Townes van Zandt said "I never envisioned a very long life for myself. I believe my life will run out before my work does. I planned it that way." He knew what he was talking about. Townes van Zandt struggled with drug addictions and alcoholism, and was given a psychiatric diagnosis of bipolar disorder. Adding to this, insulin shock therapy erased much of his long-term memory. Heartworn Highways is a documentary film by James Szalapski whose vision captured some of the founders of the Outlaw Country movement. It features performers like Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, David Allan Coe, Rodney Crowell, Gamble Rogers, Steve Young, and The Charlie Daniels Band. The film was shot in 1975 and 1976, but not released theatrically until 1981. Outlaw country has a nice ring to it, but I'm sceptic to the whole concept. Being an artist outside the Nashville hegemony of country music isn't really the same as being a lawless person or a fugitive from the law. I also find the documentary unstructured and unfocused. The only thing worth watching is Townes Van Zandt. There's a memorable scene where Townes Van Zandt plays "Waitin' Around To Die" in the presence of Kathy Tenell (his then girlfriend) and Uncle Seymour Washington, a travelling blacksmith. Uncle Seymour is immortalized as the man in the documentary with tears streaming down his face as he listens to Townes sing the song. "Waitin' Around To Die" was Townes van Zandt's first composition and has been covered by many artists, read my list of the 10 best versions here (opens in a new window). Another highlight is "Pancho and Lefty" (a bonus song on the DVD). The song tells the tale of two partners in crime – Pancho and Lefty. Pancho is a Mexican bandit boy who "wore his gun outside his pants", while Lefty is a restless young soul who left home and his adoring mother for a greener pasture. While the two began as an accomplice, the lyrics tell the story of how Lefty crossed Pancho, which led to his untimely death at the hands of the federals. He died alone in "the deserts down in Mexico" while Lefty left for Ohio with a load of cash. It’s said that the character of Lefty was based on his touring friend, Daniel Antopolsky. "Pancho and Lefty" is one of the most covered among Townes Van Zandt songs. Executive summary: Heartworn Highways wouldn't be anything without Townes van Zandt.

One of the most bizarre events in modern Swedish history is the rise and fall of the Rebel movement (Rebellrörelsen). It lasted for less than six months. The movement was led by Francisco Sarrion, a spanish stuccoer and translator, living in Sweden. He had the gift of speech. He had visited China in the mid 1960s and became inspired by the on-going cultural revolution. Back in Sweden the Rebels (also called red guards or double-maoists) tried to take over KFML (Communist League Marxists-Leninists), which they thought were "false authorities", revisionists and too soft. The Rebels were almost without exception, students, and gathered in total about 300-400 people (figures vary) primarly in the university towns Stockholm and Uppsala and to a lesser extent, Lund. The Rebels thought that the end justified the means. "A revolution is not a dinner party or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery; it cannot be so refined, so leisurely and gentle, so temperate, kind, courteous, restrained and magnanimous. A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another", wrote Mao. The occupation of the Student Union Building in Stockholm in May 1968 provided an opportunity to whip up support for the new movement. They didn't succeed. First, not many understood the incomprehensible litany. The Rebels were constantly quoting Mao whether appropriate or not; "For the present upsurge of the peasant movement [in Hunan Province] is a colossal event." Second, the majority of the students were more interested in university reforms and study conditions. When success failed, one group turned right and became just sympathizers or returned to their former political affiliations. The other group - the hardliners - turned inwards. The rebel leader, Francisco Sarrion, was a charismatic man, mastered demagogic tricks and created a sense of urgency and ecstasy. Communist cells, like monastery cells, were created to educate, train and harden themselves. Puritanism and ascetism ruled. The bourgeois soul should, figuratively and literally, be whipped out of of the body. No smoking, no alcohol and no drugs. The attitude towards sex was ambigious. A married couple who wanted to have sex needed a permission from the cell members. This was granted if the couple promised that it would be conducted in a "proletarian" way (namely, thinking of Mao under the act). In a cell in Uppsala two rebels were attracted to each other and had consensual sex. However, afterwards the woman was verbally attacked by the man. He described their temporary sexual relationship in such a way that the woman's "bourgeois consciousness" was stronger than his "proletarian consciousness". She was subjected to merciless criticism from other cell members and was expelled. The hardliners burned books, destroyed art, smashed vinyl records, kidnapped children from their parents, forced comrades to break with their parents, devoted themselves to endless criticism and self-criticism to erase every trace of their reprehensible life, made house arrests, interrogated and assaulted fellow comrades and even planned to commit murder. A stubborn comrade that would not bow down was tied to a tree in Lill-Jansskogen (a recreational area in northern Stockholm), but the potential murderers were interrupted by the police who in turn had been tipped off by a passing orienteer. Allegedly, they all went home and drank tea instead. To harden themselves the hardliners slept on floors, arranged swims and gymnastics like quorum, with a red banner including opening and closing reading of Mao's Little Red Book. The paranoia grew and the overstepping escalated. Anyone could become a victim. The Rebel movement could never develop into a terror organization, like Baader-Meinhof. They were too busy terrorizing each other. The inevitable end came in late July 1968 after a "People's Court" trial in a student assembly hall in Uppsala (the assembly hall actually belonged to the arch enemy, the socialdemocrats student club Laboremus). All rebels had been invited, not only the hardliners. The accused were denounced as "left adventurists" by Francisco Sarrion. They were mocked at and spat on. Four members were forced to sit on the floor with their hands over the heads. No eye contact with them were allowed to avoid to evoke feelings of pity or sympathy. The accused were convicted and incarcerated. Many non-cell rebels were shocked and appalled of what the movement had become and a few of them spoke up. The opposition urged the cell rebels to come to their senses and to overthrow Francisco Sarrion. There was a clear majority for a dissolution of the movement. All rebels, except five of the most devoted, zealous and militant Sarrion followers, left the assembly hall. The Rebel movement died there and then. However, the movement still held many ex-rebels in a firm grip. Some thought that they would be persecuted, caught up and even killed. Many rebels were in bad shape and deeply traumatized. They had worn themselves out. Some needed psychiatric help, others went abroad or hided at an unknown location before they dared to return. The despised and mocked family institution became a place for resting and healing. Slowly, but surely things got back to normal. And what about "the infallible" sect leader Francisco Sarrion? He moved back to Spain, lived the last years of his life in the Canary Islands, working in the tourist industry until his death in 1996. 

