Roky Erickson and the Aliens

Rocky Erickson is a former singer of The 13th Floor Elevators, a guitarist and poet. In 1968, due to inappropriate behavior during a speech, he was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and was sent to a psychiatric hospital in Houston, where he received electroconvulsive therapy. In 1969, accused of possession of marijuana, Erickson wanted to go to a psychiatric hospital, and not to wind up a prison term. Erickson pleaded not guilty due to insanity, charges related to marijuana were dropped, and he was placed in the Rusk Psychiatric Hospital, where he was again shocked. While in the hospital, Erickson wrote innumerable poems and songs, and when he left, in 1975, he was determined to embark on a solo career. His first single, entitled "Starry Eyes" b / w "Two Headed Dog" was recorded with a band called Bleib Alien and was released in 1975. In 1977, Rocky released two singles: one on Rhino records, “Bermuda” / “The Interpreter”; and one on France’s Sponge, “Mine Mine Mind”, “I Have Always Been Here Before” and “Click Your Fingers Applauding the Play”. The lyrical content was focused more on secret topics, alluding to demonology and cosmology, having a lot of intimacy with horror films. The group was then renamed Roky Erickson and Aliens. The period between 1977 and 1980 was spent working with Stu Cook (bassist for Creedence Clearwater Revival), who produced Rocky's album. Erickson recorded 15 new songs with Stu Cook. These songs were released in two “overlapping” records: “I Think of Demons” (CBS UK, 1980) and “The Evil One” (415 Records, 1981). Cook played bass on two tracks: "Sputnik" and "Bloody Hammer". Here both records are combined into one album in a slippery manner so that there are no repeating tracks. The album is wonderful, both in concept and in execution. Embodying the goal of psychedelic music - to expand consciousness through music rather than drugs, the album is a full-fledged experience of creating a world crowded with demons, goblins, bats, vampires, etc., captured not on a movie, but on a sound film, the effects received not while watching a midnight horror movie, and while listening to music.