Texas Psych: Is Roky Slipping Lately?

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Monday, November 15, 2010 Is Roky Ericking Slipping Lately?

I've been hearing that Roky is "slipping" lately. There have been some rumblings that the gigs were not tight and that Roky seemed "out there" and was forgetting the lyrics. Here is an exchange that happened on the world famous Texas Psych Google Group recently:

The Ultimust from NYC Wrote:

Hey everyone, Caught Roky and his new backing band in NYC last night and I have to say that it was about the worst I've ever seen him, musically. I'm sure that the band spent more time on their look than they did on learning how to play the songs and except for a few moments when Roky played with some of the vocal phrasing, the entire performance was about as flat as these songs can get. And yes, Roky did forget a bunch of lyrics (including EVERY chorus of YGMM) but who can blame him given the fact that the music was so uninspired? I'm about as happy as anyone to see Roky touring and finally making some money (I hope) off of his legend but last night really made me wonder if it's a good idea to keep supporting something that may just be ultimately detrimental to his health. I really got the impression that this was just another job to Roky and that any of the creative fire that was in him has all but gone. I mean, I'm all for Roky getting paid but you gotta wonder if someone isn't just giving him an allowance, keeping him out of trouble and propping him up on a stage every night so that they can continue to line their own pockets. I have no idea how Roky's camp picks his backing groups but whoever is in charge of that needs to be fired and probably slapped in the face too for good measure. Is it really that hard to find a competent group who understands and respects Roky's musical history enough to do the songs and him justice? For fuck's sake, give the guy something to get excited about and I guarantee that people will turn their heads. From what I've seen and heard, a lot more of his voice is left than people might think, he just doesn't seem interested enough to use it. I will say that the guitarist can play and he had a pretty good tone as well, but his style was wimpy as all hell and his timing was pretty lousy too. The bass playing was pretty terrible in general and much of it was downright annoying. Gotta save my worst criticism for the drummer, though. I know 3 year old girls who can hit harder than this guy and I really doubt that he understands the meaning of the word "accent" or how it applies to drumming. Drummers are the backbone of any band which pretty much sums up why the songs last night had no spine. And for chrissakes, can't we designate 1 roadie to make sure that the mic is in front of Roky's mouth? Once again (same as the Webster Hall show with Okkervil) you could barely hear Roky because he mic wasn't angled right. He's got someone to put on and take of his guitar, is it really that hard to pay attention to this detail too? The band kept asking the sound guys to turn up Roky's mic which of course did no good since he wasn't singing directly into it anyway. You have no idea how much I hate to bash a Roky performance but last night was so bad that someone had to call it. I'm assuming that anyone reading this must genuinely care about wanting to see Roky doing well and getting his due, but by the same token that makes us all the people who should be calling bullshit on anyone who is exploiting him in any way. And given the revolving door of bands over the past few years, I'd say it's about time to speak up. Call out Charlie Sexton, have him put together a band worthy of Roky's abilities, get Rick Rubin to produce a record and I'll bet that Roky will shine like the star that he is. If he keeps playing shows like last night's, I'm afraid that he'll eventually just return to being an under appreciated footnote in American rock and roll which seems like such a waste given how far he's come. lingeringlead replied: Wow! Thanks for speaking up. Is anybody listening? I'm under the impression Jegar and Dana are in charge. Last fall a bar owner friend of mine in Nacogdoches, TX contacted Darren Hill about booking a gig. His email went unanswered. To be honest it doesn't seem like anyone is in charge. Agree with your call for some "real" back up! Find some players with skins on the wall. It's difficult for me to grasp why musicians and producers aren't lined up at the door with projects for Roky. Funny you mention Charlie Sexton b/c last year I asked Will when the brothers might collaborate with Roky. He replied that no one asked. True Love is great but the Will Sheff/Okkervil thing never made sense to me. Rok needs muscle backing him not hipster angst! Why Rubin isn't knocking on Roky's door is a mystery to me. What happened to