Very interesting to read people's stories.
I have a bit of a habit of overthinking these things but from what I can tell, even though people come from very different angles, we're all doing pretty much the same thing.... Experimenting with different extremes, sometimes finding something comfortable and useful to us, sometimes the opposite, getting into bad routines, getting into good routines.... which I guess runs alongside our personal approaches to how we're treating sounds and technologies as well.
When I first started thinking about this I thought it could be pretty useful for people to share their different methods but I guess we're all pretty comfortable with our own approaches, which is a very good thing really.
chemicals and producing music
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oblioblioblio
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i thought it was worth mentioning a story which may dissuade anyone from going down this route. i dont no howmany of you have tried to make music on mdma, but it is very conducive. i have a very good friend whose name i wont give here, who is a very prolific and talented musician, who has released hundereds of tunes, and who now makes music for films and TV.
about 5 years ago he began using very good quality mdma while producing, and it got to the point where he simply couldnt make music without it.
as he is a professional musician, he works almost everyday, and after a few years he depleted his serotonin levels so much that he announced to me that he simply could not be happy no matter what, and that he was constantly depressed. strangely his music did not suffer at all, infact it just kept on getting better, but eventually he got to the point where he had to do something about it, and he broke the ties with mdma.
its taken a long time but he is gradually getting better.
ok the guy over did it big stylee, but its worth mentioning i'm sure.
about 5 years ago he began using very good quality mdma while producing, and it got to the point where he simply couldnt make music without it.
as he is a professional musician, he works almost everyday, and after a few years he depleted his serotonin levels so much that he announced to me that he simply could not be happy no matter what, and that he was constantly depressed. strangely his music did not suffer at all, infact it just kept on getting better, but eventually he got to the point where he had to do something about it, and he broke the ties with mdma.
its taken a long time but he is gradually getting better.
ok the guy over did it big stylee, but its worth mentioning i'm sure.
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oblioblioblio
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I think stories like that are definitely worth bearing in mind.
mdma is a biggie cos serotonin plays such an important role in how you function from day to day, but the same thing can happen with most things, as the further something becomes part of your routine, the more distorted your perception can become, and the harder it is to see outside of the bubble you've got yourself into. especially if, like steevio says, in some people's eyes you're still functioning perfectly normally (i.e. your music is getting better and better). [I'm talking mostly about extremes here.]
There have been quite a few times in my life when I've been smoking weed 24/7, and wouldn't bat an eyelid about waking up and rolling a joint straight away. As because it was a gradual process of dependancy, it didn't seem like it was a problem. And when I had that much THC floating around my brain all the time, I wasn't exactly in the best position to sit up and think 'right then, what do I need to do to get out of this negative pattern!'
I guess to a certain extent you gotta learn things for yourself, but yeah, definitely worth keeping your eyes out as much as is humanly possible.
mdma is a biggie cos serotonin plays such an important role in how you function from day to day, but the same thing can happen with most things, as the further something becomes part of your routine, the more distorted your perception can become, and the harder it is to see outside of the bubble you've got yourself into. especially if, like steevio says, in some people's eyes you're still functioning perfectly normally (i.e. your music is getting better and better). [I'm talking mostly about extremes here.]
There have been quite a few times in my life when I've been smoking weed 24/7, and wouldn't bat an eyelid about waking up and rolling a joint straight away. As because it was a gradual process of dependancy, it didn't seem like it was a problem. And when I had that much THC floating around my brain all the time, I wasn't exactly in the best position to sit up and think 'right then, what do I need to do to get out of this negative pattern!'
I guess to a certain extent you gotta learn things for yourself, but yeah, definitely worth keeping your eyes out as much as is humanly possible.
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scratch baker
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oblioblioblio
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aha, glad you asked, they're pretty interesting to me and I think they could be of interest to some people here.
Basically, nootropic is a name given to chemicals that are non-addictive, relatively non-toxic and help 2 or more areas of brain function.
