Mushrooms and music: The exploration of psychedelic gigs
At East Forest’s ceremonial concerts, listeners are given the space to lie down on mats to take in the music. You could be looking at a yoga class; a dimly lit room filled with bodies sprawled savasana-style, aromatherapy oils wafting in the air.
It certainly doesn’t sound like a typical music gig.
The US electro-acoustic artist has long been pairing music with psychedelics, leading his first small magic mushroom ceremonies more than 15 years ago. While the use of drugs at his shows is not actively encouraged – in most places around the world this would be illegal – those who enjoy his work are aware they might experience the night differently should they choose to partake beforehand.
This fusion of music and psychedelics is not new, with scientific studies on the combined effects dating back to the 1950s and ’60s – and high-profile artists throughout time, from The Beatles to Miley Cyrus, having spoken about their use of mind-altering substances.
But the therapeutic benefits, rather than the hedonistic element, is something a growing number of artists and DJs have started exploring in recent years.
At the same time, more and more scientists – and even Prince Harry – are arguing the physical and mental health benefits, and laws in some countries are relaxing; Australia became the first country to legalise medical psychedelics earlier this year, Oregon and some US cities have done the same, and there are MPs in the UK also calling for reclassification.
For East Forest, whose real name is Trevor Oswalt, his shows and music are a chance to “give people more openings and options, to say, maybe you can be a little more vulnerable or you can go a little deeper”, whether they have taken anything beforehand or not.
US artist East Forest. Pic: George Evan
“I want it to feel inclusive… It’s not like we’re pushing in one direction or another and whatever entry point you come into it, it should work for you. If you want it to just be a concert, you sit or stand like any concert – great. And if you want to go a little deeper, that doorway is there for you, too.”
He adds: “For many people we see, they don’t do that at all and they have their own equally powerful experience.”
Magic mushrooms are currently a Class A drug in the UK, with the maximum penalty for possession being up to seven years in prison, an unlimited fine, or both. The maximum penalty for supply or production is life in prison.
Some experts say more research is needed into the benefits of psilocybin, the psychoactive compound found in magic mushrooms. The NHS lists it among the drugs that can potentially trigger psychotic episodes, while anti-drug advisory service FRANK warns of the risks of losing “complete control” and that a “bad trip” can potentially make mental health problems worse.
In October, a US court heard that an off-duty pilot who allegedly tried to shut down a plane’s engines during a flight told police after his arrest he had taken psychedelic mushrooms for the first time.
Pic: Cdigi
But many studies have shown it can have a positive impact on those with mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, anorexia and alcohol abuse. Other studies have shown that psilocybin can affect the way the brain reacts to music, enhancing the emotional response.
Oswalt has just released his latest album, Music For The Deck Of The Titanic, which follows previous works including Music For Mushrooms, IN: A Soundtrack For The Psychedelic Practitioner Vol II, and a collaborative album with spiritual teacher, psychologist, and author Ram Dass. He is set to release a documentary, also titled Music For Mushrooms, in 2024.
He is not the only musician who believes in the power of psychedelics. Electronic star Jon Hopkins, who is also known for producing for acts including Coldplay and Brian Eno and has collaborated with East Forest, released the album Music For Psychedelic Therapy in 2021; his almost namesake the Johns Hopkins University has a centre dedicated to psychedelic and consciousness research in Baltimore, Maryland, and has put together one of several psychedelic therapy playlists on Spotify.
Read more:
Psychedelic compound opens up depressed brains, study suggests
Magic mushrooms ‘could help women deal with cancer-related depression’
Oswalt says legalisation is “inevitable” and “should happen – because no one should be in jail for a non-violent crime that involves a substance, especially one that’s naturally growing – potentially in your backyard”.
Click to subscribe to Backstage wherever you get your podcasts
Now, more thought needs to be put into access, he says. “Some have a lot more support… anything from having the resources to go to another country or see therapists or [pay] thousands of dollars for [legal treatment] centres. What about the people who don’t?
“My interest is in people having positive, safe experiences and I really believe that music is one of the most effective ways to help and guide people and democratise that. Because I can put a five-hour album called Music For Mushrooms on Spotify and it’s out there and people are going to it, just because of a title, they might decide to use that on a journey.”
However, he is aware psychedelics may not work for everyone. “It can be traumatic. These substances are not a panacea to solve any problem. It’s a tool. And it can also cause harm. And so I’m sort of a harm-reduction approach by bringing a tool like music into that space.”
At his shows, his partner, Marisa Radha Weppner, a trained psychedelic therapist in the US, plays a part in the experience to make it “more four-dimensional and immersive”, spraying scents and adding to the soundscape with bells and shakers. But she is also there to offer support if needed. “And maybe we have people in the room who are kind of like sitters, like psychedelic air marshals,” says Oswalt. “They’re kind of quiet, not obvious, but they’re there.”
But problems are extremely rare, he says, and heavy drinking is more likely to lead to difficulties at music gigs.
