There was a time when I thought that visiting "the South" could be lethal. The reason for this was the movie "Deliverance" in which an unnamed mountain man without any hesitation states “This river don't go to Aintry. You done taken a wrong turn. See uh, this here river don't go nowhere near Aintry”. It clearly defined the meaning of not having control over the situation. Movies can thus be a strong influence, but I like to believe that I have developed a less prejudiced view over time. However, you have to tread lightly when approaching the subject "the South" since it's overwhelmed by myths, history and interpretation. Not only what is interpreted, but also who is the interpreter (southener or non-southener) are important. In fact, I have come across an academic thesis with the formal title "Capturing Southern Identities: Auto-Ethnographic Documentaries of the Southern United States" which among other issues dissects the movie "Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus", pp 40-49, which you can find here. There's a putrid odor of "authenticity fetishism" in the text that can not be attributed to purpose, scope or problem statement. Jim White (an ”imitation Southener”) challenged strong conventions when he went looking for the “gold tooth in God’s crooked smile” in "Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus", a BBC award-winning road-movie by director Andrew Douglas exploring Southern culture through its music and stories. Jim White's role was as a narrator and guide. In the movie he drove around in a 1970 Chevrolet Impala with a sculpture of Jesus sticking out of the trunk. In the movie he passes juke joints, junkyards, mysticism, Christianity, trailer parks and prisons. Of course, the film really pissed off some purists. In an interview for Paste Magazine in 2008 Jim White calmly said: “My role in the movie has certainly provoked some interesting responses among Southophiles,” White says. “I cherish my role as lightning rod! Hopefully I'll get assassinated and my album sales will skyrocket into the tens of thousands and my family will finally be able to afford soap and toothpaste.” You can watch the trailer for the movie here.

One who got at least a little pissed off was Colonel JD Wilkes (frontman of Th' Legendary Shack Shakers). In an interview for Staythirstymedia in 2006 he said: ”I'd seen the movie Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus, and felt that it kind of left me a little wanting and I thought it was kind of half the story, or half the picture and the other half was somewhat damaging to people's concept of the South. So I thought I would do a little damage control and make my own movie, even if it meant I would do it black and white with a shaky camcorder, I was just gonna try to set the record straight. To explain the South, to the BBC - what (Jesus) was. In LA, New York, and Chicago singer-songwriters were trying to explain the South to the BBC, rather than southerners explaining the South to the world. I thought that the important thing to clarify was that it's not this ignorant cesspool of filth and it's actually a haven for art and creativity and there's actually a lot of intelligence there. The South does not corner the market on ignorance. And as our scientologist friends on the West Coast prove, it's kind of one of those things that needed to be said and needed to be said by a southerner.” In the movie Wilkes nails up seven signs, each of them representing an apocalyptic theme (plague, famine, earthquake, the sky will turn dark and oceans will turn to blood. Antichrist will emerge followed by final battle between good and evil). A (deliberately?) misspelled church sign “There's no LIE in what we BELEIVE” becomes a recurring theme throughout the movie (and on the movie poster, see right). By its very nature, "Seven Signs" received none of the criticism that hit "Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus". Instead the movie was described as "profund, emphatetic statement", "an admirable work of portraiture, capturing the humanity, complexity and wisdom of figures who land along a continuum of piety, mysticism and iconoclasm" and "dignified and disarming" among other poetic adjectives.

I don't understand the indignation and the "country beef" counterpart. "Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus" and "Seven Signs" premiered in 2005 and 2008 respectively. Both movies deal with "old weird America", but approach the subject in slightly different ways. Despite the controversies around "Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus" (which is by no means a freak show) there's more that unites the two movies than divides them. For instance, the format and narrative techniques are similar. There are colorful people and great dark country music in both movies. However, in "Seven Signs" there's a stronger focus on stories told by the people that are interviewed. On the other hand, the music in "Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus" is far better. "Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus" is 82 minutes long and reaches 7,7 points in the IMDB-rating, while "Seven Signs" is only 53 minutes long and reaches 7,9 points in the IMDB-rating. In my opinion, there's plenty of room of different interpretations of "the South". There is no such thing as "one and once and for all pure and true interpretation". It's more complicated and that's also what makes "the South" so intriguing.

