Taj Mahal Travellers

Recommended by Matt

Celestial transmission music. Taj Mahal Travellers didn't so much make music as they channeled astral frequencies using their instruments as antennas, generating experiential soundscapes that prioritize tone, texture and space over melody, rhythm and structure. This enigmatic free-improv collective took shape in Japan during the late sixties and disbanded at some point in the mid-seventies; the group's name is from an actual road trip sojourn to Agra where the musicians explored sonic traditions and instruments of the cultures visited along the way. They are one of the most organically psychedelic groups I am aware of, playing acoustic instruments in non-traditional ways as the sounds they produce are electronically processed to further stretch and recast them into shapes that the depths of your mind will understand when your ears no longer can.

There's something about the Traveller's fields of sound that I find helpful for escaping from various kinds of ruts, especially productive and creatives ones. They are also second-to-none for an immersive listening experience if that's your kind of thing (i.e, good headphones or stereo with as little light present in the room as possible). This is my advice for listening to this group (as I'll offer for any abstract/non-linear musical performance): Approach this the same way you would a field recording taken from nature, e.g., birdsong, ocean ambience. Let the sound happen, and you might find yourself someplace else without moving.

August 1974: Recommended starting place. A 90-minute expedition through places outside the realm of the visible world.