Psychedelic paintings come to us in many different styles. From minimalistic designs with contrasting colors to incredibly detailed fractal geometries, painstakingly represented in oil.
Over the years, I have gathered a large collection of my favorite psychedelic paintings from which I use to derive inspiration. I thought I'd share a few of them with you today. I've tried to present a broad enough range of styles here, but hopefully you'll agree they all share that inherent psychedelic vibe.
1. The Hallucinogenic Toreador - Salvador Dali
The first time I saw this striking psychedelic image was as a poster on a friend's living room wall. While much of Dali's art is considered to be masterpieces of surrealism, rather than psychedelic, there is no doubting this paintings hallucinatory imagery.
Painted between 1968 and 1970, it remains one of the artist's most recognized paintings. Given the painting's timeline, one can imagine the use of hallucinogenic drugs must have supplied some form of inspiration for this work. However, Dali famously stated "I don't do drugs ! I am drugs !" and that his inspiration resulted from a self developed method he called "Paranoiac Critical Method".
Personally, I find it a touch difficult to believe he never did drugs given the type of people he associated with, his lavish lifestyle and childlike curious nature. He was also once quoted as saying "Everyone should do hashish but just once". When one looks past the immediate hallucinatory nature of the painting, you begin to see that it is actually swimming in endless symbolism - a device Dali used throughout his entire career.
Dali Wikipedia
Posted on
12.11.15
by PsyAmb TAG :
Art
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Artist collaborations have become a growing trend in the psychedelic visual art world of late. Collaboration in visual art is nothing new, mind you. Warhol and Basquiat in the 80s and Dali and Luis Bunuel as far back as the 1920s are two famous collaborations that spring to mind.
In a sense, collaborative visual art is, as Keith haring once said, "a physical conversation happening in paint instead of words". Today's psychedelic artists are conversing in realms of inner meditative thoughts and hallucinatory experiences.
The bringing together of visual artists at psychedelic music festivals such as Symbiosis, Gem and Jam, Great North Festival and Enchanted Forest Gathering has created a perfect environment for psychedelic painters to share ideas and inspire one another to greater things.
With a background of hypnotic beats provided by a global collective of trance, bass and tribal musicians, artists take up their brushes together to feverishly paint throughout the night, surrounded by the lush canopy of nature. A cascade of creativity, then unfolds.
Posted on
25.9.15
by PsyAmb TAG :
Art
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This week I have dipped into my psydub collection to bring you a chilled out selection of ambient dub, psydub and various otherworldly sonic bass adventures. This mix starts out in a laid back dub style, meanders through fields of classic psydub and then climbs a mountain of harder hitting,magically mangled, psychedelic sounds.
We kick off with "Globules Of Joy" by Espertine. The smooth and laid back production in this track hints at classic dub with the use of deep bass and melodica. You can find this on the UK label Visionary Shamanic Records compilation "Cosmic Temple" which was released a few months back.
Our second tune comes from "Martins Garden", an artist who is making waves with a string of quality releases over the last year. You can hear this on his "Beyond" EP released last month. Five tracks of expertly crafted chillout music that won't disappoint.
Following on we have "Dub Size" and the track "Beyond The Sky". I picked this one up on German netlabel SUBBASS records. You can grab it too on the compilation "more Dub", a 16 track album of worldwide dub sounds that explores a range of styles from traditional vocal dub to more experimental offerings. Recommended for something a little different.
My current "Album Of The Week" goes to Russian producer Translippers ( Arthur Mustafin ) and his album "Herbalism". Take a listen to this track "Polar Lights" and then be sure to check out the whole album online at the Microcosmos Records site.
Posted on
16.9.15
by PsyAmb TAG :
Dub
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Greetings. It's that sticky, hot time of year here in Osaka which has forced me to hibernate in air-conditioned comfort 24/7. I've taken the time to get a long mix done too ! After previously saying I was going to concentrate on shorter mixes for a while, somehow I found the time in-between drawing and changing diapers ( the baby's, not mine ! ) to get a two hours plus psychill mix down.
This one is full of some of my favorite spacey psychill tracks from 2014/2015 and should please any fans of the Altar Records/Ultimae records spacey psychill styles. It kicks off with a track "Existence" by Ascendant from their excellent album "Athereal Code". If you like that classic Aes Dana sound then you will love that album. Actually Aes Dana follows up next with a track from his colloboration EP "Cut" that he produced with fellow Ultimae artist Miktek. It is a fantastic EP too - really progressive and pushing the psychill sound further into new territories.
