Psychedelic Bands Of The 21st Century
By Marvin Marks on Mar 30, 2009 in Features
Many people associate the adjective “psychedelic” only with a certain style of music from the 1960s. While I happen to love that certain style of music, I think it’s a mistake to have such a narrow definition.
To me psychedelic music is any music that “trips me out.” Usually that means the music has unusual arrangements that take the song to different unexpected places. It could also mean that the song has a very unusual overall sound (weird mix/production) which creates a “trippy” atmosphere. Often times the bands that I’m calling “psychedelic” are labeled as “experimental” which is also a fitting label and to me the two usually go hand in hand.
This is something that’s hard to explain sometimes to people who haven’t had their share of mushrooms. But the key to what I’m saying is that I don’t believe that psychedelic music is a specific genre or a style, I think that misses the point entirely.
On that note, this article is on bands that have recorded and released interesting psychedelic music in the 21st century (which is nearing 10 years old now.) Some of these bands you may think of as “90s bands” but if they have continued to release great psychedelic music into this decade (and I think that’s the case obviously) then I don’t see why they shouldn’t be included.
I’ve yet to hear their latest album (Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free which is officially released in May) but thus far it’s still their self titled debut album from 2005 that really stands out for me. 2007′s Love Is Simple is good as well. For whatever reason I’ve never been able to really get into their 2006 album Meek Warrior. I’ve seen them live and they put on a great show. Definitely recommended.
Not many people seem to use the “psychedelic” adjective for Radiohead but I definitely think it applies. They are always experimenting with new song structures and production techniques. The atmospherics of their songs are always very interesting, I love the attention to detail. Plus they’re just so damn good, that helps.
The masters of weird rock. Their songs are always strange and they are among the best when it comes to experimental production. 2000′s White Pepper is probably my favorite Ween album although it’s not quite as weird as some of their earlier stuff, I do think it’s their best album. Please note that “weird” is not the same thing as “joke.” I don’t consider Ween to be a “joke band” at all. Some folks seem to not understand the difference “weird” and “funny” (although admittedly some of Ween’s songs are pretty funny) but it’s a big difference to me.
1991′s Screamadelica was groundbreaking and 1997′s Vanishing Point was probably their most overtly psychedelic album but they released their most intense album in 2000: XTRMTR which is a must listen for anyone into intense face melting psychedelic music. I can’t say that the albums they’ve released since then have really caught my attention as much as I wish they would have (although Evil Heat has it’s moments) but even on the strength of just those three albums I think they are among the greatest psychedelic bands of all time.
The Lips have only released two albums during the 2000s (with no plans of one coming out in 2009 as far as I know) 2002′s Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and 2006′s At War with the Mystics but I think Yoshimi is among the better albums of the decade and while Mystics was somewhat disappointing (probably their worst album since the ’80s in my opinion) it did have some good moments.
As far as The Lips being labeled “psychedelic,” I think the reasoning behind that is too obvious to even go into. Their live shows are legendary and they are always pushing the envelope as far as song structures and production techniques with their recordings.
Animal Collective is arguably *THE* psychedelic band of the 21st century thus far. Their first album released as Animal Collective was 2003′s Here Comes the Indian. It’s only with their most recent album (January’s Merriweather Post Pavilion) that they’ve achieved significant commercial success. It peaked at #13 on the US album charts.
Their music is difficult for me to describe and sometimes I’m not sure that I even like it that much (the vocals in particular put me off.) But it’s definitely psychedelic. About that I have no doubt. It’s actually surprising to me that they are as popular as they are because they really make damn strange music.
Panda Bear is Animal Collective’s drummer. He’s mostly on this list on the strength of 2007′s Person Pitch which I actually prefer to any of the Animal Collective albums. It’s probably slightly less experimental and psychedelic than Animal Collective’s stuff but that doesn’t mean it’s “by the numbers.” Definitely not.
