Home to untouched tombs filled with treasures, majestic pyramids and monuments, and vast haunting deserts, Egypt is undoubtedly a land for musical inspiration and artistic experiences. When American rock band The Grateful Dead visited Egypt in 1978, the American rock group claimed that they were to “harness the ancient energy” of the location, and “levitate” the Great Pyramid off the ground. “I went to this timeless place. The sounds from the stage – they could have been from any time. It was as if I went into eternity,” founding member Bob Weir said. Around the same time in the 1970s, which witnessed the rise of psychedelic trance (psytrance) music, India grew as a popular destination for psytrance trance outdoor raves and festivals. Influenced by the character and color of the landscapes, dancers at the festivals describe the experience as “something sublime” and “touches the strings of the soul at the deepest level.” The building blocks of psytrance music are euphoric melodies, emotion, and energy, and often vocals that can further heighten those emotions. It is usually described as an emotional experience that echoes the pace of your heartbeat. Since the…
Inside Music Tribes: Exploring Egypt’s Psytrance Community
February 24, 2022
