A cup of tea and a chip buttie usually does it for me!

A guy suggested I try LSD once, but the money bags kept getting stuck in my throat.

A passing knowledge of "Real English" would decipher my post.

yeah, i have mixed pot with some prog from time to time.  Also, if you have windows media player 10, some of the visualizations are stunning while stoned.  Especially alchemy (random).  My favorite experience was Cluster - zuckerzeit + pot + alchemy visual....All I have to say is wow!!!! - It is impossible to explain!  But mix it up for personal preferences. 

I myself have cut back on pot as of late and haven't done it in half a year.  But I use to be a big stoner.

I've been experimenting with various South American hallucinogenics, and I have to admit they improve the experience of listening to Ashlee Simpson.

So I'm against it.

http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=575 - http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=575

Shatterwolf wrote: Have any of you guys felt that the combination of drugs and prog would lead to a new sense of spirituality?

That was exactly the musical experience openly defended by the german producer Rolf Ulrich Kaiser.

I'm sure taking drugs while listening to prog is great, but I wouldn't do it. Too risky in more ways than one, like getting arrested or any number of problems with the drugs themselves, plus the cost and the lengths you would have to go to get the drugs. Plus the fact that most are addictive. Plus you might (some may resist, you can never tell) just lose all care for anything but the drugs, and I hope to be able to write music and not wind up as the next Syd Barrett.

Yup.

penguindf12 wrote: Yup.

Two gay cowboys alone on the range:

Yup? Yep!

Thanks guys, I'll take it into consideration, but I must argue...

MARIJUANA IS THE SAFEST DRUG IN THE WORLD!

http://www.erowid.org - www.erowid.org

Be there, or be a mushroom-induced hallucinated square.

Shatterwolf wrote: Thanks guys, I'll take it into consideration, but I must argue... MARIJUANA IS THE SAFEST DRUG IN THE WORLD! http://www.erowid.org - www.erowid.org Be there, or be a mushroom-induced hallucinated square.

Because if it says so on the internet, it's obviously true.

Because if it says so on the internet, it's obviously true.

Erowid is considered one of the best sources online for substances. It has tons of actual, factual, information, with user experiences, experiments, and documentaries. It's not some sh*tty little site where lunatics teach children how to make blunts of of plates, or snort pixie sticks. It's just the truth. THC, in marijuana, doesn't kill your brain cells, rather, it just "tickles" your brain's receptors, without harming them. It was proven not to be addictive, along with other such proof to attack the propaganda that suggested such things. Infact, the only downside of pot, is the actual smoking part. I doesn't constrict your airways, it opens them, but there is proof that smoke, of any kind, can hurt your lung cells. But hey, you can always eat the pot...

I highly suggest you take 5 minutes out of your life to visit that site.

^ One of my friends in college had a dog that died when it ate an ounce and a half. I don't know if it was the THC that did it, though. Of course, if that's gonna keep you from weed then you definitely need to stay away from chocolate. And antifreeze.

VC: thanks for the Crumb

^ One of my friends in college had a dog that died when it ate an ounce and a half. I don't know if it was the THC that did it, though. Of course, if that's gonna keep you from weed then you definitely need to stay away from chocolate. And antifreeze.

Nah, dogs are weird. How big was the guys dog? If it was a small thing, I'd understand. I feed my 130 pound dog bars of chocolate (rarely), and he didn't kick the bucket. Meh.

RL, I knew someone was going to bring South Park up. Mmmkay?

Everyone knows that "Dark side Of The Moon" is the best experience when stoned. Its not my personal fav., but it seems to be the general consensus. I just listened to "Close to THe Edge" by Yes (high) this past friday and i would highly recomend it. also try:

Animals- Pink Floyd

Foxtrot- Genesis

Wish you Were Here- Floyd

A Trick of THe Tail- Genesis

the song "coming back to life" by floyd.

Try anything spacy, and be sure to listen to it in total darkness to get full effect.

There are many drugs that enhance the "spiritual side" of the mind, but you can get far more out of music without them.

