Daniel Johnston: Dead Lovers Twisted Heart

Overview

Whether you came to Daniel Johnston via a precious dubbed cassette passed on as a young teen, or seeing Kurt Cobain consistently wear a "Hi, How Are You?" T or even by hearing Casper the Friendly Ghost on the Kids soundtrack, he is a much loved figure in an increasingly bigger but once off-kilter circle. The subject of the excellent documentary The Devil and Daniel Johnston (SEE IT!), he is a prolific creator of idiosyncratic tunes and images who have a kind of must-I-use-this-word outsider vision that is part and parcel with his well documented trials with mental illness, often referred to as "cosmic mishaps."

While his songs are covered by similarly loved bands such as Yo La Tengo, The Pastels and Mary Lou Lord (all three have covered Speeding Motorcycle, a slow pop classic), and bigger fish such as Tom Waits, it's Johnston's art that is becoming more and more sought after. His work is comprised mostly from illustration of characters of his own making, rooted in a comic book language spoken also by Gary Panter. Both his musical and visual outpourings combined make for the kind of experience that best befits Johnston's process, so it's a rare treat that he will perform at the opening of his upcoming show Dead Lovers Twisted Heart in Sydney.

In a kind of Johnston-styled superhero one-two punch, the iconic music journalist and musician Everett True will support. It's as if Monster Children buried a time capsule dream in 1990 and only just now have decided it was time to dig that sucker up. I, for one, am grateful.