Roky Erickson with Okkervil River: True Love Cast Out All Evil

Roky Erickson with Okkervil River: True Love Cast Out All Evil

2010

Anti Records

Format I Own it on: Vinyl

Track Listing: 1. Devotional Number One  2. Ain't Blues Too Sad  3. Goodbye Sweet Dreams  4. Be and Bring Me Home  5. Bring Back the Past  6. Please, Judge  7. John Lawman  8. True Love Cast Out All Evil  9. Forever  10. Think of As One  11. Birds'd Crash  12. God Is Everywhere


Holy shit. A new album by Roky Erickson backed by the soft rock/roots-rock/alt-country band Okkervil River that I'm somewhat familiar with. Not the first type of music that pops into my head when I think of Roky Erickson but this Will Sheff dude knocks it out of the park with the liner notes though. Sweet fuck, are they comprehensive, working as an in-depth making of the album as well as a complete history of  Roky himself. I'd say the liner notes were probably worth the cost of the album alone. It's seriously a damn book worth of info here. The concept behind the album is kinda interesting. The short version is that Will Sheff sifted through a mountain of Roky's old tapes and demos and pieced together an album that ultimately works as a diary of the man's undeniably interesting life.

As for the music on the album itself? It's not what I would have expected from Roky but it's exactly what I would expect from Roky Erickson and Okkervil River. The man definitely left his Dracula cape at home for this one. Lots of rootsy contemplation, gentle performances and ruminations on love, religion and mortality. You can totally picture old man Roky reflecting on his hazy past while looking at old sepia-toned photos of himself.

The album is mostly low-key country shuffles like "Ain't Blues Too Sad," "Be and Bring Me Home" and the title track or skeletal gospel music as characterized by "Please, Judge" and "Devotional Number On." To be honest, it kinda reminds me of those sad old man albums that Rick Rubin would make with Johnny Cash or Glenn Campbell. The difference being that those guys were basically on their deathbeds while Roky still seems a little too active and impish for such treatment. To be fair, there's a tiny bit of rocking here and there..."Bring Back the Past" is sprightly and Byrds-ish enough to qualify as "rock"  as does the noise-fest "John Lawman" but that's about it. We've come a long way from the horror-rock of his 70's work or the fevered psychedelic fantasias of the Elevators for sure. Even the light-touch Buddy Holly-ish stuff is gone replaced by a darker moodiness despite the unguarded lyrics.

 People (like me) who see the name Roky Erickson and the word "evil" on an album cover might walk a way a bit underwhelmed, but what's on here is interesting. You get to view a different side of Roky for sure. I can totally see a different audience eating this up though. Your narrative-driven NPR fans who like to unwind to some new tunes by old folks will love it. Or people who veer more towards laid-back serious music as opposed to monster-movie rock. But when I readjust my mindset before putting it on I always find myself enjoying it. It's always good to hear Roky again. He's absolutely one of the most interesting rock artists of all time and his output is relatively scant for someone whose career has spanned six decades, so it's important to treasure and appreciate what we have.  Here's hoping the old guy has another record in him...Maybe one with a bit more spring in its step though...

Here's "True Love Cast Out All Evil" by Roky Erickson...Enjoy...