With drugs, you get something different; Any art can be appreciated differently after taking any one of a number of different drugs. It can seem quite amazing, until the effects wear off. "Ummagumma" comes to life about two hours or so into the average LSD trip. But try listening to it without the assistance of the blotter; Simple physics; what goes up MUST come down.

Without drugs, the effect never wears off, and you don't get the crappy feeling afterwards.

A nice "doobie" can also enhance the creative process - providing you have something to work with in the first place. It's good for adding detail to something that exists, but next to useless for coming up with new ideas from scratch.

Too many doobies can muck the whole thing up - including your body and mind; Jazz musicians the world over have stumbled into the pitfalls of heroin. Yep, Mary Joanna can be the gateway that anti-druggies say she is. Note; CAN.

It's like anything; Moderation is the key - using the tool to get a job done, rather than abusing it.

Everyone takes drugs. Mostly in denial, but they do. Did you know that Bananas contain a seratonin releasing agent similar to ecstasy?

'Scuse me while I just nip down to Tesco for my daily "lunch bunch"...

Ganja has VERY nasty side-effects, mainly paranoia, and can lead to long term mental illness.

My only drug of choice is Alcohol, but in reasonable doses, I suggest anybody wanting to experience a safe "high" should push their body to the limit (A rowing machine is good for this), then (when you fall off the machine with exhaustion) the brain is usually awash with natural pain killers (endorphines or whatever they are called) - This natural high can be very pleasant....

However I wouldn't suggest 5000m straight away....build it up slowly!

"Dr. Mom" has a third eye! ROFL

I will say that Robitussin tasted better on the way back up than tequila does...

Alcohol - very dangerous substance, I'd have to agree, but in sensible doses it's perfectly harmless, and I've never vomitted because of alcohol - ever!

It's only brainless morons who abuse alcohol and unfortunately because it's legal to imbibe (In christian/western countries) it's effects are anti-social, however - ganga is harmful - even in moderation.

Drugs - maybe they should all be legalised thus removing drug-addiction fuelled crimes.....

Swinton MCR wrote: Alcohol - very dangerous substance, I'd have to agree, but in sensible doses it's perfectly harmless, and I've never vomitted because of alcohol - ever! It's only brainless morons who abuse alcohol and unfortunately because it's legal to imbibe (In christian/western countries) it's effects are anti-social, however - ganga is harmful - even in moderation. Drugs - maybe they should all be legalised thus removing drug-addiction fuelled crimes.....

The trouble with "controlled" drugs is that they aren't.

Think of all the tax dollars going to waste...

Thanks for all your advice. I've decided this weekend, since my drug buddy Jeremy is out of town, that I will relax to a mix of Pink Floyd, Yes, and Peachtree Schnapps. DMT and LSA are drugs I've been anxious to try, but could never afford.

How about http://www.nicecupofteaandasitdown.com/ - a nice cup of tea and a sit down ?

I feel too old to advocate the use of drugs, but drugs and music work perfectly together, prog or otherwise.

I will still take a good stoning while listerning to any Genesis album up to and including 'Duke' Also some Yes, parts of 'Topographic oceans..' are mindblowing when completly battered.

Pink Floyd are also a good Ganja band, as are VDGG and Focus IMO.

With regard to acid, I took far too much in my late teens and early 20's and it got messy for a while. I have steered clear for the last 13 years or so.

I'm not anti drugs and I generally concur with the 'lets legalise the lot' idea. Its a bit late in the day to be using the argument that these substances are harmful as a basis for prohibition. Most things we eat are harmful, alcohol and tobacco are harmful, breathing the air in any town and city is harmful. I would have more respect for a government that was honest that the reason, for prohibition to be in place is because they have yet to work out a watertight way to control and tax the sale of drugs.

To be totally honest, I can't say with perfect certainty that my drug use hasn't had negative effects...but anything you put in your body has good and bad consequences, from LSD to beer, from coffee to pasta. I do sometimes wonder how my life would be different if I hadn't done quite so much experimenting, but truthfully some of my happier memories involve drug experiences, friends, and music. So while I can't in good conscience recommend it, neither can I be a hypocrite and tell anyone not to try it.