What can we expect from 2015? In my opinion, there's very interesting albums coming up. Sons of Perdition and Jaran Hereid from Yuma Sun will be releasing an EP with the title "Fossils". You won't be disappointed if you like Sons of Perditions epic sound. Slackeye Slim has finished his mixing and will be - if everything goes according to plan - releasing his third full-length album with the tentative title "Giving My Bones to the Western Lands". I've spent a lot of time lately listening to his new songs on Soundcloud (seek after the name Joe Franklandstein). It sounds very promising! Uncle Sinner will be releasing his long-awaited second album "Let the Devil In" (not counting the album "A Pocketful of Glass Eyes" which was released as a fundraiser in 2014 with outtakes and rarities). If think we can expect a both raw and well-produced album. Moreover Palodine has announced the release of their fourth album in 2015. Furthermore, I don't know if it's going to happen, but I hope The Victor Mourning will release a second full-length album this year. The put out an EP "Kill a Spider/The Ballad of Frankie Silver" over a year ago, which you can listen to and buy here. What more can you expect from the new year? It would be nice if some of my personal wishes came true in 2015. For instance, that I could lay my hands on at least one of the hard-to-find four missing albums, read more here. Unfortunately, things haven't going my way lately and soon I will be forced to update the blog entry to "The eight missing albums" or something like that. I also wish that my website will continue to grow organically. In late November 2014 the visitor counter on the site passed 10000 (far more and a lot sooner than I could ever hope for). I'm obviously not the only one obsessed with this kind of music. Furthermore, I wish that more people would recognize and appreciate the artists and bands in the "gothic country" genre. High obscurity level can't be exchanged for food, read more here. I also hope to see some of the artists and bands in my hometown Stockholm, Sweden. It's remotely located (58º 35′ N 16º 11′ E), but it happens now and then. For instance, when Jayke Orvis & the Broken Band played one of their last gigs, read more here. Finally, I speculated about a supergroup in the gothic country genre recently, read more here. None of the involved musicians have unambiguously ruled out the idea in theory, however unlikely it may seem in practice. But, who knows what will happen tomorrow?      

On July 31 2007 Antic Clay released his first and only album (a double album!) “Hilarious Death Blues” (HDB), which was hailed as a masterpiece by no less than a medium-sized army of music critics but nevertheless was no commercial success. Antic Clay went on an indefinite hiatus in early 2009 and faded into obscurity. All that remains is the hard-to-find double album. No more, no less. At least I thought so, until Michael Bradley (Antic Clay) recently put out an unreleased outtake from the album on Youtube called “Mechanically Separated Blues”, which you can listen to here. Not counting the album title, there are four songs with "blues" in the song title on HDB. In an interview for the readable website Swamplandzine (whose motto is "A creative sanctuary for those who refuse to give in to the devils of convention") Antic Clay explained: "I like to add blues to song titles as a non-sequitur.” The song “Mechanically Separated Blues” is a strong reminder of what great songwriter Michael Bradley (Antic Clay) is. It's "dark americana" of the most exclusive brand. “Hilarious Death Blues” was recorded in a friend's studio in the mountains near Asheville, North Carolina. Antic Clay wrote and played almost everything on the album. The HDB album contains 21 songs and it's feels strange when you realize there's also a 22th song. It definitely says something about the quality of the album if you can afford not to include a song like “Mechanically Separated Blues”. Maybe there are more songs that were destined for the album, but for some reason never were included. And then, maybe overoptimistic people like myself can hope for an second release "The Alternative Hilarious Death Blues - outtakes and rarities". A more far-fetched speculation is that Michael Bradley (Antic Clay) would return to the mountains near Asheville, North Carolina and start recording a new album. But, a hiatus almost never turns into activity again, especially not after five years of intermission. But stranger things have happened. Until it happens, we will have to seek solace in the existing songs of Antic Clay. 