Person Pitch‘s tend to be trance inducing. Listen to the song included below (the opening track on Person Pitch) to get an idea of what I’m talking about.
This is a group I’ve only recently started to listen to so I’m not an expert on them but the stuff I’ve heard is really wild. They’ve released three albums thus far (2003′s Falling Through a Field, 2004′s Start a People, and 2007′s Dandelion Gun) with a fourth (Eating Us) due out this May.
Their music reminds me of some sort of combination of Boards of Canada & Air. They’ve definitely got more of a “dirty” sound than Air but they seem to be going for a somewhat similar thing.
2006′s The Information may be Beck’s most psychedelic album to date. The title track is included below to give you a taste if you haven’t heard it yet. I do think 2005′s Geuro and 2008′s Modern Guilt could have been a bit more exciting but they have their moments as well. And 2002′s Sea Change is brilliant (although not particularly psychedelic, at least in comparison to his other stuff.)
2007′s Oracular Spectacular put these guys on the map. They’re probably a bit more “poppy” than most of the stuff on this list, but that aspect of their music seems to be pretty well tongue in cheek. I actually don’t quite know what to make of their music, which I think is a good sign. It sounds like a lot of different stuff, but not like anything else in particular. It’s absolutely over the top. I think it’s the sort of thing you are either going to really like or really hate.
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Could do much much better.
Have you even ever listened to Psychedelia? And i don’t mean polished ‘indie bands’, i mean Psychedelia.
I do feel you’ve only mentioned the most obvious, commercial bands, which I do not believe are ‘trippy’ in any way. They’re indie (ie: extremely predictable and we’re sick to our stomachs of it’s cuteness disguised as ‘trying to be edgy’).Please. I always imagined guys just use this kind of music to get girls in clubs – they don’t really listen to this at home to get tripped to. The examples of so – called psychedelic bands up here are not in any way psychedelic in effect!
Let me help you out in your music collection. You’ll be doing yourself a favour
.
Listen to Belgian/Parisian band Aqua Nebula Oscillator (Pan Recordings)(2009),The Chocolate Watch Band (1960s),Hawkwind, The Lickets ( 2006, Jean Claude Vannier, Spacemen 3, Mothers of Invention (USA), Malaria (1985), Silver Apples, The Strawberry Alarm Clock, Victoire Scott, Praise Space Electric, Heldon (1990s, Skinny Puppy (1980s), and father of all fathers of psychedelia…Frank Zappa. I could go on.
But please stop listening to this so-called ‘cool for the sake of being cool’ indie and claiming it to be psychedelic. I can’t stand that ‘indie’ label. Most of these artists just want to make you believe they’re on mushrooms, but really, they’re just sitting in a studio, with a producer who tells them to sound ‘cute’ and ‘sparkly’ because cute and sparkly plastic – produced music sells. C’mon even you’ve got to admit they sound too over-produced to be the real deal. Beck is a great artist and i do enjoy listening to his albums, as each one is different, but please don’t say his sound pertains to that of other Psych bands out there.
And please don’t tell me it’s a matter of personal taste, or that this is psychdelic rock as you see it. The list you’ve provided isn’t Psychedelic. Fullstop.
Sorry man, not to blow my own trumpet, however I am a huge music fan and collector of many diverse genres.
Please revise your music and feel free to visit my My Space for music ideas.
Lisa,
Malta.
Naiada | Dec 26, 2009 | Reply
Lisa/Naiada – to say that you are full of yourself is quite the understatement.
Most of the bands you’ve mentioned are not in the 21st century and are not eligible for this list. And yes, I’ve heard just about everything you mentioned. Big fucking deal. (I love Frank Zappa by the way.)
Most importantly – I don’t believe in the label of “psychedelia” to refer to a single type of music, but rather music that trips someone out (and in this particularly case I’m talking about music that trips me out.) I mentioned this belief in this very blog post. If you want to talk about a certain style of music as being “psychedelia” that’s your deal. But that’s not what I’m talking about.