Just try to be a little smart about it, at least. There's the old "boy who cried wolf" thing...some of the worst abusers got that way because they'd been lied to about drugs all their life, and then when they tried drugs and found that they liked them, they stopped listening to anything anyone said about it, even when it really was the truth.

And don't waste your money on that fuing Salvia...what a rip-off

James Lee wrote: To be totally honest, I can't say with perfect certainty that my drug use hasn't had negative effects...but anything you put in your body has good and bad consequences, from LSD to beer, from coffee to pasta. I do sometimes wonder how my life would be different if I hadn't done quite so much experimenting, but truthfully some of my happier memories involve drug experiences, friends, and music. So while I can't in good conscience recommend it, neither can I be a hypocrite and tell anyone not to try it. Just try to be a little smart about it, at least. There's the old "boy who cried wolf" thing...some of the worst abusers got that way because they'd been lied to about drugs all their life, and then when they tried drugs and found that they liked them, they stopped listening to anything anyone said about it, even when it really was the truth. And don't waste your money on that fuing Salvia...what a rip-off

Thats the thing about becoming older and wiser. You can't deny you've had great times trying things, but you're maturity is telling you that it would be wrong to 'reccomend' using these substances to anyone, especially anyone much younger, because despite the good times, you know intellectually, that where there's a high, there's a counterbalancing low somewhere in the mix.

I am certain acid has had both a good and bad effect on me long term. Ganja also has done my lungs, or my ability to concentrate no good at all.

If I needed drugs to listen to or enhance the music I'd be questioning if the music I was listening too was for me at all... That sound like music for people who hasn't grown up, or never managed to (wonder why?). Music is an artform that combines talent and vision with craftsmanship. Extremely few under the influence has managed to make anything but humorous works of art. Progressive is the avant-garde of popular music, and those who do it well over time, are those who have a dedicated and respectuful approach to the art they are creating and performing.

While there are obvious effects of drugs in controlled situations that alter various functions in the brain, there are far too many side effects to make any abuse worthwhile. Messing with the brains natural chemical balance is asking for trouble, and in fact your are simulating mental illnesses by adding substances to your brain. If psychiatry is too difficult for you to read, try reading the book by Andrew Salomon, which simply and effective sums up what we know about the "chemical brain", and how it reacts and changes with susbtance abuse or through mental illnesses. One of the major reasons for depression is abuse of food, alcohol and drugs.

What people do to their body is their own responsibility, but anyone who supports drugs supports crime and criminals, thus deserving the same fate as supporters of death and destruction in society... I though we had moved on from the careless 60s and 70s. Just look at all the talent that has been wasted... not to mention reduced to shadows of themselves...

You can't get a little bit pregnant... There is no controlled use of drugs unless it is made and distributed by professionals. Who knows what sh*t a street pusher sells you. I've had friends OD on stuff they thought where safe... RIP suckers!

The only difference between tea and LSD is the number of biscuits consumed in a heavy session.

Eljakim wrote: At age of 15 to 20, I used all kind of drugs cannabis, exctasy, lsd, cocaine, amphetamine, gbh, mushrooms and so on.. I thought then that would have positive effect to my  guitar/bass playing. Well, in some way it did. But it was hard to get my ideas and thoughts together and make beatiful and intresting music. Five years ago, I quit all. I don't even smoke cigarettes today. Sometimes I drink glass of red wine. I think I enjoy music much more nowdays. My mind is sharp and I enjoy listen all kind of music, even psychedelic music sounds better today. IMHO, drugs are for people who are too LAZY to do something that gives you plesure and satisfaction. Don't underestimate the power of your own imagination. These are just my thoughts, I don't mean to preach anybody.

