Psychedelic Rock and its legacy
The history of Psychedelic Rock can in a large part be traced back to the 1960s and the popularization of hallucinogens and other psychoactive substances. The earliest mention of LSD and on a record was the Gamblers surf instrumental “LSD 25” among other early records to mention LSD was The Beatles song “I Feel Fine”. Songs like mentioned would begin to lay the foundations of what Psychedelic Rock was capable of and with the social and societal changes of the 60s it would explode in popularity. Artists would increase the emphasis placed on how the sound interacts with a person and more experimental sounds would begin to explore the bounds of the genre with different artist having completely different styles but still under the umbrella of Psychedelic Rock.
Psychedelic Rock would begin to take a more political stance as the 60s progressed with it merging into the hippie movement of the time and being seen as counter culture to the political establishments of the time. Another development was the landmark album by The Beatles called “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” which would be one of the first Psychedelic Rock Albums to hit the mainstream and explode in popularity. The influence that The Beatles would have cannot be understated as it would give credence to other musicians to not conform with traditional music tastes and lead to experimental sounds appearing in different genres. The widespread reach that Psychedelic Rock had led to it having a few international variants and counterparts such as in Germany, Cambodia, United Kingdom, and Turkey.
The influence that LSD and Psychedelic Rock would have on American culture cannot be understated as it has left a legacy that would be carried on by the influence it had on different artists that would come after it. As well the meme of psychedelia would carry on in popular culture as anti-conformity and anti-establishment music played at rallies and protests. As well its music would continue to thrive with underground groups such as Dead Heads and more.
