Random 'You're Gonna Miss Me' Is A Harrowing Documentary About Mental Illness And Abus (13 items)

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  (#1) It Shows How Quickly Substance Use Can Spiral And Trigger Mental Breaks

  Throughout You're Gonna Miss Me, Erickson's described as a person who's on a permanent, winding high. He comes off almost alien, like a creature who genuinely loves everyone and doesn't need substances to be far out. 

  Unfortunately, according to 13th Floor Elevators drummer John Walton, substances were a continuous and permanent fixture in Erickson's life. "Roky's second acid trip hurt him," said Walton, noting the two of them had been given too high of doses. During this bad trip, Walton fell off his drum kit stool and decided to stop taking LSD; Erickson didn't. 

  According to Erickson's brothers, his use continued to spiral. They were taking "LSD in the morning, mescaline at night," and Erickson "worshipped [it]."

  Even after Erickson was diagnosed with schizophrenia, he continued his use. In fact, he did everything in his power to stay high and started using other substances, like heroin. 
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  (#2) Erickson's First Wife Almost Lost Her Life Because Of Erickson's Habits

  You're Gonna Miss Me is filled with chilling stories about substance abuse and mental health, but one of the most upsetting moments in the documentary occurs when Erickson's ex-wife, Dana Gaines, delves into how Erickson's addiction nearly cost Gaines her life. One night, he gave Gaines $13 and instructed her to purchase smack. She was against the idea, but a groupie and fellow user brought her to a dealer. 

  The dealer laughed when Gaines said she only had $13. Instead of throwing her out, the dealer locked her in the house and injected her with the substance against her will. She explained the horrifying experience, saying:

  I start up real fast and then all of a sudden I'm telling this man standing in front of me, 'I love you so much. I love you so much.' And I just start throwing up and I'm crying and I'm scared. I heard one of them say to the other one, 'She's OD'd' and I remember both of these men on either side of me, for hours, walking me in circles for hours and hours.

  Once she came to, the dealer sent her off with a needle and a bundle of smack for Erickson.
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  (#12) Everyone Wants Something From Erickson

  Everyone who meets up with Erickson wants something from him. No one's malicious, and they don't want Erickson to do anything untoward - they just want him to play the songs he made popular in the '60s and '70s. Whenever someone brings music up to Erickson, he either completely shuts down or awkwardly changes the subject. 

  Footage from his final show in 1987 shows Erickson checking out onstage, and it's clear he'd rather be anywhere else but there. In the film, Gibby Haynes from the Butthole Surfers says Erickson abruptly canceled his final show, and that whoever brought him said they were going out to get candy.

  When they arrived at the venue, someone hung a guitar on Erickson and pushed him onstage. While being interviewed by the filmmakers about why he quit performing, Erickson explains, “I just didn’t want to do it anymore, you know?” 
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  (#6) The Film Features Bizarre Home Movies Made By His Mother And Brothers

  The documentary is interspersed with strange 8mm footage filmed in the late '50s and early '60s by Erickson's mother. In one of the home movies, his mother presents herself as a queen. As she ascends the throne, a haunting, operatic track warbles in the background. Erickson's mother then crowns him the "King of the Beasts." It's jarring and feels almost Lynchian in its surrealism. 

  Later, a second 8mm film plays featuring Evelyn Erickson performing yoga in a bright purple spandex outfit. It's never clear why this was being filmed or who was filming it, which makes the whole thing that much more unsettling. 
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  (#9) Erickson Acts Childlike Throughout The Film

  Even though his songs are full of tricky plays on words and genuine pathos, Erickson's always been considered a bit removed from reality. That's not to say there was something wrong with him in the 1960s and '70s, but as his mental health deteriorated, he became increasingly guileless. 

  When the documentary begins, Erickson swings back and forth between fits of childlike wonder and complete despondency. He reads junk mail from Publishers Clearing House like it's a real offer for millions of dollars, and he's sincerely excited over a Mr. Potato Head doll. It is incredibly difficult to watch a person who singlehandedly sparked a counterculture genre of music exist in such a diminished mental state.
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  (#13) While The Doc Is Harrowing, Roky Has Been Getting Better

  When the film ends, Erickson's living in Pittsburgh with his brother and regularly going to therapy. After years of zero medical assistance, he finally gets the help he needs and takes medication. By the time the credits roll, however, he's not fully recovered and he's still using his "electronic friends" to overpower the voices in his head. 

  Since the release of You're Gonna Miss Me, Erickson's been playing and releasing music. In 2008, he was well enough to tour with the Black Angels. He released the album True Love Cast Out All Evil with Okkervil River in 2010, and the 13th Floor Elevators reunited to close out the Levitation Festival in Austin in 2015. 

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