Anthem of the Sun is the Grateful Dead’s sophomore album released in 1968 during the group’s unbounded early era. Devoid of record label confines, the band members gave themselves a studio education at Warner Bros’ expense while beseeching the engineers to contrive implausible sounds.

The album begins elegantly with its mind-bending magnum opus “That’s It For The Other One.” During its floaty introduction “Cryptical Envelopment,” Jerry Garcia pines for an ill-fated character associated with Neal Cassady, with a rotating Leslie speaker modulating Garcia’s voice. Suddenly the album cover’s multi-headed hydra rears its heads, igniting a fierce jam. Bob Weir delves into his adventures on Ken Kesey’s Furthur bus – immortalized in Tom

Suddenly the album cover’s multi-headed hydra rears its heads, igniting a fierce jam.

Wolfe’s The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test – describes “cowboy Neal at the wheel on the bus to Nevereverland.” After reprising its opening theme, the Hydra sets loose a crashing cacophony of studio and live tracks entwined together. Garcia, Weir, and bassist Phil Lesh’s frenetic fretboards and Tom Constanten’s prepared piano surrender to ominous, supernatural sound effects, resulting in the group’s most hallucinogenic moments on record.

“New Potato Caboose” meanders pleasantly with graceful instrumentation including glockenspiel, as Bob Weir croons Dylanesque similes like “her love has become a toothless groan.” While recording the atonal oddball “Born Cross-Eyed,” Weir infamously infuriated the engineers with ludicrous requests for ‘thick air.’