More power to you Eljakim

Eljakim wrote: At age of 15 to 20, I used all kind of drugs cannabis, exctasy, lsd, cocaine, amphetamine, gbh, mushrooms and so on.. I thought then that would have positive effect to my  guitar/bass playing. Well, in some way it did. But it was hard to get my ideas and thoughts together and make beatiful and intresting music. Five years ago, I quit all. I don't even smoke cigarettes today. Sometimes I drink glass of red wine. I think I enjoy music much more nowdays. My mind is sharp and I enjoy listen all kind of music, even psychedelic music sounds better today. IMHO, drugs are for people who are too LAZY to do something that gives you plesure and satisfaction. Don't underestimate the power of your own imagination. These are just my thoughts, I don't mean to preach anybody.

Very wise words. There is ultimately no real need to intoxicate oneself for any reason. We've all had some wild times, I guess, and I have a few regrets with regard to what I have put into myself over the years, but not so many regrets that I look back and think 'sh*t, that was a wasted life' These days I love having a clear head and being able to organise my life a lot better than I could when I was young and 'experimenting' as we romantically choose to call it.

With regard to creativity, just think of how much better bands like Hawkwind could have been if they hadn't been so f****d all the time. Singer Bob Calvert banned the group from taking of drugs whilst recording. Low and behold their playing improved immediately apart from Simon Kings who hated Calvert and probably ignored the 'order' to abstain.

Velvetclown wrote: Hot Dog sigod

I thank you.

Try listening to Todd Rundgren's "A Wizard/A TRue Star", "Todd", and "Initiation", as well as the first 2 Utopia albums. I'm pretty sure i read that Todd was high when he recorded these.  He was about taking drugs to raise your state of mind.

Getting high is not a superficial pleasure, it is about experiencing a state of mind which you can already reach without drugs.  It has worked from my own experience and i don't need to get high to get the same experience when listeing to music without it.  You relise how far the musical experience can go. You experience in what i consider the actual state of mind that the artist you are currently listeing to is experiencing. I too learned ALOT about myself and life/music in these states of mind.

Other good records to toke to:

Todd Rundgren - Healing (listen to Healing Parts 1-3, an amazing experience) and the afore mentioned titles

Virtually any Pink Floyd Album the best being Animals

All yes albums from "yes" to "yesshows", the abloute best being "RELAYER"!!!

All that is prog.

Gopher it...

Sandwiches definitely should be criminalized. Look what they did to Mama Cass' music! Not to mention Elvis' fatal peanut butter and banana overdose.

And contrary to popular opinion, we lost Jimi Hendrix choking on a pastrami and rye...Jim Morrison should have gone to rehab for egg salad! When will people learn that it's the deli owners that are destroying today's youth!

Most people who do drugs do them to appear cool.

Did them myself at Uni and had a fair bit of blow since (none since i gave up ciggies though). It is a game-beer, birds and blow. Got to do them or you're not cool.Anyone who thinks rock artists are making their best music whilst stoned out their minds are kidding themselves. If the music was designed to be enjoyed whilst stoned it would have been composed, recorded and mastered that way!

Reed Lover wrote: Most people who do drugs do them to appear cool. Did them myself at Uni and had a fair bit of blow since (none since i gave up ciggies though). It is a game-beer, birds and blow. Got to do them or you're not cool.Anyone who thinks rock artists are making their best music whilst stoned out their minds are kidding themselves. If the music was designed to be enjoyed whilst stoned it would have been composed, recorded and mastered that way!

Yeah, forget about feeling really good or having an addiction, it's the fashionable nature of drugs that makes them so darn irresistable

Is anyone saying that music should be made or listened to on drugs? I don't think so- it just happened that some music is made under the influence (for better or worse) and a heck of a lot of music is enjoyed under the influence (for better or worse). If it weren't for speed and other ilicit stimulants, for instance, a huge portion of the bands wouldn't have been quite so tirelessly prolific in the studio or on tour- The Beatles themselves were notorious speed freaks in the early days especially.

One might as well argue that you shouldn't use alcohol while participating in the dating ritual. Sure, there's been some drunken hook-ups that probably shouldn't have happened, but more than a few of us owe our very existence in some part to a few drinks.

If you're against it or don't need it, fine; more power to ya. But don't kid yourself that drugs aren't a major part of rock and roll.