Plus, he points out, people are taking drugs of all kinds at gigs, festivals and on nights out all the time. “It’s not like this is unusual, right? I think the difference is we’re giving more care and support.”
Angelina Jolie says although she appreciates being an artist, she would prefer for her legacy to be “a good mother” and to be known for her “belief in equality and human rights”.
The Oscar-winning actress stars as Maria Callas in the new Pablo Larrain film about the opera singer’s life.
Pic: StudioCanal
She has called Maria “the hardest” and “most challenging” role she has had in her career and put months of preparation into immersing herself into the world of opera.
Jolie, who recently reached a divorce settlement with actor Brad Pitt, told Sky News: “To be very candid, it was the therapy I didn’t realise I needed. I had no idea how much I was holding in and not letting out.
“So, the challenge wasn’t the technical [side of opera], it was an emotional experience to find my voice, to be in my body, to express. You have to give every single part of yourself.”
The biopic combines the voice of the Maleficent actress with recordings of Maria Callas.
Jolie believes it “would be a crime to not have [Callas’] voice through this because, in many ways, she is very present in this film”.
Who was Maria Callas?
Born in New York in 1923, Maria Callas was the daughter of Greek immigrants who moved back to Athens at the age of 13 with her mother and sister.
After enrolling at the Athens Conservatory, she made her professional debut at 17 and went on to become one of the most famous faces of opera, travelling around the world and performing at Covent Garden in London, The Met in New York and La Scala in Milan.
Callas’s final operatic performance took place at Covent Garden in 1965 when she was 41 but she continued to work conducting master classes at Juilliard School, doing concert tours and starring in the 1969 film Medea.
Written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight, Maria focuses on the artist’s final years in the 1970s when she moved to Paris and disappeared from public view.
She died on 16 September 1977 at the age of 53.
Pic: StudioCanal
Jolie on changing motivations as an actor
Maria follows the life of an artist fully consumed by the art she creates and even remarks that “happiness never developed a beautiful melody”.
Reflecting on her own life in the spotlight, Jolie said she noticed her own career motivations change over the years.
“There’s this kind of study of being human that we do when we create, and we communicate with an audience because our work is not in isolation – it’s a connection.
“I think when I was younger, I had different questions about being human and different feelings and now as I’ve gotten older, I understand some things and now I have different questions.
“It’s a matter of life, right? And so maybe that’s interesting that this now is a character really contemplating death and really contemplating the toll of certain things in life that I, of course, couldn’t have understood in my 20s”.
Jolie at the New York Film Festival in September with three of her children (L-R) Pax, Zahara and Maddox. Pic: AP
A family affair
Two of Jolie’s children, Maddox and Pax, took on production assistant roles during the filming of Maria and witnessed their mother perform opera for the first time in public.
She says the film allowed them to create new experiences together and for her children to see her approach to playing a difficult role.
“Everyone in my home, we all give each other space to be who we are and we’re all different.
“I’m the mom, but I’m also an artist and a person and so my family has been very kind and gives me their understanding. They make fun of me, and they support me and just as you’d hope it would be.”
She adds: “When you play somebody who is dealing with so much pain, it’s very important to come home to some kindness.”
Maria is in cinemas now.
Tom Holland’s dad has confirmed his son’s engagement to Zendaya – revealing how the 28-year-old meticulously planned the proposal.
Zendaya, also 28, sparked engagement rumours when she attended last Sunday’s Golden Globes wearing a sparkling diamond on her ring finger.
Neither star has publicly addressed the rumours but Tom’s comedian father, Dominic Holland, has now confirmed the pair are set to wed.
He wrote in a post on his Patreon account: “Tom, as you know by now was very incredibly well prepared. He had purchased a ring.
“He had spoken with her father and gained permission to propose to his daughter.”
“Tom had everything planned out… When, where, how, what to say, what to wear,” he added.
Zendaya arrived at the Golden Globes with a noticeable piece of new jewellery. Pic: Invision/AP
Dominic also noted that while most men worry about being able to afford an engagement ring, he suspects his actor son was “more concerned with the stone, its size and clarity, its housing, which jeweller”.
Tom and Zendaya met on the set of Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2016, when they played the titular hero and his love interest MJ, respectively. Their romance was confirmed in 2021.
In his post, Tom’s father admitted fears over whether being in the spotlight could put a strain on the couple’s relationship.
He wrote: “I do fret that their combined stardom will amplify their spotlight and the commensurate demands on them and yet they continually confound me by handling everything with aplomb.”
“And even though show business is a messy place for relationships and particularly so for famous couples as they crash and burn in public and are too numerous to mention […] yet somehow right at the same time, I am completely confident they will make a successful union.”
More entertainment news:
Paris Hilton’s home destroyed in fires
RuPaul pays tribute to The Vivienne
Zendaya rose to fame after landing a role in Disney sitcom Shake It Up, and became a household name after starring in Euphoria.
Holland – who has starred in three Spider-Man films opposite his now-fiancée – made his stage debut in Billy Elliot the Musical in 2008.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports9 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway