Daniel Johnston at Mercy Lounge

Most people with crippling mental disorders don't get out much. We like to think this is for their own protection. We tell ourselves that keeping these people closed off from the outside world, under the care of trained professionals is for their own good. We believe that were they left to their own devices, free to wander among the rest of society, it would only do them harm. Were they to go without the supervision of mentally stable college-educated individuals they would somehow hurt themselves. All of that may, in fact, be true (and it may, in fact, not), but who are we kidding? We keep these people out of the general populous because they don't fit in. They make us uncomfortable. They disrupt the status quo. They have the potential to challenge our fragile concepts of normalcy and threaten to disrupt our daily routines. At least, that's what we're afraid of. We're afraid of what we might see if we get too close to them, or they to us.

Yet, we are fascinated by what they are capable of. Beethoven was bipolar. Syd Barrett was schizophrenic. Van Gogh was schizophrenic and bipolar. Bono thinks he's the new Jesus, and Chris Martin thinks he's the new Bono. Hell, Dan Rather hosted the CBS Evening News for 24 years!

A third of the time we just like watching the unstable behaving in an unnatural representation of their natural environment, like animals at the zoo. This is why people obsess over those who are generally just ordinary and talentless like Britney Spears or Sting. Another third of the time they're serial killers, but the other third of the time we are astounded by those who have a unique ability to create art that is more pure and real than anything the rest of us are capable of. These are the people who, like Van Gogh, are the most tortured by the things in their own mind. This is the case with Daniel Johnston.

For those of you unfamiliar, Johnston suffers from manic depression, more commonly known (outside of the Jimi Hendrix catalog) as bipolar disorder. While they are separate mental disorders, recent studies have shown there to be links between schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Daniel Johnston is a tortured individual. His music (and artwork) clearly come from a place deeper and darker than any of us could ever hope to reach within ourselves. It is unfiltered and real, straight from his heart to your ears (and eyes). It's not always easy to listen to, and not just because of the incredibly poor quality of many of Johnston's recordings, but because he writes from a place that most of us keep locked away. Johnston's darkest secrets and deepest loves are his source material. That's not to say that Daniel's songs are all dark and disturbing. Often the case is quite to the contrary. It's just that part of his genius comes from the fact that he is not afraid to write (or draw or paint) about what scares him.



As a performer Johnston is more engaging than you'd expect. With his two liter of Mountain Dew sitting next to him on a music stand, Johnston first took the stage by himself. Alone, Johnston's stage presence was captivating and moving, even as he struggled to remember the chords to his own song. After a brief acoustic set, including a cover of the Beatles' "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" (introduced by Johnston as "a John Lennon song"), and a brief accompaniment by a second guitarist, whom Johnston referred to as his friend from college, he announced that he was taking a short break.

Less than 15 minutes later, he returned, this time backed by openers, Hymns. Hymns, who on their own felt more like an enjoyable but unnecessary bridge between Supergrass and the Thrills, now proved to be an excellent supporting group, especially during "I Saw Her Standing There," Johnston's second Beatles cover of the evening. Other highlights included "Rock This Town," "Walking the Cow," and "Speeding Motorcycle." This time Johnston, who pretty much stood in the same place for the entirety of the show, for lack of a better word, rocked. He rocked hard. It's important that I make it abundantly clear that Daniel Johnston litterally just stood there through out his performance, and yet he was somehow electrifying. I honestly can't explain it any better than that. For the better part of 30 minutes, Daniel Johnston was punk rock. This surprisingly had nothing to do with Hymns, who as I mentioned before, were a fantastic backing band. This was 1oo% Daniel Johnston.

As Johnston left the stage after his previously announced encore a guy next to me began singing Johnston's "Devil Town" at the top of his lungs. In no time the entire audience, including myself, had joined in. Johnston never returned to the stage, but it didn't matter. The message was clear. Everyone in that audience loved Daniel Johnston, in much the same way that Daniel Johnston loves the Beatles. More over, there was an energy that lingered and refused to die. Johnston's hold on the audience would not let go easily.

With that I went home, my status quo having been thoroughly disrupted.

GayBomb

Two nights ago I discovered my new favorite hole in the wall. Villager you have now been replaced by Betty's. It's less than 2 miles from my house, tucked away around the corner from Charlotte Pike, full of unusually interesting characters, they make a decent burger, and they have $1.50 PBRs. Basically I'm in love, but that's not what I wanted to talk about. However instead of talking, I thought I'd show you a video of what I saw on my first trip to Betty's. Lady's and gentlemen I give you GayBomb.



Call it what you will, you cannot deny this guy is doing something totally original. Honestly it was really hard to stay for the whole thing (as he definitely did this for a good 20 minutes), but it was also hard not to be astounded by what he was doing. The concept is simple enough. If you can record music to magnetic tape, and you can record information to magnetic strips on pieces of paper, ergo you must then be able to record music to those same magnetic strips. Now, granted I'm using the term "music" quite loosely when referring to GayBomb's performance, but my point is this guy is definitely on to something. Regardless, GayBomb was easily the most refreshing thing I've seen in a Nashville bar in a long time. I really wish I had more commentary than that, but I honestly still can't completely wrap my brain around it all. That's probably a good sign.

I'm Not Dead

I just took a month off. In that time I saw the Sword and Torche at the Exit/In, drove to Cincinnati to see Mates of State at the Southgate House (which is actually in Newport, Ky), bought a lot of really sweet vinyl for practically dirt, had a noise rock party at my house, and started a band. I could've posted about all of those things, but I just needed a break. Well, my unannounced hiatus is officially over and I will have a real post up tomorrow. Until then, please enjoy this.