As DePaul students, many of us are trying to escape from our current realities. Music is a trusted medium to break free from these everyday truths. The psychedelic genre has tested the trials of time as Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix and many others sampled South Asian sitar and tanpura in the 1960s. Now, the likes of Tame Impala and MGMT reflect the new technological era of music with synthesizers and phasered vocals. These five songs reflect the dreaminess of the genre and will melt your troubles away.

One More Year- Tame Impala

“One More Year” is the quintessential psychedelic song on the “Slow Rush” album, and arguably Tame Impala’s trippiest track. It sounds as though strobe lights are wrapping around your ears and seeping into your brain, ready to transport you into a different plane of reality. The concept of time and freedom of youth are temporary yet fluid, as Tame Impala reminds listeners with lyrics, “One more year/ Of living like the free spirit I wanna be.”

One More Hour- Tame Impala

Driving down Highway One, windows down while salt air fills the car replays over and over in my head when I listen to this symphony of sounds. It is hard for me to pick a Tame Impala song that encapsulates that feeling of freeness yet tranquility about the future, but this song can absolutely do both. The rush of beats and the build up makes it feel as if you are surfing down an alternate wave of consciousness, ready to take on the current reality. 

One Rainy Wish- Jimi Hendrix

Waking up in a meadow of dandelions and sunshine fills the first minute and twenty seconds of the song. As the electric guitar picks up in the background, slow head-banging and hip-swinging might take place as worries stay at the front door.  Even on the harshest winter days Hendrix fills my ears with warmth as I feel myself confidently strutting down the street. 

Scenes from a Midnight Movie- Blood Cultures

Good songs have layers, but some songs are so good that the music can feel all-encompassing. There is nothing more fulfilling than being able to blast this song on your headphones or in your car and let the music move through your body and scratch all the right parts of your brain.

Are You Even Real?- James Blake

At the start of the pandemic, there was little else for me and my friends to do than get boba, drive up the Northern California hills and watch the sunset and the city lights. James Blake’s haunting vocals and soft, experimental instrumentals is the perfect background for looking at all the stunning beauty that NorCal has to offer.