Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

San Fran Returns to Its Psychedelic Roots

Not that any band there would say they knew of a scene

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted Sep 5, 2009 9:42 AM CDT
Email

(Newser) – San Francisco seems to have had something of a psychedelic rock resurgence, though don’t ask any of the bands involved to identify themselves that way. “People are so aware of everything and don't really separate it that much,” a man whose band has the telltale brooding drones tells the Guardian. "They mention modern hip-hop in the same sentence as old psych stuff or the Monkees or whatever.”

There’s also the question of a scene, which flourished in the '60s but seems fractured, if not absent, today. “I'm not a very social person,” the rocker continues. “If I have any tie with psychedelia, it's that I like transforming my pop songs into something that will take you off into another place.” That sounds about right. But even if the sound is the same, there’s no “deep philosophical meaning” to it, another musician says. People today “are just borrowing an aesthetic that's already there—a sound more than anything else.”

The Grateful Dead in 1965.
The Grateful Dead in 1965.   (Getty Images)
The Golden Gate Bridge frames the San Francisco skyline at dusk.
The Golden Gate Bridge frames the San Francisco skyline at dusk.   (AP Photo)
A tie-dye pattern.
A tie-dye pattern.   (Flickr)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

There's always music happening that's weirder and more experimental. Maybe it's improvised, or a bunch of noise, or has to do with crazy costumes and performance. But there's wildly disparate elements. - Ezra Feinberg, Citay

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 11 comments
JoeQ
Sep 6, 2009 5:05 AM CDT
Mad, you are right that San Diego is very dry. In his book, Dana described going to sleep on the southern California coast near what is now Long Beach while listening to the howls of coatamundi. Picture that nowadays and contrast it to the oil terminals. I was referring to a balance between nature and people, and living in a desert is not the same as a forest. Deserts have their charms. Back when San Diego's canyons were not overbuilt, it was a showplace for architecture. A little bit of technology and central air conditioning makes a place like that a great place to live. Now its just dense and congested with humanity. You are right that Baja is very dry, but it is also quite beautiful, especially certain parts. Most people don't appreciate the desert's beauty, which is why Arizona is currently going down the tubes.
super_soft_wizard
Sep 5, 2009 10:46 AM CDT
SF is probably the greatest American city. Seriously: what other 'burgh can hold a candle to it? If it was slightly warmer then everyone would want to live there. Oh wait... they already do. A two bedroom flat goes for about $900k even in this shitty market.
super_soft_wizard
Sep 5, 2009 10:41 AM CDT
If by 'any given city street' you mean Haight Street and the Tenderloin... then yeah. The other 97% of The City? Few confrontational street people and teen runaways. Sorry that you limit your urban tourism to the tourist traps in which the street folk can easily shake you down. Bitchass.

 
San Francisco • rock and roll • Grateful Dead • 1960s • bands • psychedelic • Jefferson Airplane • scene

More Newser Stories

LSD King Owsley Stanley Dead at 76

Pirate Radio Rocks on Good Tunes, Cast

Santa Cruz Seeks Deadhead Archivist

Steven Tyler Quits Aerosmith: Band

Woodstock Not Worth the Trip
NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne