Review Summary: Even when the jokes are bad, think of all the fun we had
By now, Daniel Johnston is considered by many as one of the most influential underground pop artists from the last 30 years, and most of this praise seems to stem from some of his earlier recordings. This makes sense, seeing how his older material contains this unique charm that’s almost impossible to find in literally any other piece of music. Take his sophomore record
Don’t Be Scared for example: It’s an album that’s simplistic musically, but overwhelming effective performance-wise.
The production quality is abysmal, to say the least. It literally sounds as if the entire thing was recorded with a toy tape recorder, but the lo-fi hissing ends up contributing to the album’s carefree personality. It works hand-in-hand with the innocent, yet upsetting tone of Johnston’s performance. To put it short, the album’s overall tone is just as bleak and lonely as it is optimistic and cheerful. “The Sun Shines Down On Me” is a short piano tune that deals with maturity. The lines
”When the sun shines down on me/I feel like I have to earn it” really left an impression on me the first time I heard them, even though, in hindsight, they really shouldn’t. This, along with many other memorable moments from the record, is caused by one thing: Daniel Johnston’s performance.
Seeing how he grew up as a lonely outsider due to his schizophrenia and bipolar disorders, it’s a little easy to see exactly why he sounds genuinely upset in many of these tracks. However, small and, sometimes, large glimmers of playfulness and optimism are very much present throughout the entire thing, giving the album an overall hopeful tone to it. “The Story Of An Artist” is a beautiful track that starts out somewhat harsh. It starts out telling the story of a man who likes to stay outside and appreciate the real world for what it is, only to be made fun of and excluded from other people, who like to stay inside and watch television and such. While the actual concept itself is, admittedly, cheesy, it’s performance is nothing short of inspiring. The subtle piano “twinkles” is simply breath taking and uplifting, and the message is clear: Do what you like, not what others like.
In all honesty, I don’t listen to much Daniel Johnston, however I always find myself coming back to
Don’t Be Scared from time to time simply because of how great it is. The tape hiss gives the album a raw quality to it, and Johnston’s overwhelmingly down-to-earth performance adds nothing but pure personality to the album. While he definitely could of cut out some of the weaker material on this recording,
Don’t Be Scared is a surprisingly bleak, yet optimistic outlook on the world that certainly warrants a listen.
