“A lot of people use LSD to make music. It’s less of a mind-altering drug to me. … It just frees you and allows you to think outside of what you would normally write about or listen to or how you would evaluate a song that you were making.” - Chance the Rapper
This quote from the Chicago hip-hop artist (who gained widespread recognition through his second mixtape, Acid Rap, released in 2013) lays an interesting foundation for what we might perceive to be psychedelic music. Hip-hop isn’t necessarily the first genre that springs to mind, but there is certainly a lot of scope for the influence of substances such as LSD when it comes to music which plays around with words, beats, and sampling. There’s an argument to be made for hip-hop being the most innovative genre of music, often with certain artists breaking the mould to push new ideas through more intentional experimentation.
One of these artists in particular is Aesop Rock, who in 2020 released Spirit World Field Guide, a concept album following a narrator through an alternate world, including "hallucinatory images of killer eels, magic spells, and people on the run" and "anecdotes, recipes, survival tips, warnings, maps, and drawings", with listeners being told in the opening track that “There will be times when you will be tested in ways this guide can neither prepare you for, nor help you from. Spirit World travel is not recommended for the faint of heart or weak of stomach. Swift and unprecedented consequences will follow your decision to breach this environment.”
I would personally consider this album in particular (and all of his other work) to be within the realm of psychedelic music. It’s more interesting than most hip-hop, especially when it comes to the lyrics in this album, which refer to his travels in Peru, as well as the kinds of beats and samples that Aesop Rock is using to create soundscapes which push the boundaries of what we might usually encounter within this genre.
Psychedelic music has continued to evolve in this way, with reinventions taking place alongside understandings of human consciousness. Music itself has forever been intertwined with psychedelics, where different shamanic practices have been utilised to induce a state of oneness and interconnectedness. This sense of interconnectedness provided space for the pioneering of psychedelic music in the modern world, with psychedelic rock emerging out of experimentations with substances such as LSD in the 1960s. This laid the foundation for genres such as progressive rock, heavy metal, doom, krautrock, post-punk, shoegaze, rave culture, electronic music, and contemporary psych rock to all become associated with psychedelic substances.
So is psychedelic music just music that’s been influenced by these substances, or is there more to it? If you ask ten different people what they think of as being psychedelic music, you might get completely different answers, and none of them would be technically wrong. Some people might immediately jump to the psychedelic rock of the 60/70s, or feel more aligned with contemporary electronic music, and perhaps even more intentional music which can be found on “science-approved” playlists for psychedelic therapy.
It seems that psychedelic music has moved on from being related to just a genre, and is now being used as an umbrella term to describe a certain vibe that performs a function. What that function is depends on the intention of the individual, but from my perspective as a psychedelic musician, I think there’s an importance in being clear about what we mean when we talk about modern psychedelic music.
There’s been a recent wave of ‘psych fests’ all the way from Manchester to Edinburghand Brighton, where all three of them seem to have almost the same headliners and main acts this year, and a certain kind of style of psychedelic music that I personally feel plays it safe. Don’t get me wrong, there are some cracking bands on the lineups such as Angine De Poitrine, whose brand of microtonal psych rock got me totally hooked – but there certainly could be more room for the heavier side to this genre being represented, and I wonder now if “psychedelic” music is a catch-all term to refer to any trendy music that people enjoy dancing around to when they’re on drugs. So how did psychedelic music come to be and how has it evolved over the years?
The Birth of Psychedelic Music
The consumption of LSD in popular culture in the West in the 1960s had a huge role in the birth of psychedelic rock, which provided the foundation for what we would think of in general as being psychedelic music. While the drug had a significant impact on literature and art, it was perhaps more obvious to see the extent to which LSD could provide something of a cultural shift in breaking down barriers to sonic experimentation. Where being able to make sense of words on a page or concentrate on a plot is more challenging while in this state, LSD has the power to allow us to sink further into the experience of music. We might find more meaning within the soundscape, where our emotional responses are heightened, and this can certainly be found in much of the music from this era, which is highly expressive.