I have spent many hours of exploration in uncharted waters in search of new bands and artists that I may have overlooked or missed. It's both easy and difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff. It's easy because most of the bands and artists are completely hideous; copiers, fakers, imitators, impersonaters and imposters. It's difficult because it's hard to draw the line. And a line has to be drawn. There are many different branches and twigs in the gothic country genre. If you're too emotionally invested in the issue, your judgment may be clouded. You want to find new music so badly, that there's an imminent risk that it will numb your senses. I have to lash myself to the mast so that I will not succumb to the lure of the Sirens. I have committed myself "to explore and promote gothic country, southern gothic, gothic americana, american gothic and dark americana and ...whatever". There are some nuggets, but there's many considerations. For example, should I go further into dark cabaret and buy albums with Thee Hobo Gobbelins? Why not, I already got Reverend Glasseye. And, why not go further into trashgrass and buy albums with Gallows Bound? Why not, I already got .357 String Band, Highlonesome and Filthy Still. And, why not go further into folk punk and buy albums with Dandelion Junk Queens? Why not, I already got Blackbird Raum. These questions can be extended to other branches and twigs like psychobilly, neofolk and steampunk etcetera. Should I go a step further? This could be a catalyst on a new path. I know what is going to happen. I will try to corner the market. I'm on the slippery slope.

Are you, by any chance, a bone collector? Then you know that bones needs to be stored. A charnel house is a vault or building where human skeletal remains are stored. They are often built near churches for depositing bones that are unearthed while digging graves. The term can also be used more generally as a description of a place filled with death and destruction. Ossuaries are chambers for storing human bones and commonly described as places founded to house skeletal remains when cemeteries were overcrowded and burial space was scarce. There is a slight difference between them. Charnel refers to a place where human remains are stored or buried, while an ossuary is a container or room specifically designed for the storage of bones. In charnel houses, bones are not just stacked upon each other. They are often arranged and/or decorated in an artistic way and have a deeper symbolic meaning. Most people think that presenting bones in this way is macabre. Charnel houses exists in many countries: Austria, Cambodia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Peru, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, and elsewhere. Death is omnipresent, no matter the people, eras, societies or cultures. How death is conceived is, on the other hand, different. Art has played an important role in portraying and interpreting death. Through art, people have manifested their beliefs and attitudes towards death. The concept of death in art has a deeper and symbolic meaning than death in ordinary life. If you like to study charnel houses then dead Dr. Paul Koudounaris book "The Empire of Death", which includes detailed photos and text about the remarkable memorials within the cultures that created them, as well as the mythology and folklore that developed around them. Macabre or not. What's not to like?

The Handsome Family have been around since Moses wore short pants. In fact, this year they celebrate 30 years as a band. 30 is an almost unimaginable figure in the genre, where the burn time of bands are low. Against this background, it's not strange that their production rate is slowing down. It's been seven years since their latest album, "Unseen" was released. And before that, it took four years to complete their ninth album, "Wilderness". May it be by serendipity or by coincidence, but they will release their eleventh studio album, "Hollow" later this year on classic black vinyl LP, CD, digitally and on cassette tape. It will be released on 9 September 2023. I have preordered a cd copy. Two singles from the forthcoming album have been released, "Joseph" and "Skunks". The former song has foreboding lyrics. "Smash the windows, lock the doors. Cover the mirrors. Call the dogs. Pull up the floorboards. Tap on the walls. Look into the eyes of that old porcelain doll, Come into the circle, Joseph. There’s no moon tonight…". The latter song is a jingle for an imaginary pest control service. In dusty home movies, Brett crawls in and out of nooks and crevices, inspecting the apparatus and searching for varmints. "Squirrels in the basement / Raccoons in the walls / Centipedes with stingers / Do not feed to dogs". The Handsome Family have managed to produce high quality albums throughout their career. Hopefully, the new album will be worth waiting for. Maybe, it will even stand out. Obviously, it could happen.