the Billy Gibbons rumors? I'll give Kyle Ellison some credit though. He sounded well rehearsed and had killer tone when I saw them. Responding to a previous post about Roky being off his meds (and playing gigs): andyexcuse wrote: "...I've heard that Roky is off his meds (for quite some time)..." I think we're seeing some evidence that evidence that it was too soon, and it's tragic considering how far he had come. It's a very common story with people who are living with a delusional mental illness. A correct diagnosis, the right meds and therapy can have a very positive effect over a relatively short period. Patients can become much more lucid, their caregivers and support system are working hard to help them get better, and before long it's easy to think, hey, I'm all better. Going off your meds before you really get used to such a big adjustment often results in losing everything you've gained, with the added depression and confusion thrown in after you thought you were doing fine. It seems like Roky's gone through a ton of changes in the past few years both professionally and in terms of his health, and maintaining mental stability is going to require more treatment than he's currently getting. To hear that he's acting confused and withdrawn is very scary and sad for someone who's been there. To an extent, every patient responds differently, and care needs to be tailored to the individual, but this is a very familiar pattern. Marti Stivers replied: Well written. Meds for psychotic disorders generally must be taken for a lifetime; & often have very debilitating, uncomfortable side effects, which cause the patient to attempt to function normally without them. Unfortunately for family, friends, caregivers, counselors/therapists etc, once the disorganized thinking/perceiving starts recurring, it is very, very difficult to convince the patient that he or she is having problems. Even when extremely psychotic, they believe that their thinking is just fine. A good portion of my caseload comes to me after being successfully treated for these problems so that I can assist them with stabilizing their living situations & ultimately get them back into the workforce. Because of the problem of having them continue their meds, the majority don't make it. I cannot even count the number of times I've seen former clients now living on the streets. Kevin Combs replied: Hello interested parties- The band behind Roky now consists of: Kyle Ellison - guitar Kyle Schneider - drums John Michael Dayspring - bass ------------------------------------------------------------------ Do not attend one of these performances expecting slickness. Leave your rockshow preconceptions for another time. This is Roky now, playing for you now...It is what it is, and that's what it is. Open up your mind and let everything come through. regards, kc. Brat Brains replied: I definitely would like to echo KC's sentiments about the current Roky tour. Don't go to these shows expecting a presentation similar to ANY of the recordings. It's a whole other thing, maybe Roky's not as "into it" or whatever the Post article purports. I personally believe that Malitz had an axe to grind. If Roky was so bad off he wouldn't be playing ANYTHING, shows, recordings, NADA!!! That's been well demonstrated/documented in the past. The backing trio (thanks, again, KC for the names) is WAAAAAY better than Okkervill River and, indeed, Roky seems energized by their performance if not a little hesitant to go balls to the wall AWESOME as he might with the Explosives or that ACL super group. In DC I watched intently as a 63 year old Roky Erickson ROCKED-THE-HELL-OUT, at one point closely resembling the youth from the grainy videos we've all seen dozens of times of the Elevators playing poolside. A couple other points: "Goodbye Sweet Dreams", by no means, "stood out" at the Black Cat show. Sorry, but the arrangement we all know and love from the recent album is not easily replicable by a shit-kickin rock trio. The songs that did stand out were typically those with the most repetitive lyrics. Roky seemed to have trouble remembering the words to the songs. Get the dude a lyrics sheet for christ sake! Younger people read lyrics on stage! It's not "uncool" for a musician of his age to have a little help like that. So yeah, to hell w/ that Post article. Go see Roky, he's great. It's worth a $25 ticket just to see him alive and doing something other than watching cartoons. My only critiques are: put the "simpler" worded songs closer to the beginning of the set to start the evening off with a bang and get the man some damned cue cards, people! It ain't rocket science. Here's a link to download the FLAC file of Roky Erickson at the Black Cat in Washington DC. Read more at www.texaspsychedelicrock.com

 

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