G. John

2 papers in the library · 98 citations · publishing 2012

Papers

Global Tribe: Technology, Spirituality and Psytrance

Equinox Publishing Ltd. eBooks October 30, 2012 G. John 93 citations

Psychedelic trance (psytrance) culture has grown from its origins in Goa, India, during the 1970s and 1980s into a global movement centered on festivals like Portugal's Boom Festival. Drawing on first-hand accounts from Australia, Israel, Italy, the UK, the US, Germany, Turkey, and elsewhere, the author examines this transnational phenomenon through its aesthetic roots, national variations, and internal debates. The book presents a multi-sited ethnography that analyzes the digital, chemical, cyber, and media elements of psytrance. It argues that the event-culture of psytrance incorporates rites of risk and altered consciousness, challenging existing theories of ritual, music, and culture.

DOI: 10.1558/isbn.9781781790212 Sociology Art

Seasoned exodus: the exile mosaic of psyculture

Dancecult April 20, 2012 G. John 5 citations

Psychedelic trance music and culture (psyculture) emerged from a seasonal dance party scene in Goa, India, during the 1970s and 1980s, shaped by a diverse, heterogeneous exile sensibility. Rather than fitting a single formula, Goa trance and its later forms are internally diverse, influenced by expatriates and bohemians from many countries who brought experiences from cosmopolitan urban centers. The DJ-led trance dance culture in Goa absorbed innovations in electronic dance music production, performance, and aesthetics throughout the 1980s, leading to the Goa sound and festival culture in the mid-1990s. Rooted in an experimental freak community, psyculture inherits this diverse exile experience, blending conscious self-realization with ecstatic self-abandonment.

DOI: 10.12801/1947-5403.2012.04.01.01 Full text Art Sociology Psychology