Mr Pélican: The Story Behind Our Band's Name
What's the story behind the name?
We often get asked about the story behind our unique name, and it's a fun one that allows me to introduce some of my favorite music makers: John Moreland and BJ Barham. While John Moreland performs under his own name, BJ Barham primarily showcases his music through the band American Aquarium.
I have a close group of friends with whom I regularly swap music. We exchange links to YouTube videos, Spotify, Apple Music, SoundCloud, Facebook pages, and sometimes share tunes in person. To me, sharing a great band is like giving a timeless gift that someone can enjoy for the rest of their life.
Now, back to our name—one day, I was sharing a John Moreland video with my buddy John S. (check it out here: https://youtu.be/VwIWj0uNVCo).
As we watched, John S. got sidetracked trying to figure out which band Mr. Moreland was opening for. The camera angle showed Mr. Moreland in a way that obscured half of the bass drum behind him, leaving us to read only part of the name, which looked like ****ican ****ium. My friend jokingly guessed 'Pelican Museum', and we all had a good laugh before realizing it was actually American Aquarium.
A few weeks later, as our brand new band prepared for its first 'gig' (a prestigious backyard BBQ at Kiana Lynn's father's house), we were brainstorming band names. None of our initial ideas were particularly impressive or clever, so as a lighthearted joke, I suggested 'Pelican Museum', and we decided to go with it.
If you take away anything from this, make sure to check out John Moreland and American Aquarium!
Cheers,
PJ