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Psychedelic Trance

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Sadhaka

Rising Star
I've noticed some references to psytrance and I wonder how many of you are dedicated psytrancers. In this thread I ask you to write something about what music do you like and what do you think about the scene. Philosophising is encouraged ;)

First psychedelic trance track that got me hooked was Divine Moments of Truth by Shpongle. Now I'm more into the forest trance but I like all non-commercial and creative sounds of this scene. From times when I was still very young I wanted to become a musician but classical instruments weren't my cup of tea. After I've met psychedelics and loved this music, met lots of wonderful people I've started to play as a DJ and painting UV-reactive party decorations. It's wonderful that this scene has allowed me to put my creativity to test. Being an artist is a wonderful way to contribute to the Universe and to propagate better alternatives like ecology, having fun and living a spiritual life.

Now, I will try DMT for my first time and I wouldn't had that opportunity if I wouldn't be a part of the scene. Besides, changa originated in our scene and it's a big contribution to the wider psychedelic culture as a whole. For me, psytrance scene is at the core of psychedelic culture. It's the most positive and spiritual of all psychedelic dance music out there and it puts emphasis on attitudes that are very important to me.

When I've attended psytrance open air festival for the very first time I instantly felt at home. Previously I was digging into all other music scenes like reggae, psychedelic rock, drum'n'base, ambient and industrial. But after I've departed from the anarcho-punk scene I liked everything but nothing really struck me straight in my heart. Psytrance was different and while I had times when I was bored with it and looked for something new nothing, absolutely nothing could compete with psychedelic trance.

What I like about psytrance? I'm an energetic and creative person and as such I can put those traits to so many things. Psytrance allows to dance wild and encourages freedom of movement. It gives you space and takes you on a journey. We make videos, paintings, 3D constructions, music... everything goes and simple dance can be an art in itself. Psytrance is like 3D music that is awesome on psychedelics in the outdoors. It is very detailed with lots of subtle sounds that makes it distinct from most of dancing music out there. It sounds so tribal and yet ultimately futuristic. Besides, the communal feeling and sharing of drugs and food and shelter on the parties appeals to my anarcho-communistic past.

What I don't like is that drugs play more important role then spirituality. Way too many psytrance don't even like those topics. Still, it's one of few scenes where people from so many backgrounds meet: punks, hippies, clubbers, businessmans, activists, yoga teachers, martial artists, Buddhists, occult-freaks and many more.

I really tried to open up, to find something different but psytrance is the highest form of music. At least, that's what my heart, head and legs say!
 
I love all good music...emphasis on good! When my mind is altered i prefer to listen to good psytrance mixed by a dj who knows what they are doing, Paul Van Dyke, Paul Oakenfold, Skeemer:wink: . Basically all EDM has a psychedelic quality to it, but you can really go places with psytrance.
Breakbeats are pretty edgey with a good dose of psychedelia


Peace
 
When I've attended psytrance open air festival for the very first time I instantly felt at home. Previously I was digging into all other music scenes like reggae, psychedelic rock, drum'n'base, ambient and industrial. But after I've departed from the anarcho-punk scene I liked everything but nothing really struck me straight in my heart. Psytrance was different and while I had times when I was bored with it and looked for something new nothing, absolutely nothing could compete with psychedelic trance.
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yes, :d
for me, too no other festivals, or genera of music seems to have the magic ambience and clean vibe and all around lushness of the open air psy scene.

When my mind is altered i prefer to listen to good psytrance mixed by a dj who knows what they are doing, Paul Van Dyke, Paul Oakenfold, Skeemer . Basically all EDM has a psychedelic quality to it, but you can really go places with psytrance.
Breakbeats are pretty edgey with a good dose of psychedelia
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while i used to really enjoy (and probably still would if i kept any) listening to PVD and oakenfold, i dont really consider those artists to be mixing psytrance. it is more euro-trance/ progressive. the psy artists are less well known, as is the genera, where in the euro trance scene, there are "billboard" dj' hits , and top 100 dj lists, etc. the psychedelic scene is way to cool for this kind of competition. 8)
 
Hi Skeemer. I also never thought those Dj's were associated with psytrance. Maybe commercial trance, but not really psytrance. Then again, you may have heard something i haven't.