And please don’t try to tell me what I do or do not listen to (or why I listen to it – it’s certainly not to be “cool”) and please don’t try to tell me about what is psychedelic and what is not. I’ve tripped out to every artist on this list and enjoyed the experiences immensely. That’s why they’re on this list. I’m quite familiar of the experience of which I speak.
Just… for fuck’s sake. How fucking full of shit can you get? People like yourself really grate on my nerves.
Marvin Marks | Dec 28, 2009 | Reply
Woah, she’s just trying to help you out, and she has some good suggestions! You put together a really, really mainstream list. That’s OK. Maybe you’re just naturally a trippy guy and can trip out to anything. Now listen to her advice and use that talent to trip out even more!
Its not perfect, but here’s also another good place to start learning a little bit more: http://www.terrascope.co.uk/OurMusicPages/ourmusic.htm
And here’s a great record store: http://www.aquariusrecords.org
Mapo Tofu | Dec 31, 2009 | Reply
Something being “mainstream” or not mainstream doesn’t make it good or not good. Stop thinking about music as fashion and instead think about it as sound and you’ll be off to a good start.
As far as “listening to her advice” – what a bunch of shit. Her advice is completely misplaced because she completely misunderstood the topic of this post. Almost all of her suggestions were from the 20th century and this post is specifically about psychedelic music in the 21st century. She also missed my point that I’m not interested in “psychedelia” as a genre but instead am interested in how the music effects me (“psychedelic music” takes me on a “trip” and is thus “trippy.”) Furthermore, I’ve already heard most of the stuff she’s listed as some sort of “underground” music. As I said before: BIG FUCKING DEAL.
As far as this: http://www.terrascope.co.uk/OurMusicPages/ourmusic.htm
I’ve already heard most of those albums and a lot of those are very “mainstream” too … Pink Floyd? Yeah dude, never heard them before. Smile? The Beatles? underground as fuck! Furthermore, almost none of them are from the 21st century.
You two couldn’t be more off the mark if you tried. READ THE POST AGAIN and see if you can get some understanding of what I’m talking about.
Marvin Marks | Dec 31, 2009 | Reply
Most of the bands you mentioned are not really psychedelic if you think about it as a genre. Well, if you’re looking for good psychedelic bands that exist in the 21st century, let me educate you.
Acid Mothers Temple
Blues Control
Danava
Earthless
Wooden Shjips
Black Angels
Dead Meadow
shinki gonzalez | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
shinki gonzalez – I don’t think about it as a “genre” and I think I made that clear in this post. I think it’s really really boring to think about it as a “genre” in fact. So no thanks to your “education.”
I prefer bands that are pushing forward with a new approach – not those who are working within the confines of a certain style of music perfected 40 years previous.
Marvin Marks | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
I find genres in general to be tiresome. What’s important isn’t what label we put on music but how that music effects us as listeners.
So please – no more idiotic posts from people trying to “educate” me. I know all about the “psychedelic genre” and I don’t give a fuck about it.
One more time to make it clear: It’s not the genre that’s important, but the effect that music has on the listener.
Marvin Marks | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
I thought your list was pretty good man. The only entry that I would dispute that I’ve heard (that’s right I’m not familiar with every artist on the list which apparently makes me a caveman in the eyes of your readership…) is Radiohead.
Mike | Jan 8, 2010 | Reply
Right Mike… to these people these bands are so very “pop” … they’re on the radio and mtv all the time! … oh that’s right. in reality most of these bands are never on the radio or tv but they’re still too “mainstream” for some people.
Marvin Marks | Jan 8, 2010 | Reply
To be honest, the list isn’t bad at all, I agree with you completely when it comes to whatever trips you out, and everyone elses lists are damn well good too.
I’d really like to shout out for Shpongle though, really respect Simon Posford for what great work he has done.