Our third tune comes from Unknown Reality ( Ralph Knobloch ) from his EP "Moments". Ralph has been around the scene for ages, not always in a psychill sense though. Some of you might be familiar with his old psytrance act Rastaliens. He can certainly lay down a great bit of psychedelic downtempo as this track wonderfully demonstrates.
After Ralph we have the ever productive Germind before the mix starts to mover into slightly more hypnotic beats via Russian producer Astronaut Ape (
Oleg Belousov ). Oleg has been one of the most consistent of the new breed of Russian psychill producers and has always sought to evolve his sound in terms of production and mastering. The beauty in his tracks shine through so brightly. Check out the album "Silhouette Depth" for a wealth of quality psychill listening.
Posted on
18.8.15
by PsyAmb TAG :
Space
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Entheogenic has a fresh new album out and it's an absolute cracker too. Titled "A Singularity Encoded", Piers Oak-Rhind continues his now solo Entheogenic adventure to explore the gnostic philosophy and ancient wisdom presented on previous releases. I won't go into the whole Sophia/Christos/Anthropos gnostic background here as it runs to hundreds of pages. We are here for the music - so let's take a listen and see where Entheogenic is at in 2015.
Track 1 - "Oak Seers"
No doubt a play on Piers' own name there, however "oak seer" can also find reference in the ancient lore of Celtic druids. This track is a wondrous introduction to the album. A melancholic melody of haunting flutes, chanting vocals and running water gives way to introspective acoustic guitar reminiscent of the guitar work on last year's "Enthymesis" album. The music peels away layers of consciousness, lifting you up, step by step, to levels of floating nakedness - open and reborn to the cosmos. This is classic Entheogenic - swirling, spiraling synths, deep dubby bass and euphoric signature changes over phased percussive hits. No matter how reminiscent it may be of the Entheogenic of old it's also refreshingly new - it's big, bold and a thousand times more organic sounding than the group's days of old.
Track 2 - "Hamra-Dum"
Hamra-Dum is a small village on the west back of the Nile river in Eqypt. It's best known as being close to the famous cliff where the Gnostic Gospels of Nag Hammadi library were found back in 1945. This track begins in a similar way to the first track with more sublime acoustic guitar work weaving in and out of chanting ancient wisdom. Acid synth lines fold inward like twisting, dancing, dazzling fireflies before a 4/4 kick is unleashed - hurtling the track on an unexpected ride across time and space. While Entheogenic is best known for psychedelic chillout there is no denying his skill at crafting captivating trance music too. The pulsating rhythm doesn't actually last that long though, it is there more for effect rather than for providing any kind of dance floor experience one suspects. Two for two so far - a very solid opening to this album in all respects.
Track 3 - Star Wisdom Of Bon
Bon is the ancient religion of Tibet which shares many parallels with Gnostic religion. I'm assuming that is where Piers is going with this track and not a homage to rock star Bon Jovi nor the late AC/DC front man Bon Scott. Once more we have a track with a delicate, long build up that creates an evolving atmosphere of spatial entities at play in a causality of cosmic reckoning. The synth lines around the 3:30 minute mark, surfing on waves of cascading angelic effects, are incredibly beautiful. This all suddenly gives way to a classic dub refrain, Tibetan chants and more signature Entheogenic phased elements.
Track 4 - Asherah
Asherah, or Ashtoreth, was the name of the chief female deity worshiped in ancient Syria, Phoenicia, and Canaan. Here we have another dub track. The dub on this, not sure why, reminds me of Pink Floyd in a way. This one has a long build - I think about the first seven minutes or so of the track is spent climbing up and up to that dub groove. Mind you, it's ten minutes long, so there is plenty of time to play with. We have more of the acoustic guitar, crisp, clean percussion and engaging, floating synth riffs mixing sublimely together in aquatic unison. A beautiful tune that doesn't try to take you anywhere then where you need to be at the present moment in time.
Track 5 - Veil Of Isis (Lucy In Dub Mix)
The ancient Egyptian Goddess, Isis, is said to have presented a veil to mankind that once lifted, shows the ancient secrets of hidden wisdom. This track continues to explore Piers' love of mixing dub basslines with vibrant, scintillating synths. It's got plenty of that signature kick/big snare at the same time hits that Entheogenic built their early tracks on and a good helping of old school drippy phased percussive elements. Perhaps doesn't raise you up or wrap around you as much as the other tracks but a solid tune none the less.
