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Psychedelic rock

Psychedelic rock is a rock music genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound effects and recording techniques, extended instrumental solos, and improvisation.[2] Many psychedelic groups differ in style, and the label is often applied spuriously.[3]

Psychedelic rock

Mid 1960s, United States and United Kingdom

Originating in the mid-1960s among British and American musicians, the sound of psychedelic rock invokes three core effects of LSD: depersonalization, dechronicization (the bending of time), and dynamization (when fixed, ordinary objects dissolve into moving, dancing structures), all of which detach the user from everyday reality.[3] Musically, the effects may be represented via novelty studio tricks, electronic or non-Western instrumentation, disjunctive song structures, and extended instrumental segments.[4] Some of the earlier 1960s psychedelic rock musicians were based in folk, jazz, and the blues, while others showcased an explicit Indian classical influence called "raga rock". In the 1960s, there existed two main variants of the genre: the more whimsical, surrealist British psychedelia and the harder American West Coast "acid rock". While "acid rock" is sometimes deployed interchangeably with the term "psychedelic rock", it also refers more specifically to the heavier, harder, and more extreme ends of the genre.


The peak years of psychedelic rock were between 1967 and 1969, with milestone events including the 1967 Summer of Love and the 1969 Woodstock Festival, becoming an international musical movement associated with a widespread counterculture before declining as changing attitudes, the loss of some key individuals, and a back-to-basics movement led surviving performers to move into new musical areas. The genre bridged the transition from early blues and folk-based rock to progressive rock and hard rock, and as a result contributed to the development of sub-genres such as heavy metal. Since the late 1970s it has been revived in various forms of neo-psychedelia.

often used with feedback, wah-wah and fuzzbox effects units;[2]

electric guitars

certain studio effects (principally in British psychedelia), such as backwards tapes, panning, phasing, long delay loops, and extreme reverb;[6]

[5]

elements of and other Eastern music,[7] including Middle Eastern modalities;[8]

Indian music

non-Western instruments (especially in British psychedelia), specifically those originally used in , such as sitar, tambura and tabla;[5]

Indian classical music

elements of ;[7]

free-form jazz

a strong keyboard presence, especially , harpsichords, or the Mellotron (an early tape-driven sampler);[9]

electronic organs

extended instrumental segments, especially , or jams;[10]

guitar solos

disjunctive song structures, occasional and time signature changes, modal melodies and drones;[10]

key

droning quality in vocals;

[11]

such as synthesizers and the theremin;[12]

electronic instruments

lyrics that made direct or indirect reference to hallucinogenic drugs;

[13]

whimsical, esoterically or literary-inspired lyrics[14][15] with (especially in British psychedelia) references to childhood;[16]

surreal

antiquation (exclusive to British psychedelia), drawing on items such as music boxes, music hall nostalgia and circus sounds.[5]

Victorian-era

As a musical style, psychedelic rock incorporated new electronic sound effects and recording effects, extended solos, and improvisation.[2] Features mentioned in relation to the genre include:


The term "psychedelic" was coined in 1956 by psychiatrist Humphry Osmond in a letter to LSD exponent Aldous Huxley[17] and used as an alternative descriptor for hallucinogenic drugs in the context of psychedelic psychotherapy.[18] As the countercultural scene developed in San Francisco, the terms acid rock and psychedelic rock were used in 1966 to describe the new drug-influenced music[19] and were being widely used by 1967.[20] The two terms are often used interchangeably,[13] but acid rock may be distinguished as a more extreme variation that was heavier, louder, relied on long jams,[21] focused more directly on LSD, and made greater use of distortion.[22]

List of electric blues musicians

List of psychedelic rock artists

Belmo (1999). 20th Century Rock and Roll: Psychedelia. Burlington, Ontario: Collectors Guide Publishing.  978-1-896522-40-1.

ISBN

(2002). Tomorrow Never Knows: Rock and Psychedelics in the 1960s. Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-07562-1.

Bromell, Nick

(2006). Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. Rodale. ISBN 978-1-59486-320-2.

Carlin, Peter Ames

(2015). Psychedelia and Other Colours. London: Faber & Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-28200-5.

Chapman, Rob

(2014). The Emergence of Rock and Roll: Music and the Rise of American Youth Culture. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-05358-1.

Hall, Mitchell K.

Joynson, Vernon (2004) Fuzz, Acid and Flowers Revisited: A Comprehensive Guide to American Garage, Psychedelic and Hippie Rock (1964-1975). Borderline  978-1-899855-14-8.

ISBN

(1997). "Back to Eden: Innocence, Indolence and Pastoralism in Psychedelic Music, 1966–1996". In Melechi, Antonio (ed.). Psychedelia Britannica. London: Turnaround. pp. 143–165.

Reynolds, Simon