Somehow, we've suddenly arrived at the mid-way point of 2019 and it's time - once again - to have a little peruse at the best records that have been released this year and burrowed their way into my shell-likes, refusing to depart and staking their claim to be top dog and the El Supremo come December. There's been some absolute crackers so far and listening to them all has been a joy. It does have to be said however, that even though personal No Static At All faves like Ride, Tool, Pearl Jam and the mighty Pixies are all thrilling us with new albums later this year, if any of them topple my current Number One I'll be very surprised indeed....
Here's the current runners and riders then. In reverse order, natch...
10: STEPHEN MALKMUS: 'GROOVE DENIED'
9: FOALS: 'EVERYTHING NOT SAVED WILL BE LOST PART 1'
8: WEYES BLOOD: 'TITANIC RISING'
7: SHARON VAN ETTEN: 'REMIND ME TOMORROW'
6: SUN KIL MOON: 'I ALSO WANT TO DIE IN NEW ORLEANS'
5: SWERVEDRIVER: 'FUTURE RUINS'
4: JENNY LEWIS: 'ON THE LINE'
3: THE NATIONAL: 'I AM EASY TO FIND'
2: STRAND OF OAKS: 'ERASERLAND'
1: WH LUNG: 'INCIDENTAL MUSIC'
OBITUARIES Roky Erickson 1947 - 2019 Mac 'Dr. John' Rebennack 1941 - 2019
Another sad brace of losses within the rock and roll universe this month as psych-rock pioneer and acid-fried boogie mainstay Roky Erickson passed from this realm to the next where he will no doubt hook up with one of New Orlean's favourite sons and progenitor of the loose-limbed and fluidly funky gumbo of Louisiana boogie-woogie - the one and only Dr. John. Both of these highly revered gents were masters of their particular craft and, although both suffered intense ups and downs throughout their respective careers, they ended up more successful than perhaps they'd ever been and subsequently will be remembered for many years to come.
Roky - originally Roger - Erickson was born in Dallas and, after a reasonably stable childhood, he first veered off into the outskirts of 'normal' society by dropping out of high school in 1965 months before graduation after refusing to cut his hair. Stick it to the man, my son! Almost immediately he formed the nascent 13th Floor Elevators and he and the band were soon on their way - like many other like-minded heads - to San Francisco where they were immediately embraced whole-heartedly into the burgeoning Haight-Ashbury psychedelic scene. The band's first album - the still searing 'Psychedelic Sounds Of The 13th Floor Elevators' - followed soon after and garnered a minor hit single in You're Gonna Miss Me. The album was a startling meld of raucous garage rock, trippy psych and free-wheeling country rock that hit a nerve throughout the local scene and it's follow-up opus - the more expansive and brain-rattling 'Easter Everywhere' - continued the trend, in particular it's signature tune Slip Inside This House. The band were all set to break through into the mainstream when tragedy struck. Like most late 60's rock bands, Erickson and company were healthy purveyors of any drug they could get their hands on and Erickson in particular was full-on, as they say. Sadly, his copious intake caused him untold problems and he was eventually sent to a psychiatric hospital where he was forced to undergo electroconvulsive therapy. This led to further problems, including multiple stints in prison for drug offences. It is obvious now that he was suffering from mental illness, but 50 years ago these kinds of ailments were not spoken of and usually blamed on erratic behaviour and drug use. After his early 70's incarcerations, Erickson muddled through life trying to keep on top of his psychological issues but steering clear of music in a way that reminded one of his British counterpart, Pink Floyd's tragic genius Syd Barrett. Eventually though, after years of treatment and family help, Erickson returned to the fray in the late 90's and over the next 20 years built up a solid career of touring and the odd recorded work, joining forces with the likes of Billy Gibbons, Henry Rollins, Mogwai and Okkervil River along the way. His early songs have also been covered by many - the most famous being Primal Scream's gorgeous re-working of Slip Inside This House on their seminal 1991 'Screamadelica' album. It's unlikely that back in 1968, when he was first institutionalized, Erickson would have forseen such a life and career but his legacy will live on. His songwriting skills were sublime - just check out that first album for proof - and his guitar work was extraordinary. He was a true maverick of outsider rock and roll and, for my money, he thoroughly deserves a seat at the top table of psych-rock heavyweights. Rock on, Roky.