Danielle | Jan 8, 2010 | Reply
Not a bad article at all and I share the writers sentiments that psychedelic is about the way it makes you feel and not as a genre per se. I also 100% back up the fact that Primal Scream are one of THE greatest psych bands of all time – FACT!
What qualifies me to have this opinion? I run http://www.northernstarrecords.co.uk responsible for the Psychedelica series which have highlighted some of the most tripped out, blissed out bands in recent existence. The psychedelica albums have never been about crap hippies in wizards hats playing prog rock. That doesn’t make me feel psychedelic – just bores the shit out of me. Its been about highlighting the underground bands who have made me feel in another time and place.
I’m talking about bands that have more in common with Spacemen 3, (Sonic Booom actually remixes one of the tracks on them), The Jesus and Mary Chain, Bunnymen, Primal Scream etc etc. The ‘genre’ if it is indeed a genre is so diverse as to render the term almost meaningless. Example? The Orb are as much ‘psych’ as Spacemen 3 as are The Doors – do these bands sound alike? No, of course not!
Here’s some more bands people should check out:
Brian Jonestown Massacre
The Black Angels
The Warlocks
The High Dials
The Lovetones
The Electric Mainline
The December Sound
The Nova Saints
Young Team
Scott | Jan 12, 2010 | Reply
Thanks for the comment Scott.
I’m a big fan of Spacemen 3 and Brian Jonestown Massacre but I haven’t heard some of the others on your list – I will check them out.
Marvin Marks | Jan 12, 2010 | Reply
If you’re looking to psychedelia without it having to be labelled psychedelia then I think some of the psych-folk artists like Espers are pretty great, Black Moth Super Rainbow are really out there, some Amorphous Androgynous. Some Black Lips is pretty good too. Although it’s not 21st Century, the Dandy Warhols first album, Dandy’s Rule OK is a great listen, I’d recommend it if you haven’t already, Brian Jonestown Massacre really are a great band, well their earlier records were at least!
Tom | Mar 25, 2010 | Reply
Hey man. It’s a good list. It’s funny how some people become psychedelic elitists. I thought that tripping was supposed to “dissolve the ego”. Guess not. I love psychedelic music, but most of the stuff that lisa listed is just “hippy shit”, not very trippy. You forgot TOOL. If you’ve never tripped out to them, you should. The music creates a place, a dimensionality in the room; there are things in their records that you simply cant hear unless you are tuned in. Oh, and check out “Sleepytime Gorilla Museum”. I know, the name sounds like hippy shit, but they are actually classically trained and the music is great. Might take a bit to get used to it, where you can digest it and all. Thanks for the list, I picked a couple out that I haven’t heard before!
Adam
Atom | May 14, 2010 | Reply
check out Younger Brother. good psychedelic in my mind, makes me thing of random things.
and ven | Jun 8, 2010 | Reply
No “psychedelic music of the 21st century” list is complete without Shpongle.
Sid | Oct 5, 2010 | Reply
try Smoking Spore
juk | Oct 25, 2010 | Reply
Wheres pink floyd?
bob | Nov 1, 2010 | Reply
I mean, some of pink floyds stuff may not fall into this category(aka the wall), but i would say that practicaly all their music before animals is psychadelic. Certainly, there albums the piper at the gates of dawn, the dark side of the moon and wish you were here all tick the boxes in terms of “unusual overall sound”,”odd arrangments and unexpected places”,”very experimental” and (as you so aptly put it),”trippy atmosphere”. Personally, i believe these albums to be three of the greatest psychadelic masterpeices.
bob | Nov 1, 2010 | Reply
Bob … Read Again: “21st Century” … Pink Floyd hasn’t released any albums this century.
They would certainly be on the list for the 20th Century!
