Psychedelic Rock is a style of rock music influenced and represented by psychedelic culture. While psychedelic music is often centered on musical elements that give listeners a mind altering experience associated with perception and thoughts, the musical style has been used indiscriminately in different sub-cultures. This article presents a detailed perspective on the best psychedelic rock bands.

The roots of Psychedelic music lie in the 60s. The style of music came into its own when musicians in the folk genre started experimenting with long improvisational elements and musical structures that featured electronic sounds induced through studio tricks accompanied by non-western instrumentation, dynamization and disjunctive sonic soundscapes. The musical and lyrical elements in psychedelic rock are known to take listeners on a thought provoking musical journey often induced by a mind altering high. The early psychedelic movement that stemmed from folk rock derived a significant influence from blues and jazz. The raga rock movement became monumental in the 60s, and many psychedelic rock bands incorporated Indian influences in sounds.

Psychedelic Rock and the Hippie Culture

The psychedelic music movement became a subculture with hippies in the 60s. Between 1965 and 1969 psychedelic rock became an epic musical movement, Events such as Summer of Love in 1967 and Woodstock Rock Festival spread the message of hippie culture also fondly known as the flower generation.

The mind altering experiences of psychedelic drugs, LSD in particular started being associated with different styles of psychedelic rock.

The music that came to life induced by a hallucinogenic episode of mind altering drugs has a signature dark mood to music and lyrics evoking thoughtfulness and perception of changes. While the hippie movement embraced different forms of psychedelic music with open arms, the hippie culture involved with meditation and spiritual practices were disheartened about psychedelic rock being showcased in negative light through use of drugs.

In the 60s, a number of bands emerged in the British music scene with a psychedelic pop sound. The American West coast in the mid 60s developed the acid rock sound, a heavy-hard-hitting style often associated with psychedelic rock. While different musical influences shaped the Psychedelic rock sound, the free-form experimentation in structured jams formed the focal point of psychedelic music. Psychedelic rock is known to take listeners on a journey of thought provoking questions of self-realization. While the psychedelic rock scene peaked in the 60s, the movement started fading away in the 70s with many psychedelic bands adopting a change in sound or shifting to other genres.

The neo-psychedelic sound emerged in the 70s with a number of progressive elements rooted in the psychedelic sound. Though the psychedelic rock sound has evolved considerably since the 70s, the magical expression of perception, introspect, and mindfulness through music and lyrics remain the same. The present psychedelic rock movement may not be as magnanimous as it used to be, however, the fact remains that psychedelic rock changed the lives of many through music.

The flower power generation owes it big to different forms of psychedelic rock. Psychedelic rock is often associated with the hippie culture that spawned a new world of artists, poets, thinkers, dreamers, and intellects. Progressive rock and many heavy metal subgenres have branched and developed through different forms of psychedelic rock. While the school of thought in regard with psychedelic rock as a diverse musical style varies drastically, no one can deny…psychedelic rock paved the way for wide genres of music.

The lines below showcase a diverse list of the best Psychedelic bands.  

100 Greatest Psychedelic Rock Bands

1. Gong
2. Jefferson Airplane
3. Pink Floyd
4. Big Brother and the Holding Company
5. Apple Pie Motherhood Band
6. Blue Magoos
7. Quicksilver Messenger Service
8. The Electric Prunes
9. Grateful Dead
10. The 13 th Floor Elevators
11. The Doors
12. The Charlatans
13. Blue Cheer
14. The Byrds
15. Lothar and the Hand People
16. Count Five
17. Pink Fairies
18. Comus
19. Shocking Blue
20. Country Joe and the Fish
21. Love
22. Iron Butterfly
23. Trad Gras Stenar
24. Procol Harum
25. The Seeds
26. Moby Grape
27. Soft Machine
28. The Velvet Underground
29. The Peanut Butter Conspiracy
30. Spirit
31. Les Rallizes Denudes
32. The Crazy World of Arthur Brown
33. The Jimi Hendrix Experience
34. Sons of Champlin
35. Vanilla Fudge
36. Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band
37. The Moody Blues
38. Tame Impala
39. Silver Apples
40. Porcupine Tree
41. The Savage Resurrection
42. Hawkwind
43. The Great Society
44. The Daily Flash
45. Os Mutantes
46. The Flaming Lips
47. T. Rex
48. Cream
49. Zakary Thaks
50. The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band
51. The Deviants
52. The Yardbirds
53. Ultimate Spinach
54. Traffic
55. The Black Angels
56. Strawberry Alarm Clock  
57. The Mystery Trend
58. Earthless
59. The Mothers of Invention
60. Wolfmother
61. Black Mountain
62. The Brian Jonestown Massacre
63. Sugarloaf
64. A Place to Bury Strangers
65. The Aliens
66. Hopewell
67. White Denim
68. King Crimson
69. Warpaint
70. Foxygen
71. Allah-Las
72. Fifty Foot Hose
73. The Chocolate Watchband
74. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard
75. Argent
76. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
77. Woods
78. Endless Boogie
79. Thin White Rope
80. Unknown Mortal Orchestra
81. Dead Meadow
82. Zoe
83. The Fresh & Onlys
84. Andromeda
85. Kadavar
86. Secret Machines
87. Acid Mother’s Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O.
88. Pretty Things
89. Freedom
90. Tumbleweed
91. Oh Sees
92. Yeasayer
93. Darker My Love
94. The Zombies
95. Frijid Pink
96. Spacemen 3
97. Hunger
98. Onieda
99. Red Krayola
100. Psychic TV

Other Notable Bands Associated with Psychedelic Rock

• Coven
• Sopwith Camel
• The Creation
• Mighty Baby
• Toploader
• Steve Miller Band
• Yo Ho Wha 13
• Swervedriver
• Tractor
• Steamhammer
• Cloudland Canyon
• Sunflower Bean
• Mogollar
• Sweetwater
• Golden Void
• Frumious Bandersnatch

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Thank you for visiting my profile. I am a Freelance Content Writer. I like to learn something new every day. When I’m not at the computer, I’m either reading or on vacation. I dwell in peace, I hope you do too. My Favorite Quote “When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new.”- Dalai Lama

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