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. For Barham, the sharing of hard truths is indelibly tied to his sense of devotion to **American Aquarium**’s audience—and to his belief in rock-and-roll as a singularly unifying force. “All I really want to do is put words to the emotions that most people have a difficult time expressing on their own,” he reveals. “No matter what that emotion is, when you put it into a song and then get to those moments when a whole bunch of people are singing that song all together, it makes you see that you’re part of something bigger than you ever realized. That’s when you can really affect people’s lives, and to me this record is another stepping stone to making that a reality.” Presented by Radio East. All ages