Track 6 - Psychocosmic Parallelism
You would be forgiven for thinking Piers just made that name up in some kind Terence Mckenna psycho-babble moment however Psychocosmic Parallelism is actually a thing ! Again we are treated here to a lovely extended build up that spans over half the track before blooming, time-lapse like, into a delicate flower made of illuminated dub crystals. It's pretty evident by now that Piers is no longer resting on the past when he comes to creating new Entheogenic music. He has truely evolved the name into an entirely new entity - one that respects where the group came from and is also sparking with a vibrant new feel.
Track 7 - Genuine Abstract
Genuine dub too. The final track is the closest Piers gets to a traditional dub tune with a classic dub refrain extended over the length of the track. I really like what he has managed to do with these more dubby tracks. He hasn't gone for the reworking of the dub bassline into psydub that we often see from acts like Ott, Androcell and Shpongle. He has simply stuck with a more traditional dub approach to the bass line and ensured that the psychedelic atmosphere is held well in place by the various synths, pads and gated vocal effects.
So where does this release place Entheogenic in 2015 ? In a very comfortable position I would say ! Piers has created a wonderful album of psychedelic dub and ethereal explorations of creation myths and ancient lore.
It was pretty clear that Entheogenic were in a bit of a dark time back around the release of the album "Golden Cap" back in 2006. However ten years on, and with Piers now on his own, the name Entheogenic has once again become synonymous with quality psychedelic listening. One can only hope that he keeps hold of this gift, and nurtures it further, so that we all may benefit from his new found organic sound.
Oh, I highly recommend listening to this with quality headphones, lights out and stretched out on the floor. Be prepared to float in the cosmic clouds of the ancient gods for the next hour. A modern classic in the realms of psychedelic ambient dub. Hats off to you Mr. Oak-Rhind !
Posted on
30.6.15
by PsyAmb TAG :
Reviews
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After the release of the superb Waypoint compilation last year, Canadian downtempo label Interchill Records are back with their latest offering - Subtextures. Waypoint introduced listeners to many exciting new sounds from across the planet and Subtextures continues much in that vain with a more intelligent dub vs experimental beats approach with a wonderful track selection compiled by Interchill's label DJ Naasko.
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| Cover art by Android Jones |
It's been close to a decade since the release of Naasko's last compilation - the rather excellent Arcana back in 2006. How has his taste in music evolved since those old psydub and ethnoambient music days ? How will these new tracks fit into the overall Interchill story ?
Most noticeable on the album is that the artists included are not your regular Interchill crew. Naasko has instead curated an audio exhibition that brings in many new artists to the extensive Interchill catalog of incredible producers, possibly reflecting Naasko own evolving tastes.
So lets take a look at what's on offer...
Posted on
22.6.15
by PsyAmb TAG :
Reviews
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Two psychedelic wizards joined forces back in 2013 for an all night jam session that exceeded both artists' expectations. Terra Nine ( Mike Westcot/NZ ) and Squazoid ( Jermeny Bringue/FR ) hooked up at a party in Squazoid's Paris studio where they began playing music without any thought of where the journey would lead. As time passed, with Terra Nine providing classical elements in the form of cello and viola and Squazoid laying down the bass line, they both realized that they had conjured up something rather special indeed.
By the end of the evening, their collective unconsciousness had given birth to an exceptional song so full of depth and emotion that it reduced both artists to tears. From there, several other artists, after hearing the track, expressed an keen interest in remixing it, providing their own interpretations on an instant classic. The result is an exceptional EP from Altar Records.
The EP begins with the original track. Running to approximately five minutes in length, it is a little short when compared to most tracks you come across in the psychedelic chillout realm. However the range of emotion and energy created within that short time span blows a lot of other music away. It has some beautifully trippy delayed guitar sounds that Mike created with plucked viola - that almost sound U2 like in way ( when U2 didn't suck ). Haunting, hovering hallucinations of holographic realms come to mind as you get wrapped up in the ethereal atmosphere of it all.
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| Mike Wescott and VJ Intelliki Of Terra Nine |
Given how manic ( in a good way ) Squazoid's music can be I was quite surprised by the result - this is polished, sensuous music, comparable to the emotions derived from Jaia's classic "After The Rain", OTT's "The Queen Of All Everything".
Posted on
12.6.15
by PsyAmb TAG :
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