"If there's sex and drugs, I guess I could do without the rock and roll." - from Spinal Tap

James Lee wrote: Reed Lover wrote: Most people who do drugs do them to appear cool. Did them myself at Uni and had a fair bit of blow since (none since i gave up ciggies though). It is a game-beer, birds and blow. Got to do them or you're not cool.Anyone who thinks rock artists are making their best music whilst stoned out their minds are kidding themselves. If the music was designed to be enjoyed whilst stoned it would have been composed, recorded and mastered that way! Yeah, forget about feeling really good or having an addiction, it's the fashionable nature of drugs that makes them so darn irresistable Is anyone saying that music should be made or listened to on drugs? I don't think so- it just happened that some music is made under the influence (for better or worse) and a heck of a lot of music is enjoyed under the influence (for better or worse). If it weren't for speed and other ilicit stimulants, for instance, a huge portion of the bands wouldn't have been quite so tirelessly prolific in the studio or on tour- The Beatles themselves were notorious speed freaks in the early days especially. One might as well argue that you shouldn't use alcohol while participating in the dating ritual. Sure, there's been some drunken hook-ups that probably shouldn't have happened, but more than a few of us owe our very existence in some part to a few drinks. If you're against it or don't need it, fine; more power to ya. But don't kid yourself that drugs aren't a major part of rock and roll. "If there's sex and drugs, I guess I could do without the rock and roll." - from Spinal Tap

I think some of the replies here and in other threads suggest things like "you should try such or sucha album whilst high" and they are saying "look at me I am cool because I have done this"

I think you are being a tad ingenuous.

Reed Lover wrote: James Lee wrote: Reed Lover wrote: Most people who do drugs do them to appear cool. Did them myself at Uni and had a fair bit of blow since (none since i gave up ciggies though). It is a game-beer, birds and blow. Got to do them or you're not cool.Anyone who thinks rock artists are making their best music whilst stoned out their minds are kidding themselves. If the music was designed to be enjoyed whilst stoned it would have been composed, recorded and mastered that way! Yeah, forget about feeling really good or having an addiction, it's the fashionable nature of drugs that makes them so darn irresistable Is anyone saying that music should be made or listened to on drugs? I don't think so- it just happened that some music is made under the influence (for better or worse) and a heck of a lot of music is enjoyed under the influence (for better or worse). If it weren't for speed and other ilicit stimulants, for instance, a huge portion of the bands wouldn't have been quite so tirelessly prolific in the studio or on tour- The Beatles themselves were notorious speed freaks in the early days especially. One might as well argue that you shouldn't use alcohol while participating in the dating ritual. Sure, there's been some drunken hook-ups that probably shouldn't have happened, but more than a few of us owe our very existence in some part to a few drinks. If you're against it or don't need it, fine; more power to ya. But don't kid yourself that drugs aren't a major part of rock and roll. "If there's sex and drugs, I guess I could do without the rock and roll." - from Spinal Tap I think some of the replies here and in other threads suggest things like "you should try such or sucha album whilst high" and they are saying "look at me I am cool because I have done this" I think you are being a tad ingenuous.

Oh, admittedly! But only as a response in kind

Honestly, I've never personally experienced a big peer-pressure or fashionable motivation in my history with drugs. I'm sure I've met people because of drugs that I wouldn't have met otherwise, but that doesn't strike me as a bad thing- we find lifelong friends in any number of ways, and in stranger circumstances than casual weed use. The main social effect I remember from those days was from people who I assumed to be friends suddenly deciding that part of their newfound refusal of drugs included dropping me as a friend because I was still doing them- despite the fact that I've never required or suggested drugs as a condition of my friendship. I'm not talking about people who needed to 'break the chain of addiction' to survive...we're talking weed here, a substance that never causes physical dependance.

But I do recognize that it plays a big part for a number of people who are more concerned with their social image, so in that sense I totally understand your point (despite my previous ingenuousness...or is that ingenuity? no, that's something else ). From what I understand, your experience with coke is not at all uncommon (though maybe less seen now than, say, the 70s or 80s ). But in that case drugs are no different than anything else you do to 'fit in' (except for potentially more serious consequences). If drugs were simply a social phenomenon, they wouldn't be such a big issue- people would drop drugs like they drop any trendy phase. It's the fact that people enjoy the feeling they provide, and/or develop a physical or mental need for them, that makes drugs such a persistent issue.