Here are the lyrics of “Mechanically Separated Blues” in its entirety: "Lord, send me a message in a bottle! Lord, send me amber waves of grain! Send me proof she didn't send me down the river! Send her back, or send me his name! / My corpse is in the kitchen, sipping Beam Black bourbon. And listening to the slow hum of the clock. My soporific mission: Arrive at some decision, and evince the truth within our little talk. / There's an old cross on the wall and a creaking in the hall! A pistol in the closet and there's nothing good at all! / Lord, send me a message in a bottle! Lord, send me amber waves of grain! Send me proof she didn't send me down the river! Send her back, or send me his name! / Artifacts and remnants, ruins and remains, strewn across the locus of our stage! Like bones of lesser tenants torn apart in penance! Mechanically separated and tossed away! / That uncompleted overpass over highway 95, if a body were to take it, it'd be like driving to the sky! / Lord, send me a message in a bottle! Lord, send me amber waves of grain! Send me proof she didn't send me down the river! Send her back, or send me his name! / Divorce is an admission of the essential flaws within us. And everything I dread is coming true. You can't force a change or alter that fissure in your nature, when what is wrong is wrong all the way through. / My rusted Olds is in the drive, I grab the bottle and I hop in, the brakes are all but gone man, but I don't plan on stopping! / Send me his name. / Haha, who? Everything I dread is coming true. (etc.)"

The term "supergroup" has a certain committal ring to it. Usually used in the context of rock or pop music. The Highwaymen (see picture right) was a supergroup in the outlaw country subgenre between 1985-1995. Outlaw country or not, there are worse country genres and my interest lies within the broad "gothic country" genre. Is a supergroup within the "gothic country" genre inconceivable? In this blog entry I will investigate the prerequisites and the difficulties. Let's start with a definition. A supergroup usually refers to a music group whose members are already successful as solo artists or as part of other groups. The prefix "super" indicates that the members should be the cream of the genre. Supergroups are sometimes formed as a side projects and not intended to be permanent, while in other cases it will become the primary project of the members. The durability of a supergroup is rather short. I would also like to add another important aspect: if the decision to join the group is based on musical considerations or as part of a retirement plan. The term "supergroup" is widely misused and it takes very little, if nothing, for a group to be denoted "supergroup". Of course, in this blog entry I apply an orthodox interpretation of the term which means SUPERgroups like Cream, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Traveling Wilburys. So far, the closest to them in country music is the aforementioned The Highwaymen (Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson and Waylon Jennings). I must admit it's hard not to like them when they play "The Highwayman" by Jimmy Webb: "I was a highwayman, Along the coach roads I did ride, With the sword and pistol by my side, And many a young maid lost her baubles to my trade, And many a soldier shed his life blood on my blade, They fin'lly hung me in the spring of '25, But I am still alive." You almost forgive them for being backed by no less than a smaller army of talented musicians standing in the unlit background at their live gigs. So many musicians on the payroll is really an overkill. The four of them would be quite sufficient. It's in its nature that a supergroup tends to become rather pretentious and pompous. The dynamics of a supergroup follow the rules of a zero-sum game within game theory. For every winner there is a loser and for every gain there is a loss. There are seldom any synergy effects like 1+1+1+1=5. Some supergroup members capitalize on the star quality of other members, while star quality members don't get much in return. I don't think Johnny Cash primarly will be remembered for his part in The Highwaymen. Personally, I will remember him for the six American Recordings albums and the 5 cd box "Unearthed".    

