Best psychedelic electronic music labels
As we all know the term “psychedelic” is thrown to almost all music nowadays, this makes it a bit complex to dive deeper into the best psychedelic electronic music, as it’s all a big mess of words.
In this short list I have compiled some of my personal favorite labels, going from slow trancy bass downtempo, to psytech and darkprogressive styles that I personally like. I know and understand there are many more labels, but I think with naming a couple we get a good idea of good releases.
We start the list with the two labels that have been the most influential in the creation of my main project “JaguarTree”. Here we find some of the deeper areas of the so-called PsyBass (psychedelic bass), which joins many different styles of artists, but what glues the style together is that most of them have a very big use of beat breaks, ethno fusion sounds and amazing sound design.
Style: PsyBass/ Downtempo
The most amazing labels are: Merkaba Music and Shanti Planti.
Merkaba Music
Running a tight underground ship comes Merkaba Music, under the hand of Kalya Scintilla. Amazing curator of music and keeping a clean sounding label, focused on the organic side of the bass music with lots of psychedelic textures creating many worlds to journey through.
https://soundcloud.com/merkaba-music-1
https://merkabamusic1.bandcamp.com/music
Shanti Planti
One of the most influential sounds in the overall scene of the psychedelic underground music festivals, has to be no doubt Shanti Planti. Many artists from faster music styles (like psytrance), get many ideas from the style this massive label has created. Using deep glitch, psydub and upfront textures that can make the Funktion One and Lambda Labs systems so gummy we all melt down.
https://shantiplanti.bandcamp.com/album/rhythm-code-6
https://soundcloud.com/shanti-planti
Style: Downtempo
I always say that the key to producing great music is to be open to new styles of amazing music and art and today I put here some of the most influential psychedelic Berlin downtempo music I’ve found over the last years. I style that in the past I didn’t listen to much, but their minimal and soft style has got a bit of my heart and attention.
Laut & Luise
https://soundcloud.com/lautundluise
Lokd
https://soundcloud.com/lokdbasel
Mood Family
https://soundcloud.com/moodfamily
Style: Psytechno / Zenonesque
Most of us when we think of the PsyTech, we think on high quality music that started a lot thanks to Zenon Records. Now a days there are many more labels on this area, but here is a list of the main festival music labels, that don’t sell their sound and have many amazing artists.
Zenon Records
Sometimes there are no words to describe how good work Zenon has done over the years. With their 20th anniversary and one of the best labels still today, Zenon has surfed over the waters of Psytech for many years and is still going strong.
https://soundcloud.com/zenon-records
https://zenonrecords.bandcamp.com/album/outer-wilds-24-bit
https://zenonrecords.bandcamp.com/album/a-pinch-of-thoughts-vol-2-compiled-by-yonagual-24-bit
Techgnosis Records
One of the best and more consistent labels in Psytech has to be Techgnosis Records, with many amazing releases and with big names under their wing. They have done very amazing work over the years and I truly think they are gonna grow a lot in the next few years.
https://soundcloud.com/techgnosis-records
https://techgnosisrecords.bandcamp.com/
https://techgnosisrecords.bandcamp.com/album/semantics-compiled-by-synaesthetics
Digital Structures
Digital Structures is one of the main labels that have been very influential in the Psytech scene for many years, curating many amazing VA’s and having big names released under them, is a big label with many layers, so dive into it with calm and enjoy.
https://soundcloud.com/digital-structures
BushProg BushTech
Bushprog is not a name we hear in everyday music terms in Latin America or any western countries, is mostly known by its proper name in Australia and New Zealand, and has slowly grown bigger and fusionend with the Psytech to new designs of the BushTech.
We can mention Zenon Records as one of the main ones in this area, we also find amazing releases in Universal Tribe Records.
Universal Tribe Records
Is a very open Progressive label, ranging dark prog, bushprog and some psy techno sounds.
https://universaltriberecords.bandcamp.com/
https://soundcloud.com/universaltribe-records
Zenon Records
https://zenonrecords.bandcamp.com/album/bush-food-vol-3-24-bit
Style: DarkProgressive
In the Darkprogressive area we find the end of the psytech and the start of a stronger psychedelic sound, with remnants of the psytrance mixed with a bigger bass and kick usually, because of the slower speed which allows a bit more space to dive into bigger and darker basslines and atmospheres than psytrance. I’ll list some of the best labels but also some artists as they release in many places.
Katayy Records
Brazilian label that grew from an organized festival in Sao Paulo.
https://katayyrecords.bandcamp.com/album/va-borderline-compiled-by-skyvibes
Noise Kult
Most recent label I’ve heard so far, but under the hand of 2 of the most influential darkprogressive artist of all dystopian worlds: Hypogeo and Kromagon.
https://www.noisekult.com/label
https://soundcloud.com/aragon/kromagon-ravings-of-a-madman-preview
Thanks
Sending everyone that spent the time big creative energy!