Innovations within music production at this time seemed to go hand-in-hand with the introduction of acid into the West, where the explosion in creativity was bolstered by people experimenting with psychedelic drugs. The analogue technology that was experimented with during this time, such as tape manipulation, feedback, and phasing – as just a few examples – allowed bands to push sonic boundaries and lean more into the explosive and improvisational energy that was emerging. Important bands such as The Beatles, The Doors, Pink Floyd, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Jefferson Airplane, and The Grateful Dead pioneered the exploration into uncharted sonic territory, often with live shows that would be infused with sheer psychedelic prowess.
The sounds that began to emerge out of this scene lent themselves to more experimentation, where sounds from the East were being introduced after more people embarked on the “hippie trail”, which passed through countries such as Turkey, Afghanistan, India, and Thailand from the mid-1950s to late 1970s. The term “raga rock” was coined in the 1960s to refer to popular music that had taken influence from the East, mostly including Indian instruments such as sitar and tabla, or experimental drones and microtonal-sounding guitar lines to emulate these Eastern influences.
The rise in popularity of these sounds during this time was very much related to the romanticisation of the East (a concept known as “Orientalism”). While there was genuine appreciation and passionate sincerity for the admiration of these Eastern sounds that challenged the dominant Western sonic landscape, the inclusion of some of these sounds into Western music might be seen as cultural appropriation. The consumption of psychedelic substances certainly lent itself to explorations into Eastern philosophies such as Hinduism and Buddhism, with themes of consciousness expansion, enlightenment, and interconnectedness being discussed more frequently.
Aside from psychedelic rock, the birth of “spiritual” jazz in the 1960s USA (which can be traced back to the more religious “sacred” jazz of the 40s and 50s) provided another branch of music which was associated with themes of transcendence and spirituality. While jazz in general was almost inseparable from drug consumption in the 60s, the more spiritual side lent itself to more of a psychedelic mindset, where it drew from the stylings of free-jazz and avant-garde jazz, often with influences from Africa and Asia.
Saxophonist John Coltrane was one of the most influential figures in 20th-century jazz, and often touted as having pioneered spiritual jazz, with his most acclaimed album A Love Supreme being considered the foundation of the genre. Another notable pioneer of this genre was The Sun Ra Arkestra, who are also considered one of the big proponents of Afrofuturism, which blended themes of science fiction and technoculture.
Meditative sounds or instruments not used in traditional jazz, such as the harp, which was popularised by pianist Alice Coltrane (wife of John Coltrane), who is often referred to as the “high priestess” of spiritual jazz. Her fourth studio album Journey in Satchidananda, which features saxophonist Pharoah Sanders (who also had a huge impact on the genre), reflects on the influence of her spiritual teacher Swami Satchidananda Saraswati, including different sounds from classical Indian music. While this genre of music might not be immediately thought of as being psychedelic, there’s certainly an element of ‘astral travelling’ which occurs when listening to this kind of jazz, and I have found Alice Coltrane’s music in particular to be some of the most impactful during my psychedelic experiences.
But was the inclusion of these sounds into psychedelic music a form of copying from the East, or was there something deeper going on? It might be that rather than simply copying sounds from places like India, the introduction of psychedelics into the musical landscape provided a catalyst for people to break out of the confines of their ordinary perception of music. Different tuning systems and musical structures allowed for more experimentation, which substances like LSD could facilitate through breaking down sonic boundaries and opening up the space for more intentional sounds which might take listeners to completely new places.
What Happened to Psychedelic Music After the 1960s?
Did this kind of music disappear in the late 1960s after the Summer of Love, or was it more so that the genre of psychedelic music became more fragmented? The birth of “neo-psychedelia” (often referred to as “neo-psych”) in the late 1970s drew inspiration from the music production of the 60s, growing out of the British post-punk scene, where different styles would begin to merge together. You might hear the more dreamy pop stylings of bands such as The Beatles or Pink Floyd converging with more free-form distorted psychedelic jams, where the original artists’ ideas would either be expanded on or just unashamedly copied.
