We list some of the best Psychedelic rock bands to listen to right now. The psychedelic rock genre formed out of the hippie culture of San Francisco in the late 1960s and quickly spread across the globe. Also, the rise of modern Psychedelic rock bands like Tame Impala has sparked excitement of psychedelic rock music among new fans.
What is Psychedelic Rock?
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music popular in the late 1960s that was largely inspired by hallucinogens, or so-called “mind-expanding” drugs such as marijuana and LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide; “acid”), and that reflected drug-induced states through the use of feedback, electronics, and intense volume. During this time bands like Pink Floyd, The Doors, The 13th Floor Elevators, Jimi Hendrix and many other groups emerged. More popular bands such as The Beatles and The Beach Boys also experimented with psychedelia as well.
Best Psychedelic Rock Bands
1. Tame Impala
Tame Impala is a psychedelic rock band of Australian musician Kevin Parker, who writes, records, produces, and performs. The group has a close affiliation with fellow Australian psychedelic rock band Pond, sharing members and collaborators, including Nick Allbrook, formerly a live member of Tame Impala. At the 2020 ARIA Music Awards, Tame Impala won five trophies.
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2. Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd is an English rock band, formed in London in 1965. Gaining a following as a psychedelic band, they were distinguished for their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics and elaborate live shows, and became a leading band of the progressive rock genre. They were inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996 and the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005.
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3. The Doors
The Doors was an American rock band which formed in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1965. The band consisted of Jim Morrison (vocals), Ray Manzarek (organ), Robby Krieger (guitar) and John Densmore (drums). In 1993, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
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4. The Jimi Hendrix Experience
The Jimi Hendrix Experience was a short-lived, yet highly influential rock band famous for the guitar work of Jimi Hendrix (1942– 1970) on songs such as “Purple Haze”, “Foxy Lady”, “Hey Joe”, “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” and “All Along the Watchtower”. The Experience were active for just under three years, a run which resulted in three successful studio albums and four top 10 singles.
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5. The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground was a pioneering experimental rock band from New York City first active from 1965 to 1973. Its best-known lineup consisted of vocalist/guitarist Lou Reed, bassist/violist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison and drummer Maureen Tucker. After Morrison’s death in 1995, the remaining three members played together for a single performance at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 1996, the last time the band performed together musically.
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6. Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane, a rock band based in San Francisco, California, was one of the pioneering bands of psychedelic rock. Formed in 1965, the group defined the San Francisco Sound and was the first from the Bay Area to achieve international commercial success.
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7. The Zombies
The Zombies are an English rock band formed in 1962 in St Albans and led by keyboardist and vocalist Rod Argent and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The Zombies were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.
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8. The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1964, initially consisting of keyboardist Mike Pinder, multi-instrumentalist Ray Thomas, guitarist Denny Laine, drummer Graeme Edge, and bassist Clint Warwick.Thomas retired from the band in 2002; he died shortly before the band were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.
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9. The Dandy Warhols
The Dandy Warhols is an American alternative rock band formed in Portland, Oregon in 1993. The band was founded by lead singer Courtney Taylor-Taylor, keyboardist Zia McCabe, guitarist Peter Holmström, and drummer Eric Hedford. In 2001, the band rose to new levels of fame after their song “Bohemian Like You” enjoyed extensive exposure due to being featured in a Vodafone advertisement.
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10. The Byrds
The Byrds were a popular American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. They are considered one of the most important and influential bands of the 1960s. In 1991, the Byrds were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, an occasion that saw the five original members performing together for the last time.
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11. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are an Australian psychedelic rock band that formed in 2010 in Melbourne, Victoria. The band consists of Stu Mackenzie (vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, flute), Ambrose Kenny-Smith (vocals, harmonica, keyboards), Cook Craig (guitar, bass, vocals), Joey Walker (guitar, bass, keyboards, vocals), Lucas Harwood (bass, keyboards), and Michael Cavanagh (drums, percussion). The original line up also included Eric Moore on drums. In a 2019 study conducted by the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard was ranked No. 21 in a list of the world’s hardest-working musicians.
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12. Big Brother and the Holding Company
Big Brother and the Holding Company is an American rock band that formed in San Francisco in 1965 as part of the same psychedelic music scene that produced the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service and Jefferson Airplane. Their second album Cheap Thrills, released in 1968, is considered one of the masterpieces of the psychedelic sound of San Francisco; it reached number one on the Billboard charts
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13. The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips is an American neo-psychedelic band, formed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States in 1983. The group has won three Grammy Awards, including two for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.
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14. Love
Love is a psychedelic rock group formed in Los Angeles in 1965. They were led by singer, songwriter and guitarist Arthur Lee (March 7, 1945 – August 3, 2006) and the group’s second songwriter, guitarist Bryan MacLean (September 25, 1946 – December 25, 1998). One of the first racially diverse American pop bands, their music reflected a remarkable array of influences, combining elements of rock and roll, garage rock, folk, showtunes and psychedelia.
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15. The Brian Jonestown Massacre
The Brian Jonestown Massacre was formed in San Francisco in 1990. The band has had over 40 members since then, but its driving force and main songwriter is Anton Newcombe. The group was the subject of the 2004 documentary film called Dig!, and have gained media notoriety for their tumultuous working relationships as well as the erratic behavior of Newcombe.
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16. All Them Witches
All Them Witches are an explosive psychedelic trio from Nashville, Tennessee, USA. The band consists of Charles Michael Parks, Jr (vocals, bass, guitar), Ben Mcleod (guitar, formerly vocals) and Robby Staebler (drums). They then became the first American band to be signed to the German heavy psych record label, Elektrohasch Schallplatten.
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17. The Yardbirds
The Yardbirds are an English rock band, formed in London in 1963. The band’s core lineup featured vocalist and harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist and later bassist Chris Dreja and bassist/producer Paul Samwell-Smith. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
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18. Porcupine Tree
Porcupine Tree is a British progressive rock band formed in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom in 1987. During the course of the band’s history, it has at times incorporated psychedelic rock, alternative, ambient, electronic, and, most recently, metal and post-rock into its unique style of progressive rock.
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19. Small Faces
Small Faces were an influential British mod/psychedelic band of the 1960s, led by Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane with Kenney Jones and Ian McLagan (who replaced original organist Jimmy Winston). They evolved into one of the UK’s most successful psychedelic bands until 1969.
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20. Can
Can was an experimental rock group founded in Cologne, Germany in 1968. Describing themselves as an “anarchist community”, they constructed their music largely through improvisation and editing, in a way similar to several avant-garde composers of the time. Can also had commercial success with singles such as “Spoon” (1971) and “I Want More” (1976) reaching national singles charts.
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Honorable mentions
21. Iron Butterfly
22. The Pretty Things
23. Psychedelic Porn Crumpets
24. Os Mutantes
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