Roky Erickson

In the three decades following Roky Erickson's 1972 release from the State Hospital For The Criminally Insane in Rusk, Texas, his occasional periods of renewed musical activity brought forth a number of genuinely compelling pop songs. Yet even when his musical patrons had nothing but the best intentions, an unsettling sideshow atmosphere pervaded the burgeoning Cult of Roky. It often seemed like fans who admired heartfelt tunes like "Starry Eyes" or "You Don't Love Me Yet" were outnumbered by icky "Hey! Lookit the crazy guy!" voyeurs digging on the Satanic imagery and harrowing schizophrenic visions of "Red Temple Prayer (Two Headed Dog)" and "Bloody Hammer." A seemingly endless string of lo-fi live recordings and barely-finished demos in the late '80s and '90s were focused squarely at the latter demographic and are best avoided. But a once unthinkable personal transformation began when Roky's brother Sumner wrested his sibling's guardianship away from their mother in 2001: new, less debilitating medications, combined with improved physical health, led to a return to the concert stage in 2005, concurrent with the sympathetic, non-exploitative documentary You're Gonna Miss Me. In 2010, Erickson completed his remarkable comeback with the powerful True Love Cast Out All Evil, backed by Austin acolytes Okkervil River.