Bands such as the Soft Boys (formed in 1976) had a big influence on neo-psychedelia with their brand of psychedelic retro folk-rock, paving the way for the more jangly sound of pop and indie rock, as well as Australian band The Church, who formed in 1980, with slower tempos and soundscapes which were reminiscent of dream pop and post-rock. The notable band Spacemen 3, who formed in 1980, drew inspiration from other bands such as the Stooges and the Velvet Underground to create “trance-like” neo-psychedelia with distorted guitars, synthesisers, and minimal chord/tempo changes, while being heavily associated with drugs, often with outspoken views on recreational use.
Other bands which might fall into this sub-genre include My Bloody Valentine (who pioneered the shoegaze genre, which draws on more of the ethereal sounds of 1960s psychedelia), Ride, and Slowdive, who all formed in the 1980s, with a style of psychedelic music that was slower and more internal than the colourful and explosive sounds that came about in the previous decades. This genre provided psychedelia in a more subtle way, possibly in a more ambiguous style with different textures and immersive soundscapes.
I’ve personally never found this branch of psychedelic music hugely appealing, although I can appreciate the desire to become immersed in something dreamy. Perhaps it allows for a certain degree of safety within the listening experience, which is hugely important for the listener in providing a sonic anchor to their psychedelic trip. For others, such as myself, there’s a desire to push the boundaries a bit further and engage more with the heavier side of music. Perhaps playing more with the idea of what psychedelic music means, and where it’s not necessarily so strictly confined to a particular genre, can allow us to appreciate how certain substances can help us to be more broad with what we perceive to be sonically conducive to a trip.
One band in particular, Black Sabbath, which formed in 1968, laid the foundations for heavy metal as well as the more cannabis-specific genres of stoner metal and doom metal. Their lyrics, while often related to real-world issues like war, mental health issues, and the occult, also include a lot of drug inspiration, from their experiences with substances such as LSD and cannabis. ‘Into the Void’, for example, has cosmic-themed lyrics such as:
“Past the stars, in fields of ancient void
Through the shields of darkness where they find
Love upon a land a world unknown
Where the sons of freedom make their home”
Another notable track from the same album, Master of Reality, released in 1971, is an ode to cannabis titled ‘Sweet Leaf’, with this album in particular being seen as the foundation of sludge and stoner metal. The crossover between heavy metal and psychedelic rock has created a sub-genre of ‘heavy psych’, where gigs will often feature a mix of bands which traverse the wider stoner and psychedelic sounds, with notable contemporary bands such as Electric Wizard, Sleep, Elder, Earthless, and Colour Haze utilising the power of long, hypnotic repetitive riffs with more spacious psychedelic soundscapes. These kinds of sounds lend themselves more to the ritualistic aspects of psychedelic music, where the sonic landscape is coupled with a cultural appreciation for the benefits of these substances, bringing people together to enjoy this kind of heavy music.
The cultural importance of psychedelic music can certainly be seen when looking more towards the late 1980s and into the 90s, where rave culture emerged from the rise of house music in the 1970s in Chicago and New York after disco started going out of style. Underground parties in the USA laid the foundation for rave culture, which later influenced the UK, with imports from different cities influencing the tastes and providing space for the later genre of acid house to really take off in the late 80s.
Electronic Psychedelia
MDMA was introduced into the UK around 1987, after DJs, returning from their experiences in Ibiza, began to promote the drug more heavily. More commonly known as ‘ecstasy’, the drug grew the size of the rave scene, where club-goers were being referred to as “Generation E”.
The more electronic side to drug culture was gaining traction, and genres such as psytrance, Goa trance (which took influences from the Indian state of Goa in the early 90s), techno, and ambient became more popular as psychedelic music moved away from bands.
Artists such as Orbital drew on influences from bands like Kraftwerk (who began as part of Germany’s experimental Krautrockscene in the early 70s, and are largely touted as being one of the first successful acts to popularise electronic music), Kate Bush, and Depeche Mode, as well as influences from British rock bands like Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. Other artists such as System 7, The Orb, and Ozric Tentacles provided space for the crossover from the psychedelic rock scene into more electronic music, and expanded the confines of what people might consider psychedelic music.
