The Best Psychedelic Album by Year 1966-2024

Jason LeValley with Brian Kuhar (70s)
January 2, 2025
9:44 am

The Best Psychedelic Album by Year 1966-2024

Part 1

The Sixties

For obvious reasons, the sixties were a crucial decade for psychedelic rock. It was the dawn of the era, and it was almost mandatory during the late 60s for young musicians to experiment with psychedelics. The Beatles did, and they inspired countless others to see for themselves what all the fuss was about. Once psychedelics were introduced to the rock n’ roll generation, there was an explosion of creativity that resulted in some of the best music ever made. The dentist who dosed Lennon and Harrison without their consent behaved irresponsibly and unethically, but it nonetheless caused a seismic shift in popular music.

1966

Revolver—The Beatles

Some might point to the 13^th Floor Elevators and say that their debut album The Psychedelic Sounds of… should be considered here. Sorry, but that album, inspired as it is, doesn’t compare to the brilliance of The Beatles and the psychedelic sheen that encapsulates the sound of Revolver, the first great psychedelic album and quite possibly the best ever.

1967

Piper at the Gates of Dawn—Pink Floyd

This could just as easily have been Sgt. Pepper’s or Magical Mystery Tour, the two psychedelic rock masterpieces by The Beatles released in 1967. But the Beatles’ greatness has been established so many times over that it almost seems like overkill to award them the best album of 1967 when there were so many other albums to choose from. After all, 1967 was the peak of psychedelic rock and there were so many great albums released that year. Pink Floyd made an immediate impact with their debut album which was orchestrated by the madcap Syd Barrett.

1968

Electric Ladyland—Jimi Hendrix Experience

The Jimi Hendrix Experience released three brilliant works of art in the 1960s, and any of them could have been included on this list. Electric Ladyland contains the epic (nearly 14-minute) track 1983 (A Merman I Should Turn to Be), which is psychedelic Hendrix Experience at its best.

1969

Happy Trails—Quicksilver Messenger Service

In March 1969, QSM delivered their second album, the last to feature the classic lineup. The record, which centered around Bo Diddley’s “Who Do You Love?”, was recorded live and illustrates how masterful the quartet could be at jam-oriented psychedelia.

The Seventies

In the mid-to-late seventies, psychedelic rock had fallen out of fashion. Most of what you would end up with if you were a “head” were tinges of psychedelia mixed in with fragmented sub-genres. Progressive rock often had psychedelic aspects amidst the long-form pieces. Certainly, the borrowing of ostinato (repetitive rhythms, sometimes in odd time signatures) from classical music technique was used by bands such as ELP and Magma. African Zamrock, Nigerian funk, and Jamaican Dub sometimes used echoed vocals and repetition to create a trance-like state in the listener. The Canterbury Scene, while more jazz-inflected, relied heavily on the confluence of Prog and Psych. Kosmische Musik (Krautrock’s preferred and less offensive name) often fell on the psychedelic side, again utilizing ostinato mixed with odd instrumentation and effects.

1970

Think Pink—Twink

The output of psychedelic rock albums dropped sharply at the end of the 60s. Altamont, the Manson murders, and various people losing their shit on LSD seemed to drive a stake through the heart of the psychedelic rock movement. One artist, however, was not deterred. John Alder, who drummed for Tomorrow and the Pretty Things and was known professionally as Twink, released an album of intensely psychedelic material at the dawn of the new decade. With Think Pink, Alder showed that he was committed to psychedelia and that he had talents that weren’t apparent on the records on which he only drummed. Think Pink is a classic!

1971

Tago Mago–Can

Can’s first album featuring stalwart vocalist Damo Suzuki, this double album gave the band further room to expand their particular brand of Kosmiche Musik (AKA “Krautrock”). Can’s avant-garde electric classical meets motoric beat was the oft-imitated sound of West Germany in the early-to-mid-Seventies, thanks to tracks like “Mushroom” and “Hallelujah.”

1972

666– Aphrodite’s Child

Oscar-winning composer Vangelis Papathanassiou’s late-sixties band Aphrodite’s Child released this double album about the biblical Book of Revelation in 1972. Stunning in its depth and concept, the production cost upwards of half a million dollars in today’s equivalent! The album is a story within a story—the band performing a show about the apocalypse while the real apocalypse occurs just outside.

