The Third Eye

Hip-hop comes alive with all the theatrics and storytelling with hidden messages that must be told with layered truths in psych rap. Pioneered by A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, and the Jungle Brothers, the music is experimental, with jazz elements inspired by New York’s sounds. 

With a title like People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, a Tribe Called Quest emerged from the New York scene with a hypnotic spell that led people into a trance of experimentation that was as natural a vibe to the scene as could be. It’s like peering into the soul of a culture, peering back through time, and seeing its origins with all the jazzy and lively hip-hop. 

Many consider The Low End Theory as much of a landmark and influential work as the Beatles’s Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band, and many believe it was just as experimental. There is only one Tribe, whose roots are tied to the New York scene. It displays the New York scene in the most psychedelic ways. The use of vocals depicts a world of diversity, and the heart of the music explores the stories these people carry. Like a Harlem Renaissance, this music came out swinging. 

It’s a tribal assault on the mind and psyche with record-scratching symphonies, heavenly harmonics, and the grittiness of the streets. It’s a theatrical display of record-scratching and mystical beats that takes the listener to the soul of the streets. 

It’s artists having fun experimenting with the element of hip-hop and exploring the concepts behind the music. These artists stand apart. They are a style unto themselves. It’s a coalescing of harmonies from the underground. Included is a story of a lost wallet told in prose. 

In the song “Public Enemy,” aggression is displayed, but the vocals are too smooth to be intimidating. It’s believable that they would instead intimidate with their intelligence and prose. In “Bonida Applebum,” a story of persistence in-game is displayed, another tale of the streets. In it, the listener is shown that rhythm is life, and life is rhythm. 

With intros mixed using Velvet Underground’s “Walk on the Wild Side,” A Tribe Called Quest introduces the hip-hop scene to the influence of Lou Reed, a pivotal figure in the counter-culture. And with lyrics like “No banana ain’t no primate,” references to Andy Warhol are made and his art—another introduction to the hip-hop scene and harsh critique of the music scene and its marketing schemes. 

With A Tribe Called Quest, it’s all about movement, a journey into rhythm, and the personality of the streets with a sense of humor. Maybe music should have a deeper meaning. They take you on journeys with their music, but I feel that these could be more meaningful. But intelligent jokes about the streets of New York tie to a simpler way of life, one that is filled with excitement and thrills. A Tribe experimentally explores these while teaching moral lessons on the grittiness of the streets. 

Searching for the perfect beat can also be a journey, but that journey might be to find a perfect resonance, one that brings freedom but also introduces the listener to the roots of hip-hop. Born in New York, the music set the stage for hip-hop to be explored with all the experimentation of a genius. 

Eastern spirituality lies within De La Soul’s music, displayed in “Ego Trippin,” a play on words. Is the grittiness of the streets juxtaposed by an enlightened state of getting past the ego? In “Freedom of Speak,” De La Soul explores the use of vocals in a very psychedelic way. 

De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, and The Jungle Brothers stand apart but directly influence each other. It’s as if they each have their own roles to play within the show they are putting on. It’s as if they want to stand apart from the mainstream and do something unique. There’s experimentation within parameters, and they fill their roles as an actor who fits their character within the show. 

The voices in the music explore a spectrum of diversity within the city’s culture. Included within are the shades of color that depict the people groups of the city’s culture. With experimentation of vocals, the artists portray different people from different walks of life. 

The music has a way of telling a story and pulling the listener’s attention away with its beats. The beats are too tempting to allow the story to be told. Maybe the beats are supposed to depict the business of the city, pulling your attention away from the story being told. 

“Not Over Till the Fat Lady Plays the Demo” is a psychedelic and experimental song that explores the portrayal of hip-hop culture, especially within the psych-rap scene. A vocal skit was one of the original ideas born out of psych rap. While each group explores theatrics using vocals, De La Soul’s skit sessions are light-hearted and experimental. 

Characters are also crucial within psych rap. But what are they saying about these characters? Maybe the world looks funny from their perspectives. It takes the listener places but makes it hard to follow along. I consider that psychedelic, too. In “Keepin’ The Faith,” the sound is playfully and harmonically eerie. That, mixed with breaks and scratching, makes for an experimental synchrony. It feels like De La Soul’s experimentation is a little dark. 

Another concept explored is the making of a record. Everything was on the table, and they decided to have fun and experiment with everything. “Intensity, most rappers don’t see it spirit-wise musically, you gotta be it.” The lyrics of “Midnight” by A Tribe Called Quest depict a spirituality that flows within the rapper’s DNA. A dark history tells a story and paints a picture.

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This article was written by Bryan Montijo, who primarily focuses on music, spirituality, and psychedelics. Bryan has written a few novels, which can be found at wattpad@CraftedTales. He also has his own blog, where he discusses everything he loves, from music to nature and writing. You can find it here at medium@bmontijo555.