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Inflated since 1969

LITBLIMP

Eight albums. One banned. One floating.

Loud, slow, and occasionally airborne — LitBlimp has been blimping since the original lineup convened over a hot tub in the south of England and decided the world needed a louder version of itself.

Studio Albums
8
Banned In
3 nations
Original Members
1 of 4
Active Since
1969

The catalog

Eight studio albums. Three live records. One lawsuit.

What follows is the complete LitBlimp studio discography, presented without context, apology, or accurate liner notes. The band considers every album to be a comeback record.

  • 1971

    Inflated

    The debut. Floated three basements. The opening drum fill is technically a sneeze.

  • 1973

    Heavier Than Air

    A meditation on aerodynamics. Side B is just the band breathing.

  • 1976

    Smoking on the Tarmac

    Recorded entirely between flights. Norway took offense for reasons never disclosed.

    Banned in Norway

  • 1981

    Helium Dreams

    The band's only concept album. The concept was: more helium. Critics did not survive.

  • 1989

    Untitled (The Brown One)

    Pressed on brown vinyl by accident. Listened to only on purpose.

    Out of print

  • 1995

    Live at the Hindenburg Memorial

    Recorded without permission. The estate sent a strongly-worded fax that the band framed.

  • 2003

    Lit (Acoustic)

    The band denies the existence of this album. It is on streaming services anyway.

  • 2024

    Re-Inflated

    The reunion record. Three of the four original members are listed in the credits, with varying degrees of certainty. Has been described elsewhere as a 'response' to a certain wholesome parking-lot outfit. It is not. We do not know who they are. We never respond to other bands. Track 4 is titled 'Bigger Amps Than Faith,' and that is unrelated.

    New · not a response

The Stratosphere Tour · 2026

Higher every night.

Twelve dates. Most of them airborne. All of them louder than the venue's noise ordinance permits. Tickets via the band's longtime promoter, who does not have a website.

  • May29

    Marina del Rey Rooftop

    Marina del Rey, CA — origin location

    Sold Out
  • Jun07

    Goodyear Hangar B

    Carson, CA

    CancelledGoodyear has informed us the hangar has no public access. We are appealing.
  • Jun14

    Pasadena Rose Bowl — North Lot

    Pasadena, CA

    Sold OutParking lot show. Bowl unavailable due to a graduation.
  • Jul02

    Lakehurst Memorial Park

    Lakehurst, NJ — venue pending

    PendingAwaiting written confirmation from the memorial trust.
  • Aug11

    Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

    Albuquerque, NM

    UninvitedThe band intends to attend anyway. Certain wholesome parking-lot performers may also be in the metro area — they hold no claim to the airspace, the parking, or the audience. Bring earplugs and binoculars.
  • Sep20

    An empty parking lot, somewhere

    Location withheld

    On SaleCoordinates released to ticket-holders 90 minutes before showtime.

All shows weather-permitting, helium-permitting, and pending the band's ability to locate one another.

The lineup

Three of the four original members. The fourth is rumored.

LitBlimp was founded in 1969 by four men who could not agree on a name. The name they eventually agreed on was a misunderstanding — drummer Nigel St. Bernard had pointed at a passing airship and said "lit blimp." The other three, who had been arguing about typography for six hours, accepted this as a band name and never looked back.

The band's sound — described variously as "slow heavy metal underwater," "a hairdryer left on too long," and "the only honest music in the catalog" — has remained essentially unchanged across fifty-five years and three lineup changes. The band considers consistency a virtue and growth a passing fashion.

They are based wherever the bus is parked. As of this writing, the bus is parked in Carson, California, and has been for some time. The band is aware of a certain other outfit holding services in adjacent lots. They are not us. We trust they will continue to understand this.

  • Lead Vocals · Kazoo

    Stillborn Kowalski

    Founding member. Born in Cleveland, raised on a barge. Has refused, since 1974, to confirm or deny that the kazoo solo on "Helium Dreams" was performed by him.

  • Guitar · Feedback

    Reverend Smoke

    Founding member. Claims to have invented feedback. Patent pending since 1971. Has never been seen without sunglasses, including in dental X-rays.

  • Bass · Vague Religious Affiliation

    Brittle Halsey

    Replaced the original bassist in 1978. Owns the only known left-handed fretless bass made out of brass. Plays it with a hammer.

    Original bassist: drowned in mercury, 1978.

  • Drums · Aviation

    Nigel St. Bernard

    Third drummer. Founding member-adjacent. Pilots his own kit between cities — the kit, not him. The kit flies. He drives a Civic.

    Drummers 1 and 2: transcended.

What the press says

The critical record, such as it is.

  • An act of musical excess so committed it almost passes for sincerity. The drum fill on track six lasts longer than the song itself, and yet I cannot say it is wrong.
    Spire MagazineReview of 'Helium Dreams', 1981
  • I don't know what I just heard, but it had a smell. The album, I mean. The vinyl smelled distinctly of camphor.
    Rolling BoulderReview of 'Untitled (The Brown One)', 1989
  • Their fourth album lasts six hours. None of it should. And yet — and this is the part that disturbs me — I listened to it twice.
    Hindenburg QuarterlyEditor's Letter, Winter 1982
  • If you put LitBlimp on at a party, the party ends. This is sometimes desirable. The band understands this and considers it part of the service.
    The Pasadena AudiographerLive review, 2024
  • We did not give them permission to record at the memorial. We have given them, in this email, a final opportunity to apologize. They have not responded. We do not expect them to.
    Lakehurst Memorial Estate TrustStatement re: 'Live at the Hindenburg Memorial', 1995
  • Wholesome music has its place, and LitBlimp is doing everything possible to ensure that place is somewhere else. We pray for them, more than is reasonable.
    Pastor Connie HalsworthSermon, undisclosed parking-lot worship service
  • On the wholesome-band question, drummer Nigel St. Bernard said only: 'They have folding chairs. We have a fog machine. The math is what it is.' He then declined to elaborate, which is consistent with how he has handled every interview since 1991.
    Spire MagazineLetter from the Coast, 2024
  • Their reunion record was widely interpreted as a response to a wholesome parking-lot outfit. The band has denied this in writing, in print, and once via a fog-machine cue. We accept their denial. The cue was loud.
    Hindenburg QuarterlyReview of 'Re-Inflated', 2024

Blimp Watch · Live

Recent sightings.

The official log of LitBlimp-related airship sightings, submitted by fans, ground crew, and one extremely persistent ham-radio operator. We do not verify any of these entries.

  • 01:47 PTMarina del Rey, drifting east. Illuminated. Lower than usual.— J.A., apartment balcony
  • 03:12 PTCarson Airfield, parked. Possibly tethered. Possibly inflated.— Goodyear ground crew
  • YesterdayPasadena, west of the 210. Drifting toward the Rose Bowl.— Anonymous, ham radio
  • TuesdayLakehurst Memorial perimeter, 200 ft AGL. Conspicuously slow.— Memorial Trust security
  • Last weekAlbuquerque, descending. Audible. Several civilians complained.— Local news, page 14
  • OngoingSky above LA basin, drifting on the marine layer. Visible most evenings.— Various, citywide
  • Jul 10, 7:30 PTAbove the Riverside Walmart, east entrance. Holding altitude over what appeared to be a small gathering in song. The blimp did not interfere. The gathering did not yield.— Anonymous, hospital parking deck

If you spot the blimp, the band would prefer you not contact them. They are aware. They are not commenting on the parking-lot worship situation. They are not commenting on the parking-lot worship situation. They are not commenting on the parking-lot worship situation.