I'm heading to Glade festival this Thursday! Some acts being: Man With No Name, Ott, Commercial Hippies, M Theory, Altom, Antix, Headroom, Broken Toy, Logica... yum :)
 
I didnt really mean those guys were "Psytrance" djs, more that they know what they are doing djs. I have heard pvd drop some sick psytrance before though.
 
Maybe those who vote "no" would say something about why not? Is there any other culture that you feel being part of? What music do you like? I was in touch with many cultures, listened to lots of music but psytrance feels like being THE psychedelic culture. All other scenes, if they put emphasis on psychedelics at all, give them a lesser degree of importance. I don't mean that psychedelics are the most important thing in the world but if someone looks for any subculture that's representative for psychedelic cultures, then its psytrance scene.

I invite all of you to join us and please, forgive me, if my tone or attitude towards music is narrow-minded. It's because I've never found anything that would be as psychedelic as music that I love.
 
biopsylo said:
It's because I've never found anything that would be as psychedelic as music that I love
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here is a tid im listening to now:

#3 grouch -live in caledonia
minimal/psy:wink:
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Very cool, Grouch was one of the first psy-trance artists I heard, down under. The psy-trance scene there was fantastic - musicians mixing live with didgeridoo players, drumming, pianists, incredible. I recall Owsley "The Bear" Stanley visiting one of the bush "doofs" and remarking that we're doing exactly what they were doing back in the 1960's with the Grateful Dead and other psy-influenced folk artists (check out Quintessence), then apparently this "vibe" was transmitted via Goa Gil and others to Goa India, where they started playing around with GD and other records, and what spontaneously/organically evolved from that was the early forms of goa trance, which bloomed into psy-trance. Nothing like a good psy-trance party - unfortunately many I've come across do have the downside that a lot of people come for the dr00gz.

EDIT: I think what's similar between a good psy-trance party and what they were doing in the early-to-mid sixties is the spontaneity: the music and culture (culture=people) both were dancing on the razor-blade edge of novelty, putting everyone in touch with the depths of creativity. There's no mistaking when the music is coming out of the depths of the universe, the split between the conscious and "subconscious" or visible and "invisible" worlds.

Skeemer: I too find it intriguing you group Paul Van Dyke and Oakenfold with psy-trance artists such as yourself. I find The Infinite Mind you posted flippin' sweet.

Check out Astrix:
[youtube]
 
This is the one that got me into psy trance and in a way it's still the best I've heard.

Anyone who hasn't heard psypilot's "destination future" album, had probably best sort their life out :)

[YOUTUBE]

The percussion is quite nice ;)
 
Sadhaka said:
Maybe those who vote "no" would say something about why not? Is there any other culture that you feel being part of? What music do you like? I was in touch with many cultures, listened to lots of music but psytrance feels like being THE psychedelic culture. All other scenes, if they put emphasis on psychedelics at all, give them a lesser degree of importance. I don't mean that psychedelics are the most important thing in the world but if someone looks for any subculture that's representative for psychedelic cultures, then its psytrance scene.

I invite all of you to join us and please, forgive me, if my tone or attitude towards music is narrow-minded. It's because I've never found anything that would be as psychedelic as music that I love.
Click to expand...

I like psytrance a lot, but have a big preference for psydub/psychill. Your attitude towards music definitely sounds a bit narrow-minded though, and I feel that it is something that I've noticed in many people in the psytrance community. I'm not criticizing or anything, I see where you are coming from: you just haven't had the chance to explore the other sides of psychedelic music.

As for the psytrance scene, I sure see how it can be considered "THE" psychedelic culture... but sometimes I wonder if we may not be puting too much emphasis on the drugs and not enough on the art, music, community and well-being. Also, the psytrance community is probably responsible for associating lots of weird ideas with the general idea of psychedelics (disconnecting it from it's more natural/traditional roots). I'm not saying it's all bad...I love this community and the people, they are my family, but they aren't perfect.

As for the music... psytrance doesnt have the monopoly on psychedelic music. Just take a quick look at IDM music, psychedelic rock, glitch-hop, some trip-hop, acid jazz, free jazz, stoner rock, doom metal, etc etc etc. You are simply used to psytrance, used to associating it with psychedelics. Psychedelic means "mind opening"... You don't need a triple-bass on a 4 to the floor rythm and weird noises to be mind opening.

