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Michael Lynch:
January, 2001
American
Psychedelic Music Versus English Psychedelic Music
Classifying bits of recorded music into its proper category
is not as easy as it seems. We all think we know, when we
hear a record, how to classify it. Metal. Punk. Country. Yet
do we ever take time to think about what the exact elements
there are to a record that ensure their placement in a particular
genre? What could possibly be that unknown ingredient that
places both "Teenager In Love" and "Master Of Puppets" into
the same pool known as Rock? What do we hear in the
music of Megadeth that makes us mentally stamp it Metal,
a term for music first used for bands like Grand Funk Railroad,
who sound nothing like Megadeth? Why do we not classify Jimmy
Dean's "Big Bad John" as rap?
And
what about Psychedelic music? How do we describe that? The
most common describe it is 'Drug influenced music.' But is
that true? The Shaggs' music sounds drug-influenced but it's
not really psychedelic, is it? Some Mothers of Invention music
may strike the ears as psychedelic, and yet Uncle Frank and
his gang were quite outspoken in their anti-drug stance.
Of course, music genres are often a product of the times.
The counterculture of mid 1960's America helped take the music
scene into a new territory, while the English hippies helped
plot a route for their music as well. In both cases, the music
was branded 'psychedelic.' But, as the difference between
the two country's cultures is substantial, so was the difference
between the type of music each country produced, despite being
given the same tag. Surrealistic Pillow isn't quite
the same music heard on Mr. Fantasy. You could count
the similarities between "I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night"
and "A Whiter Shade Of Pale" on one hand...one of Mickey Mouse's
hand, even.
Fortunately for us, though, this time the distinctions are
extreme enough to pinpoint directly.
An American psychedelic band may draw inspiration from Timothy
Leary. An English psychedelic band might instead look to Lewis
Carroll.
An
American psychedelic band would cry "Further!" An English
psychedelic band would move backwards.
American
psychedelic bands sang about demanding their voices to be
heard, wanting to be treated like adults. English psychedelic
bands sang about wanting to be children again.
An American psychedelic band was apt to write a song about
the man who sold them drugs. An English psychedelic band was
apt to write a song about the man who sold them groceries.
The American psychedelic bands had long, shaggy hair. The
English psychedelic bands had long, neatly trimmed hair.
The
American counterculture bought clothes from the thrift shop.
The English counterculture bought from the boutique.
The
American psychedelic bands countered pop music standards.
The English psychedelic bands did this to a degree but usually
kept one foot on commercially viable ground.
American psychedelic music's keyboard of choice was a Hammond
or Vox organ. English psychedelic music's keyboard of choice
was a Harpsichord.
American hippies drank Electric Kool Aid. English hippies
drank Tea.
American hippies ate Hash brownies. English hippies ate English:
Biscuits (normal ones).
America: Long, often boring, aimless and chaotic jamming,
mostly weird guitar sounds (the guitarist is the icon of our
country's psych movement), loosely centered around a main
tune to start and end on...This is our musical depiction of
space travel, and it is enhanced by the awesome light show
going on above us as we play. We're The Grateful Dead.
England: Long, often boring, aimless and chaotic jamming,
mostly weird guitar sounds (the guitarist is the icon of our
country's psych movement), loosely centered around a main
tune to start and end on...This is our musical depiction of
space travel, and it is enhanced by the awesome light show
going on above us as we play. We're Pink Floyd.
American psychedelic band train of thought: Let's take a trip
to that inner world of our mind...and write a song about it.
English
psychedelic band train of thought: Let's take a trip to the
park...and write a song about it.
American psychedelic band train of thought: LBJ is a drag.
English psychedelic band train of thought: Maybe Harold Wilson
would like to join us?
American psychedelic band train of thought: Psychedelic music
is a live performance experience. English: Psychedelic music
is a studio thing.
American psychedelic band mentality: "On the bus" English
psychedelic band finds song inspiration: On the morning train.
The
American psychedelic bands wrote songs about the Little Men
(the oppressed, the minority, the victims of establishment
and anyone else who can't get their voice heard). The English
psychedelic bands wrote songs about songs about the Little
Men (trolls, gnomes, fairies, etc.)
The American psychedelic bands followed Indian mannerisms,
as in Native-American. The English psychedelic bands followed
Indian mannerisms, as in mannerisms from India.
All these differences and yet we still put it all in the same
bottle. And still we haven't yet found an answer to the question
of what is psychedelic music?
Perhaps George Harrison, or the person doing his voice in
Yellow Submarine put it most accurately.
"It's all in the mind."
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Michael
Lynch Column: December,
2000
Michael
Lynch Reviews: December,
2000 November, 2000
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Michael
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