For myself personally, these kinds of bands have been an amazing entry point into electronic psychedelia, where I have come from a world of listening to rock, heavy metal, and jazz. There has always been something I have found so magical about seeing bands play live, where the physicality of the experience provides so much depth. But having opened up my mind to more sonic realms has allowed for richer experiences, where substances such as LSD have increased my appreciation for a wider range of sounds. Having now experienced a lot of live electronic music, I’ve been able to appreciate the impact of being able to create music that might be impossible with analogue instruments, and how this innovation has provided so much joy to people in the psychedelic space.
Joy is one of the main things I consider when it comes to psychedelic music, and I’ve certainly appreciated the importance of this over the past five years of playing in Codex Serafini. We have taken a lot of different influences from bands we love to create sounds that we really enjoy, rather than attempting to make music which runs the risk of being derivative. We’ve also thankfully caught what seems like a wave of a revival in psychedelic rock, and it’s great to observe how this has taken off in different parts of the world.
The New Wave of Psych Rock
Since the 2000s, there has been a wave of psych rock that seems more expansive and open, often taking influences from different parts of the world such as Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Swedish alternative and experimental fusion band Goat have become massive over the years, with their brand of Afro-inspired psych rock captivating audiences across the globe. Another prolific band, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, have become pioneers in the space, with multiple genres and different tuning systems being explored.
Microtonal tuning, which challenges the dominant Western systems, has allowed for more openness when it comes to psychedelic music. Notable artists, such as all-female Saudi Arabian band Seera, “conjure a world of shadowed silhouettes, hypnotic riffs and Arabic poetry, where desert psychedelia meets rock”. Dutch-Turkish group Altın Gün have become pioneers of the modern revival in Turkish psych rock, with a blend of funk rhythms, wah-wah guitars, and analogue organ.
The degree of experimentation in contemporary psych rock has led to a certain degree of fearlessness, with many bands opting for more fuzzed-out and heavier sounds. The record label Heavy Psych Sounds, which formed in 2007, has a huge roster of heavy psychedelic bands who generally operate within the riff-laden realms of fuzzed-out guitars and hypnotic drones. (Two favourite bands of mine, Wyatt E and The Cosmic Dead, have been some excellent additions to this label!) Perhaps the intensity of this wave of psych rock is reflective of the intense state of the world, but it’s certainly not for everyone, and the intensity can often be too much for someone’s psychedelic experience.
Counterculture or Clinical Tool
I’ve written this whole article without giving much attention to psychedelic music within therapeutic contexts, where music is often considered to be the “hidden therapist”, and playlists can be carefully curated to ensure some kind of positive therapeutic outcomes. We even have electronic artists like John Hopkins creating albums titled Music For Psychedelic Therapy, which was released in 2021, and ambient electronic artist East Forest releasing a documentary in 2024 titled Music for Mushrooms.
There seems to be more of a focus on therapeutically-centred intention when it comes to psychedelic music, rather than it being something to just engage with through a variety of ideas regarding transcendence or spirituality. The rise in popularity of ‘medicine music’, which provides something of a softer and more intentional approach, can be seen as an antidote to the seemingly chaotic state of the world.
When it comes to modern psychedelic music, it seems like things are quite open, rather than being confined to a specific genre. Could it be that any music which attempts to facilitate or induce an altered state of consciousness is psychedelic? The sound has changed dramatically over the decades, and not necessarily in any kind of linear fashion. Music as an art form has often tried to represent what humanity is going through, and perhaps psychedelic music could be emulating what it means to be human right now.
These moments of intensity and softness can provide different people with what they need from psychedelic music, where the introduction of music into clinical settings is happening at the same time as huge innovations in the live music scene. This kind of music isn’t necessarily what it sounds like, but how it can create experiences that connect us to something greater than our everyday lives. The diversity of psychedelic music gives it the power to provide us with endless opportunities for sonic exploration.