Check those few examples if you are interested in expanding your musical views (and still stay in the range of psychedelic music)...

Wagawaga - Kove (idm/breaks)
Heyoka - Sonidas De La Cabeza (dub/dubstep/glitch-hop)
Autechre - Treale (idm)
Jega - Breakpoint Envelope (idm)
Tipper - Paperthinreality (breakbeats/glitch-hop)
Phutureprimitive - Predatory Instincts (dubstep)
Squarepusher - Planetarium (drum and bass/drill and bass)

And these are only electronic music examples...don't get me started on bands and acoustic artists. For some people, a didgeridoo and some tam tams can be totally psychedelic (and I'm pretty sure it is, since it has been used as ways of achieving trances since the beginning of time).


Anyways...sorry if I'm being argumentative, I like to contest other people's statements. I like psytrance a lot, even promoted some events and can't wait to get into the festival season...I just don't like the tendency of the community to be so closed-minded artistically and musically.

Peace





...


Oh, and here is some psytrance for you freaks.

[YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]
 
soulfood said:
This is the one that got me into psy trance and in a way it's still the best I've heard.

Anyone who hasn't heard psypilot's "destination future" album, had probably best sort their life out :)

[YOUTUBE]

The percussion is quite nice ;)
Click to expand...


ahh, sweet -this track sounds delightful, and familiar, so glad i got my life sorted:d


Very cool, Grouch was one of the first psy-trance artists I heard, down under. The psy-trance scene there was fantastic - musicians mixing live with didgeridoo players, drumming, pianists, incredible.
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and yes, us too, the scene on the south island is vibrant and unique, isolated and timeless. we hung out with grouch for a minute on the hill, he is a very kind and talented person. i love it when he picks up a doumbek drum for a live psy mix-
 
Dark Matter said:
As for the music... psytrance doesnt have the monopoly on psychedelic music. Just take a quick look at IDM music, psychedelic rock, glitch-hop, some trip-hop, acid jazz, free jazz, stoner rock, doom metal, etc etc etc. You are simply used to psytrance, used to associating it with psychedelics. Psychedelic means "mind opening"... You don't need a triple-bass on a 4 to the floor rythm and weird noises to be mind opening.
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No problem with it. I can only explain that I'm very aware of all the sounds that are out there and I know lots of good stuff but after being into anarchopunk, experimental industrial and heavy metal scenes I find psytrance simply the best. I will write down why because I like talking about music with people that know what they are talking about.

It's year 2011. Can you feel it? I was into sci-fi from very early days and now I'm actually LIVING in the future. 2011. Cyberpunk living in cyberreality of cyberwars.

Psytrance is more open. You can find goths hippies, punks and yuppies attending this same party. Goth/industrial/metal scenes AREN'T open. They are black while we are colourful. But we have darkpsy so we are open, we don't neglect neither side of the Moon while post-Crowleyan circles are concentrated on the darkness which is unhealthy and dogmatic.

Psytrance is futuristic and tribal. Non-electronic music rarely sounds futuristic. Even if you can name few bands then those are exceptions. Most people with age switch from instrumental to electronic. It's a matter of taste, sure, but trends are obvious. At rock or reggae events you mostly have kids. On psytrance average age is around 30. So our community is more mature.

Psytrance is inherently anti-commercial. With so many commercial productions and events it may sound odd but it's true. Making commercial sound has always been countered with strong criticism to the extent that many artists that went commercial stopped to call their music psytrance.

Psytrance is strongly pacifistic and non-violent. I was on very large events but I saw no violence with exception of people from outside, like police or village bullies that don't like hippies. The scene is violence-free but we are living in dangerous world so I'm aware of that. Techno/House/Hip-Hop aren't pacifistic.

Psytrance is deep, spiritual and magical. There are breakbeat producers that recreate this atmosphere in their scenes but emphasis in psytrance is stronger. Dubstep can be very psychedelic but psytrance is more visual, more interactive and more spiritual... way less commercial then many breakbeat artists. Many breakbeat sounds like disco.

Those are only few points but they all show one thing: we are THE psychedelic scene while people in other circles experiment with psychedelia and do lots of great stuff... when you want to find psychedelic tribe, head on to the nearest psytrance open air event.

If I'm wrong, show me another whole scene that captures points that I have presented.
 
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