Marvin Marks | Nov 2, 2010 | Reply
oh yeah…ooops. Sorry, didn’t read the heading. In that case, i agree with everything on the list(except perhaps radiohead-but thats just my opinion). I also agree with what you said in one your previous comments about how genres are tiresome. To be honest, most music varies so much from artist to artist that trying to bundle them together is near impossible.
bob | Nov 13, 2010 | Reply
Thanks for the list! I adore Panda Bear and MGMT the most and there are a few artists i haven’t heard before so im definitely checking them out!
Chiqdrew | Feb 22, 2011 | Reply
Yeah and i just checked Black Moth Super Rainbow and my first impression was ‘sounds a bit like
AIR, but heavier’ and just then i read your description for this band and you are sayin the same! I thought Americans don’t really know AIR (you are American, right?). I’m from Eastern Europe. AIR is my favorite band of all times by the way…ok sorry for talking so much, i’m just sitting at home sick and bored lol
That’s it, peace out and thanks again.
Chiqdrew | Feb 22, 2011 | Reply
Hey Chiqdrew – I appreciate your comments!
Yes, I know Air – I’ve even seen them live (very good show) I’m a big fan of 10,000Hz Legend (and Moon Safari to a lesser degree) but honestly some of their more recent albums haven’t done as much for me… I’m not sure I’ve heard their very most recent yet (Love 2 ?) as Pocket Symphony kind of put me off and I read some poor reviews for it.
But yes, I still consider myself an Air fan – they’ve done some great stuff.
(and yes I’m American.)
Marvin Marks | Feb 24, 2011 | Reply
fk you
highroad | Mar 3, 2011 | Reply
Oh please.. who honestly cares?
You’re one of these people who thinks because they “know” what music is “psychedelic” then anything other than what you listen to isn’t.
You honestly think you’re THAT important to shape someone else’s views because you think you hold enough music knowledge to fill volumes on the subject? please.
As far as you’re views on indie music are concerned, stop generalising. It just shows you are less musically diverse than you like to think by clumping everything together.
Yeah, some indie is shit, some is fantastic. Same as some psychedelia is complete bullshit and some is genius! A genre can’t dictate whether something sounds good or not. Or what do you think everyone would be doing?
These count as psychedelic, just as the bands you listed do too. Don’t worry you’re little head, there’s not some glass that must not be overfilled… there can be MORE psychedelic music made than that that has come before.. there’s no limit dear.
Brendan | Mar 6, 2011 | Reply
There’s a new band called Tame Impala who make great ‘classic’ psychedelic rock.
However, some bands like Sigur Ros, Porcupine Tree, The Mars Volta and Mogwai are so psychedelic, you can’t place the label of psychedelic onto them because it’s so far beyond the colors/flowers/stoner crowd stereotype of classic-psychedelia..
Think that’s the beauty of it. Like Radiohead, their album Kid A is so psychedelic it’s not even psychedelic. Indeed pioneers for a new age of music..
Great list, might I add.
Taargus | Mar 9, 2011 | Reply
musics an opinion, so every one is going have opinions and others arent going agree, people need chill voice there opinion and other people should respond to it in the proper manner. pointless having fall outs over music, no one can be wrong or right with music. my opinion is that black mountain and the black angels should be on the lists and the blue angel lounge. and to who ever said dead meadow, thanks there good.
aaron | Apr 6, 2011 | Reply
You forgot a couple: Tame Impala, Assemble head in sunburst sound, White Manna, Weird owl, Sleepy sun, Citay, Howlin rain, Endless Boogie, Skygreen Leopards, Girls, the papercuts, and the list goes on. These are all bands that I like, but their are more.
kevin | Jul 15, 2011 | Reply
animal collective is one of the very few bands out there currently making music that can make me feel as if im on a psychedelic drug, i.e. time dilation, CEVs, quick & intense mood changes from elation to horror to sadness to joy, etc… tool and phish are bands that should be on there also. sorry they may be mainstream, but theyre amazing, and definitely psychedelic.
seany dreads | Aug 9, 2011 | Reply