1973

Space Ritual–Hawkwind

The culminating roadshow of the earliest Hawkwind albums, Space Ritual was a multimedia extravaganza of rock music, light show, poetry, and dance, combined with the superb graphic design packaging of Barney Bubbles. Well ahead of their time, the masters of space-rock forged a new path ahead for a head in the Seventies, and they are still performing variations of this show to this day.

1974

Celestial Ocean—Brainticket

Brainticket was formed by Belgian jazz pianist Joel Vandroogenbroeck after being inspired by German bands such as Amon Düül II, Can, and Tangerine Dream. The eerie, mostly spoken-word lyrics based on the Egyptian Book of the Dead float away into cosmic realms as the music unfolds with avant-garde intensity propelled by synthesizers, jazz drumming, and exotic instrumentation.

1975

Super Record– Magical Power Mako

Magical Power Mako (AKA Makoto Kurita) is a Japanese musical prodigy with the uncanny ability to play over 100 different instruments—instantly likening him to Mike Oldfield in his Tubular Bells era. Part space rock/part ambient, this offering is similar to the lighter moments of Gong and draws inspiration from Tangerine Dream’s Rubycon album and Popol Vuh.

1976

3:47 EST—Klaatu

Canadian band Klaatu took pages from the Beatles 1967/1968 psychedelic era. Whimsical slice-of-life McCartney-esque songs mingle with a pop-perfect spaciness, not unlike ELO from the same time frame. The lead track “Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft” was made more famous and opulent (160 musicians?!) by the Carpenters a year later.

1977

Ocean—Eloy

German band Eloy’s sixth studio offering is a prog concept based on the myth of Atlantis. The album floats along not unlike Pink Floyd’s “Shine on You Crazy Diamond” with dashes of “Echoes,” yet remains wholly unique. Legato synth lines, guitar solos similar to Steve Hillage’s work in Gong, and spoken word narrative dot the album; making it one of Eloy’s major works and a dividing line between their earlier hard organ rock efforts and their later conceptual pieces.

1978

Duck Stab / Buster & Glen– The Residents

Art rockers The Residents combined two 1978 EPs to make this tour de force of weirdness. Rhythmically interesting and often (intentionally?) out of tune, these anonymous gentlemen from San Mateo by way of Louisiana were always innovative with their music, lyrics, art, and conceptualization. “Sinister Exaggerator” and “The Electrocutioner” are must-listens.

1979

Arachnoid—Arachnoid

This self-titled album from French prog band Arachnoid bears similarities to King Crimson’s Larks’ Tongues in the Aspic era and Belgian Zeuhl band Univers Zero. Dark, creepy, and symphonic with a metallic edge, the band combined odd meters with unusual synthetic instrumentation to create some of the most exciting and energetic music from the European continent during the post-punk years.

The Eighties

At the beginning of the 80s, psychedelic music was still out of favor. Punk, New Wave, Power Pop, and Heavy Metal ruled the day, and the drug of choice was cocaine—a far cry from the soul-enhancing psychedelics like LSD and magic mushrooms. Yet, there were subtle signs that psychedelia was coming back. New Wave/post-punk bands like Echo and the Bunnymen, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, The Church, and The Teardrop Explodes incorporated psychedelic elements into their sound, essentially disguising their lysergic leanings. Soon the Paisley Underground would emerge, paying their respects to the Nehru-jacketed pioneers of the 60s and making psychedelia more palatable to the masses.

1980

Underwater Moonlight–The Soft Boys

Robyn Hitchcock’s jangly neo-psych band led the charge of the first psychedelic resurgence with this post-punk masterpiece. Hailing from Cambridge, England (birthplace of three Pink Floyd members), these lads admired the psych-pop sounds of the Beatles, the surreal lyrics of Syd Barrett, and the jangly, harmonized sound of the Byrds. They would go on to influence XTC, REM, and the Nineties Brit Pop movement.

