Dick Hyacinth chats with Aqua Leung creators Mark Andrew Smith and Paul Maybury about the book and Jethro Tull:
Aqua Leung is presumably a play on the Jethro Tull song “Aqualung.” Would you say that the interplay between electric guitar and flute exemplifies your collaborative process?
MARK: That’s a good idea and I’d wish we thought of something that cool. I think the guitar in that song is amazing. So for our name we wanted to do something with water, or an Aqua Lung like the piece of scuba equipment. So I got it from there first and then the Tull song. But the guitar at the start of the song does kind of exemplify what kind of raw and dynamic energy you should imagine when reading the book. So to use your idea I could say yes and that the interplay between electric guitar and flute exemplify the creative process, as long as I can be the guitar.
PAUL: I was thinking about learning the flute just so I could do a little JT at cons. People would come up to the booth and I would just jump out from behind the curtains and start rocking out on top of the table. I would of course sign the book eventually.
The first Aqua Leung graphic novel due in April. You can check out the Aqua Leung short story that appeared in the PopGun Anthology here.