James Lee wrote: Reed Lover wrote: James Lee wrote: Reed Lover wrote: Most people who do drugs do them to appear cool. Did them myself at Uni and had a fair bit of blow since (none since i gave up ciggies though). It is a game-beer, birds and blow. Got to do them or you're not cool.Anyone who thinks rock artists are making their best music whilst stoned out their minds are kidding themselves. If the music was designed to be enjoyed whilst stoned it would have been composed, recorded and mastered that way! Yeah, forget about feeling really good or having an addiction, it's the fashionable nature of drugs that makes them so darn irresistable Is anyone saying that music should be made or listened to on drugs? I don't think so- it just happened that some music is made under the influence (for better or worse) and a heck of a lot of music is enjoyed under the influence (for better or worse). If it weren't for speed and other ilicit stimulants, for instance, a huge portion of the bands wouldn't have been quite so tirelessly prolific in the studio or on tour- The Beatles themselves were notorious speed freaks in the early days especially. One might as well argue that you shouldn't use alcohol while participating in the dating ritual. Sure, there's been some drunken hook-ups that probably shouldn't have happened, but more than a few of us owe our very existence in some part to a few drinks. If you're against it or don't need it, fine; more power to ya. But don't kid yourself that drugs aren't a major part of rock and roll. "If there's sex and drugs, I guess I could do without the rock and roll." - from Spinal Tap I think some of the replies here and in other threads suggest things like "you should try such or sucha album whilst high" and they are saying "look at me I am cool because I have done this" I think you are being a tad ingenuous. Oh, admittedly! But only as a response in kind Honestly, I've never personally experienced a big peer-pressure or fashionable motivation in my history with drugs. I'm sure I've met people because of drugs that I wouldn't have met otherwise, but that doesn't strike me as a bad thing- we find lifelong friends in any number of ways, and in stranger circumstances than casual weed use. The main social effect I remember from those days was from people who I assumed to be friends suddenly deciding that part of their newfound refusal of drugs included dropping me as a friend because I was still doing them- despite the fact that I've never required or suggested drugs as a condition of my friendship. I'm not talking about people who needed to 'break the chain of addiction' to survive...we're talking weed here, a substance that never causes physical dependance. But I do recognize that it plays a big part for a number of people who are more concerned with their social image, so in that sense I totally understand your point (despite my previous ingenuousness...or is that ingenuity? no, that's something else ). From what I understand, your experience with coke is not at all uncommon (though maybe less seen now than, say, the 70s or 80s ). But in that case drugs are no different than anything else you do to 'fit in' (except for potentially more serious consequences). If drugs were simply a social phenomenon, they wouldn't be such a big issue- people would drop drugs like they drop any trendy phase. It's the fact that people enjoy the feeling they provide, and/or develop a physical or mental need for them, that makes drugs such a persistent issue.

I agree with 99% of what you say Jim but it seems self-evident that most people do drop drugs after a relatively short while ( ie when they leave college and go get a job, and "grow up".) Let's be honest drugs only become uncool if you get addicted to them.Surely the vast majority of people dont get hooked....but that's another argument for another day.

James Lee wrote: Don't call me Jim!!!!

Whoops,not even a typo!

no prob...happens all the time

"Jamie" is more acceptable, all my Irish relatives do it. Then again, several of them took me to the pub as a toddler, so maybe they're not such a good example of model behavior...

What about Jimmy or Jamesie?

Jimbo?

Jimbo's ok...reminds me of the Simpsons character, whom I did resemble a bit in the teen years

'Jamesie' was what a Welsh friend of mine used to call me (if you're out there, Matt, Pob dymuniad da!)...it's little used, but perfectly fine!

I'll pass on 'Jimmy', though...if that's ok

Some Jim and Jimmy are out......glad you told me that!

 me at age 16