If you're even the slightest bit inclined toward the original swirling sounds of psychedelic music, there's a good chance you seriously owe something to Roky Erickson. As the founder and main figure behind the immortal Texas band, the 13th Floor Elevators in the mid 60s, Roky and his inimitable voice forged the first steps of mind-altering music in America. Becoming the first group to use the word 'psychedelic' in the title on their debut LP, the Elevators steadily gained popularity with their 1966 charting hit, "You're Gonna Miss Me." Their success helped them make afternoon television appearances and regional touring, but all the contaminants came to a head after three albums and Roky was incarcerated for drug posession in 1969. Claiming insanity, which resulted in his institutionalization until 1972, he looked inward and channelled his creativity into conceptualizing what was swimming around in his head. Widely regarded as one of the three great acid casualties (that lived to the present day) of the 1960s alongside the Seeds' Sky Saxon and Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett, Roky beat the odds and reemerged in the mid 70s with an ensemble backing him up called Blieb Alien, who quickly solidified his new direction. Allowing Roky's imagination to literally run wild, he penned impossible songs of inner torture and mental collapse that just somehow managed to be brilliant rock'n roll in it's purest form. With a string of demonic homerun hits such as "Two Headed Dog," "I Walked With a Zombie," and his fully punked-out "Don't Shake Me Lucifer," Roky proved his place in rock'n roll history as a true survivor, and a musical presence that can never be denied. A recent documentary on his life has been circulating independent film festivals, which should not be missed, and his live appearances have been popping up across the country in it's wake with consistently great reception. This Thursday in San Francisco at the Great American Music Hall, Roky Erickson and the Explosives are joined by one of the new disciples of the modern lysergic parade, the Wooden Shjips, as part of the 15th annual five day Noise Pop Fest taking place in the Bay area. Although taking more of a cue from their prog-rock forebearers than their domestic idols, the Wooden Shjips deliver a brain-scrambling tunnel of rythmic heaven overlaid with ghostly vocals eerily suggesting you've lost your marbles, which should even bring Roky's attention to the stage. Definitely a don't-miss show for anyone in the area, other highlights of the weekend Fest are the Ponys, Gris Gris and the Dwarves, who each embody the boundaries of the 'pop' spectrum in their own way, bringing a solid base to the typical outdoor festival fare. Check out the rest of the Noise Pop Fest lineup HERE....
Check out a video clip of Roky Erickson & The Explosives in 1980 performing "White Faces" ...