New Orleans native Dr. John - or Malcolm John Rebennack Jr to his mum - grew up in an extraordinarily musical neighbourhood, with most of his immediate family playing instruments of one kind or another and singing in minstrel bands and jazz groups. Hooking up, at age 13, with Louisiana legend Proffesor Longhair and gravitating toward the guitar, Rebennack soon found himself jostling for space and recognition amongst the heavily populated session musician scene of New Orleans. Gaining regular work from the mid-50's onwards, he played on sessions by jazz and blues legends such as James Booker, Earl King and Frankie Ford before injuring his finger in a gunfight that pushed him toward the piano, from where he tried to maintain his early momentum. However, the lure of the dark side was always there, and after a few run-ins with the local police, he found himself in prison on drugs charges. He was released a couple of years later and ended the 60's back as a session musician for the likes of Sonny And Cher and Frank Zappa. His lightbulb moment came in 1968 when he decided to blend his early New Orleans experiences of the underground voodoo scene with a forward-thinking psychedelic strain of Louisiana funk that was a world away from traditional jazz tropes. Adopting the 'Dr. John' persona and bedecking himself in traditional costumes and feathered headdresses, as well as all manner of voodoo jewellery and amulets, he strode forward with his new project and hit the ground running.
The image was striking, the music that followed suit even more so. His debut album - the utterly bonkers 'Gris-Gris' - was a heady gumbo of funk, blues, jazz, psych-rock and hip-shaking jugband grooves that struck a chord almost immediately. With his wails, chants and hollers rolling around the tunes in a way that transported the listener right into the heaving nucleus of a dark, dingy and downright dangerous New Orleans speakeasy, Dr. John had birthed something wholly original and startlingly fresh onto the world. The next few years of his musical journey saw him touring extensively, winning Grammies by the bucketload, working with the likes of Eric Clapton and Mick Jagger, and releasing more fantastic albums like 'Babylon', 'In The Right Place' and 'The Sun, Moon And Herbs'. By this time, he was pretty much rock and roll royalty and by the end of the 70's he had settled into a familiar groove of album/tour/album/tour. There were decent records throughout this period, but there was also a lot of filler that no amount of special guests could make more interesting. He was also deep in thrall to heroin for most of this time, a habit he finally broke in 1989. By the late 90's though, he started to branch out a little further and, no doubt intrigued by the amount of interest his early work was receiving from younger bands and artists who were breaking through at the time, he found himself working with the likes of Spiritualized, The Roots and Pharrell Williams, as well as performing at Glastonbury. in 2004 he was, understandably, hugely affected by the devastation New Orleans suffered at the hands of Hurricane Katrina and he threw himself into a series of charity events and fundraising concerts to help out his home city. His last major release, bar a Louis Armstrong tribute album a few years ago, was 2012's utterly magnificent 'Locked Down' - a collaboration with Dan Auerbach from The Black Keys, that was as good as anything either artist has ever recorded. A tremendously exciting collection of groovesome jams and four on the floor rug-cutters, it won Dr. John his 6th Grammy Award and introduced him, once again, to a whole host of new fans. All this, and I haven't even mentioned the fact that Dr. John was the inspiration for The Muppet Show's house band, Dr. Teeth & The Electric Mayhem! Just like Roky Erickson, Dr. John was a complete one-off and a real pioneer in his field. He stood out from the crowd, not just because of his utterly unique style and dress sense, but for his effortlessly cool demeanour, his incredible piano playing, his stellar songwriting chops, and that wonderfully gravel-infused voice, holding it all together and taking you on a trip to the funkiest, grooviest corners of New Orleans. The Night Tripper has now left the French Quarter.
