American Aquarium Has Van / Gear Stolen in Indianapolis
This story has been updated. Van has been recovered. Please check for updates below.
Raleigh, North Carolina’s American Aquarium had their van and trailer stolen late last night (Wednesday, 6-25) between 1 AM and 9 AM in Indianapolis at the Wyndham Hotel on the west side of town. The band was in Indianapolis playing a show with the Turnpike Troubadours at the Old National Centre.
According to Andy of the Indianapolis Police Department, the band’s trailer was found in the southern part of Indianapolis, parked on the side of the road. The police officer saw the trailer, and found American Aquarium business cards around it and reached out to the band who had no idea the van and trailer had been stolen out of the hotel parking lot. The van however was not retrieved, and the band is asking people in the area to keep an eye out for it. According to the officer that found the trailer, there were still contents left in it, but the band has been unable to get to the trailer to determine just what was stolen. The trailer was secured and taken to a police impound lot after it was discovered.
American Aquarium posted on their Facebook page at about 10 AM Central, “To the guy who stole our livelihood, I sure hope you get what is coming to you. FUCK!!!”
The van is a 2007 White Ford E-350 XLT 15 Passenger Van, North Carolina License Plate #BBD1591. It has a large crack on the the windhshield and a “White Water Tavern” and a “Mercury Lounge” sticker on the back glass. It was stolen from The Wyndham Indianapolis West at 2544 Executive Dr. in Indianapolis, IN 46241.
As soon as more information is available, it will be posted here. In the meantime, people in the Indianapolis area who may have some information about the theft are asked to call (317) 504-5292, or the Indianapolis Police Department.
The theft is the latest in a rash of van and trailer thefts that have plagued the roots music world. Thieves steal the vans and trailers, many times eventually ditching the van and trailer, but making off with much of the contents. Just in the last six weeks Larry & His Flask and Mike & The Moonpies had their vehicles stolen as well.
American Aquarium’s last album Burn.Flicker.Die was a critical favorite, and was produced by Jason Isbell. They are currently working on a new album Wolves.
UPDATE (6-26 2:30 PM CDT): According to the band, only a handful of guitars were stolen from the trailer. Most of the other contents remain. The van is still missing.
UPDATE (6-27 2:30 PM CDT): From American Aquarium: “The Indy Police found out van ditched on the highway late yesterday evening. The thieves ripped everything inside apart then took it one step further by pouring water in our gas tank, cutting the brake lines, and taking all the lugs off of the wheels. Sad to say, but this is the end of the road for the old girl. It’s been a good 4.5 years. RIP Rape Van Winkle:/”
The band had to play an acoustic show last night in Kentucky because of the theft. No word on their remaining tour dates at the moment.
UPDATE (6-27 4:20 PM CDT): Indianapolis police recovered a ’72 Gibson SJ Deluxe Acoustic Guitar that was taken as part of the theft. A gold, Gibson LesPaul Bass (ser#122411549) is still at large (see picture below).
Also the band has announced their show at Bogart’s in Cincinnati, as well as their remaining tour with the Turnpike Troubadours will transpire as planned.
Picture from independentsky.com
June 26, 2014 @ 10:44 am
So damn tired of seeing this type of news. Stealing people’s way of life is lowdown. It makes me wish everyone touring band had a couple Rottwielers in their vans.
June 26, 2014 @ 10:51 am
I don’t know if anybody has thought of this before but what about installing gps trackers on the trailers and vans. I did a quick google search and it looks you could get one for between 60 to 100 bucks. I don’t know just an idea…I hate seeing this type of news. Thieves are the absolute worse!!
June 26, 2014 @ 1:45 pm
People are stupid! This makes me madd. I hope they still play the Merc next weekend. I’ll definitely buy some stuff to help them raise money.
This band is awesome. I hope they overcome fast!
June 26, 2014 @ 8:00 pm
seems like a see a story like this every couple of days…what the hell is going on?
June 27, 2014 @ 5:53 am
I hope they find their stuff. Met the whole band at a show in Greenville, SC. Bunch of good dudes!
June 27, 2014 @ 12:21 pm
They found the van. The jackasses who stole it made sure it was a total loss. From AA’s Facebook page…
“UPDATE: The Indy Police found out van ditched on the highway late yesterday evening. The thieves ripped everything inside apart then took it one step further by pouring water in our gas tank, cutting the brake lines, and taking all the lugs off of the wheels. Sad to say, but this is the end of the road for the old girl. It’s been a good 4.5 years. “
June 27, 2014 @ 1:08 pm
They didn’t cancel the show in Kentucky last night. I was there to see BJ on the acoustic and Whitt on the pedal steel. I hate the events that led to the stripped down lineup but having seen the full band quite a few times the duo was a nice change of pace.
On another note, I’m not a huge fan of the Turnpike Troubadours stage production. Too many lights and too much smoke. It was almost KISS-like. Not sure if it has anything to do with the Live Nation connection or not. Good thing they’re so damn talented otherwise it would seem ridiculous.
June 27, 2014 @ 7:17 pm
I’ve seen turnpike at least 10 times, at cowboys dancehall, at whitewater, at gruene hall, at the house pasture in concan, at floores, at concrete street amphitheater, and countless other places, their shows were never overproduced like mentioned. Guess depends on the venue.
June 27, 2014 @ 7:45 pm
Yes, I’ve been to a few Turnpike shows and never saw anything overproduced. Many venues are equipped with lights and smoke and will employ them for the headliner more than the opening bands as a matter of course. Unless Turnpike has really invested in their stage show very recently, my guess is this is the case.
June 27, 2014 @ 7:59 pm
I was really happy to see that they’re still going to be playing here in Cleveland tomorrow night!
They’re making it here every few months it looks like.
Finally going to see the Turnpike Troubadours for the first time.
July 2, 2014 @ 12:57 pm
Yes, a GPS tracker on the tour trailer would have alerted the band immediately that the trailer was being taken. I’m the founder of ScreamingStone – instrument protection and recovery. I help musicians get back their stolen gear by publicizing instrument thefts. After 7 years and recovering over $500,000 in stolen gear I’ve learned it’s a lot easier to protect than it is to recover (less than 3% is recovered by police)
http://www.ScreamingStone.com