easy Listening!!!