1981

Black Snake Diamond Role– Robyn Hitchcock

In Robyn Hitchcock’s impressive solo debut, he moves away from The Soft Boys’ aggressive sound and shows off his gift for understated psychedelia. Hitchcock doesn’t subscribe to the usual production tricks to create his brand of psychedelic pop-rock; he seems to exude a psychedelic vibe naturally.

1982

They Could Have Been as Big as The Beatles— Television Personalities

This is a brilliant slice of raw, lo-fi psychedelia by obscure British alternative act Television Personalities. This is no-frills, enthusiastic psych-punk. The album contains covers of two songs by obscure British psych-rockers The Creation.

1983

Emergency Third Rail Power Trip— Rain Parade

Emergency Third Rail Power Trip by Paisley Underground artists Rain Parade is full of Byrds-like layered guitars and Revolver-esque guitar solos, cool effects, and droning vocals. It captures the essence of ’60s psychedelia without sounding exactly like it.

1984

I Often Dream of Trains– Robyn Hitchcock

Hitchcock does it again. This album is an inventive, clever, surreal acoustic set of wonderful songs. Hitchcock truly came into his own on this one.

Honorable mention: Pagan Day by Psychic TV, Under Wartime Conditions by The Cleaners from Venus

1985

Plasticland—Plasticland

These garage-rock revivalists, unlike their Knights of Fuzz brethren, are actually psychedelic and not just garage. Their self-titled album is a raucous, fun brand of psychedelia by this obscure 80s band.

1986

Camper Van Beethoven–Camper Van Beethoven

Camper Van Beethoven is not generally considered a neo-psychedelic band, but their self-titled album certainly is–a fact I was oblivious to previously. Psychedelic Scene readers first brought this album to my attention as a legitimate psych album. This one you should hear for yourself.

Honorable mention: Rembrandt Pussyhorse—Butthole Surfers

1987

Psonic Psunspot– The Dukes of Stratosphear

XTC, who assumed alter egos as The Dukes of Stratosphear, released a brilliant EP in 1985 in which they expertly mimicked the sounds and styles of 60s psych-rock. They do it again here for a full album and it’s an even better slice of psych-rock perfection.

1988

Fade Out—Loop

Fade Out presented a different type of psychedelia. It seems the band was going for a heavier shoegaze or space-rock sound, but there are, nonetheless, moments of psychedelic splendor found on this disc. Also, there weren’t many contenders in 1988.

1989

Playing with Fire—Spacemen 3

Spacemen 3 wasn’t a true psychedelic band. Like Loop, they were more space-rock. And like the previous year, ‘89 didn’t produce many psych albums. But Spacemen 3 ventured into psychedelic territory at times, and you can hear that most clearly on Playing with Fire.

The Nineties

Changes in popular music were on the horizon at the dawn of the nineties. Classic rock was losing steam, and a sea change was brewing as so-called alternative bands gained popularity. The predominance of alternative rock opened the doors for subgenres that didn’t fit the mainstream constructs. This and the fact that the much-maligned “hippie-dippy” culture of the 60s was now far enough in the past meant that the door was open for psychedelic music to re-emerge.

1990

Crushed Velvet Apocolypse—The Legendary Pink Dots

The Legendary Pink Dots have released weird, experimental albums since the early 80s with very little commercial success. This dark, electronic-based psychedelic album is among their best.

Honorable mentions: Other Way Out—Sun Dial, In a Priest Driven Ambulance—Flaming Lips

1991

Screamadelica—Primal Scream

A hugely influential album that blends rock with electronica, Screamadelica brought Britpop, Acid House, and techno together in a giant rave stew like no other album had ever done. It’s danceable yet chill, and it should appeal to psych rock enthusiasts as it contains a cover of the 13^th Floor Elevators’ “Slip Inside This House”.

1992

Lazer Guided Melodies—Spiritualized

This album is a dream-pop masterpiece that ventures into psychedelic territory. It’s the first effort by the band, which is fronted by J. Spaceman (aka Jason Pierce) from Spacemen 3. Ironically, another contender for the year’s best album comes from Sonic Boom, Spaceman’s partner in their previous band, who released Soul Kiss with his new band Spectrum. Additionally, an album that should be mentioned here is Hit to Death in the Future Head by the Flaming Lips, who were gearing up for greatness with their 1992 release.