Enough said, who are The Highwaymen of the "gothic country" genre? Let's ignore the obvious contradiction in terms. There's never any "super" and quite seldom a "group" in the genre. However, many are called but few are chosen. The obvious choice would be Zebulon Whatley from Sons of Perdition, Lonesome Wyatt from Those Poor Bastards (and solo in Lonesome Wyatt & the Holy Spooks), Dad Horse (from The Dad Horse Experience) and Slackeye Slim (see picture left). This four-piece constellation is not entirely unrealistic. In fact, Zebulon Whatley and Lonesome Wyatt have collaborated in the song "Blood in the Valley" from Sons of Perditions album "The Kingdom is on Fire" and in the song "Born to Preach" on Those Poor Bastards latest album "Vicious Losers". Zebulon Whatley, Lonesome Wyatt and Dad Horse have also collaborated in the song “Psalm of Nod” from Sons of Perditions album “Psalms for the Spiritually Dead”. In theory and empirically, we already have a strong foundation in this trio. I would also like to add Slackeye Slim as a fourth member to this already renowned lineup. Lonesome Wyatt did the backing vocals in the ultra-catchy song "I Wanna Be Yer Zombie!” from the album "Texas Whore Pleaser", another example of earlier collaboration. That's it, no more and no less. A "supergroup" within the "gothic country" genre is hereby assembled by yours truly. However, there are of course some minor obstacles that must be overcome like the geographical distance (Texas, Wisconsin, Bremen Germany and Colorado respectively). This should not be an insurmountable problem for a "supergroup" worthy of its name. We also need a name of the group, perhaps "Whatley, Wyatt, Ottn & Slim" or something more gothic and spectacular. A second potential obstacle would the differences in their style: doom country, apocalyptic country, keller gospel and gothic western. My assessment is that the differences could be housed within the wide border posts of a "gothic country" supergroup. It's far more that unites them than divides them. A third potential obstacle is that they at the moment are in different phases, paths and lineage. Zebulon Whatley has recently moved forward and expanded Sons of Perdition into a full band in a new and unknown direction, Lonesome Wyatt is untiringly making music with Those Poor Bastards and in his solo-project. Dad Horse is steady rooted in his Keller Gospel genre and tour relentlessly. Slackeye Slim is currently working on his third full-length album with the tentative title "Giving My Bones to the Western Lands". Very likely, Slackeye Slim is moving in a new musical direction. They may be in different phases, paths and lineage, but I like to see this as four biorhytm lines. Sooner or later the lines will coincide. Maybe not as a permanent supergroup, but at least in a one-time-only collaboration on an album or a concert. I'm pretty confident that the law of nature of supergroups will be violated since the nature of law doesn't apply within the "gothic country" genre. In old age (or at least in older age) they would tour and play songs like "The Trickster", "I Wonder", "Kingdom it will Come" and "Vengeance Gonna Be My Name" among other songs. I also like to believe that the would pay homage and play cover songs like "Wayfaring Stranger", "Ramblin' Man" and maybe even "The Highwayman".

I don't care much for non-physical formats. I want something that is tangible and lasting. Not that the cd disc will last forever (only circa 100 years), but at least it will survive me. Music formats come and they go (and in the case of vinyl they come again). When the compact disc (cd) was introduced in 1979 it wasn't the technical frontline in sound quality, but only a new standard that was agreed by Sony and Philips. The grumpiest man in rock'n roll, Neil Young, hated the format intensely from the beginning. In fact, he hated it so much that he allegedly held six of his album as "hostage" (which are often called "the missing six", read more here. Four of the albums were eventually released on cd while two of the albums are still "missing"). However, the cd format quickly became a great success but cd sales peaked already in 2000. Since 2000 there has almost been a free fall in cd sales due to illegal and legal download followed by streamed music. Neil Young wasn't amused with this development either, since the sound quality went from bad to worse. The battle of streamed music is now raging in the music industry. Neil Young, is once again going against the tide and is now releasing a new player, the Ponoplayer, a high-resolution portable digital music player with up to 192kHz/24 bit resolution via Pono Music. Audio files can be bought and loaded onto the player using the Pono Music Center desktop application or sideloaded as a USB storage device. The player will be introduced in the beginning of 2015. The Pono concept have been criticized for the horibble design (non-flat Toblerone - on the other hand it contains a top of the line D/A converter), the not so revolutionary technology (studio master to FLAC format), the limited storage (128 GB) and last but not least the high prize (the player cost $400 and the individual albums cost $15-25). However, my main objection is that "gothic country" music will hardly be sold by Pono Music. It's even hard to release an album digitally today. The Pono Music was crowdfunded through Kickstarter and the goal of $800 000 was surpassed almost eight times (!). This is without any doubt audiophile stuff. Alas, I don't think the Pono business model will be a huge succcess, since the average audiophile owns 15 albums. As I stated in a blog entry recently, the statistical correlation between interest in audio and interest in music is very low. Some say vinyl is back. In my opinion, vinyl is no longer a format in its own right. It's only a nostalgic keepsake. Some buy vinyl without owning a turntable. The last time I changed format was in 1990 when I (literally) ditched all my vinyl and went for cd. I'm not going to change format again. One important reason is that it will cost me approximately $50 000 to replace my record collection (of which many albums never will be distributed by Pono Music). Is there not any chance of a friendly coexistence of formats? No, it's not an option. I'll stick to cd no matter what happens. I will keep on buying new cds as long its possible. When that's not possible anymore I will buy used cds. And when that's not possible anymore...I will continue to live in denial.