Definitely worth searching around on the internet rather than taking my word for it though. I'd recommend searching for piracetam, centrophenoxine and possibly hydergine, though there are many things that are considered to be nootropic.
For me they make good day time 'study aids'. But even with them being non-stimulants and non-psychedelic, getting into the routine of ingesting some chemical and waiting for that to give me motivation is a bad thing. They definitely helped me strike up a better relationship with some the technology that I use, but I find if I use them to help me understand something that I have no familiarity with I just sit their with a 'what the fck' expression on my face, and with my brain in overdrive...which can be pretty horrible. But I find that sometimes, they can make me excited by technological concepts in the same way that weed can make me excited by sensory stuff.
Hmm, as with everything it's definitely best to work out your own approach. Check out the stuff on wikipedia for a basic rundown, this thread on bluelight was a great read for me http://bluelight.ru/vb/showthread.php?s ... 9&t=296712 there's quite a few people there who, unlike me, have a great understanding of tthis stuff and can explain things patiently and with a wealth of knowledge and experience.
Maybe have a look here as well http://www.imminst.org/forum/index.php? ... wforum=169
Basically, nootropic is a name given to chemicals that are non-addictive, relatively non-toxic and help 2 or more areas of brain function.
Definitely worth searching around on the internet rather than taking my word for it though. I'd recommend searching for piracetam, centrophenoxine and possibly hydergine, though there are many things that are considered to be nootropic.
For me they make good day time 'study aids'. But even with them being non-stimulants and non-psychedelic, getting into the routine of ingesting some chemical and waiting for that to give me motivation is a bad thing. They definitely helped me strike up a better relationship with some the technology that I use, but I find if I use them to help me understand something that I have no familiarity with I just sit their with a 'what the fck' expression on my face, and with my brain in overdrive...which can be pretty horrible. But I find that sometimes, they can make me excited by technological concepts in the same way that weed can make me excited by sensory stuff.
Hmm, as with everything it's definitely best to work out your own approach. Check out the stuff on wikipedia for a basic rundown, this thread on bluelight was a great read for me http://bluelight.ru/vb/showthread.php?s ... 9&t=296712 there's quite a few people there who, unlike me, have a great understanding of tthis stuff and can explain things patiently and with a wealth of knowledge and experience.
Maybe have a look here as well http://www.imminst.org/forum/index.php? ... wforum=169
my own personal expierience was that I could produce anything of note until after last new years eve, got very fucked up at stealth and all of a sudden everything seemed to click into place, a week later I was actually finishing stuff to nearly a point where I was happy with them lol
14 months on, I've had several of these conscious raising evenings thanks to getting pretty fucked and listening to great records, so I'd say it helps a lot.
I can't actually make tracks when I'm on them, lose my train of thought too much.
Red Wine however............that gets the creative juices flowing
14 months on, I've had several of these conscious raising evenings thanks to getting pretty fucked and listening to great records, so I'd say it helps a lot.
I can't actually make tracks when I'm on them, lose my train of thought too much.
Red Wine however............that gets the creative juices flowing
im with you on this one mark - we do wine - good wine gets us going 
adam also smokes spliffs - i've stopped - its not good for me - after being caned from age 15 to 23 ive decided it was enough
btw another point: somehow when out playing - we never seem to get smashed. Despite the fact we drink lots - other people notice this too? seem to 'zone out' and end up somewhere where the alcohol has little effect... we play a monthly gig in a local bar/club where we do 4.5/5 hour set - we drink non stop.. normally i would be hammered - but after the set - we're both with it.. is this due to concentrating on the music instead of the drinking? anyone else notice this?
adam also smokes spliffs - i've stopped - its not good for me - after being caned from age 15 to 23 ive decided it was enough
btw another point: somehow when out playing - we never seem to get smashed. Despite the fact we drink lots - other people notice this too? seem to 'zone out' and end up somewhere where the alcohol has little effect... we play a monthly gig in a local bar/club where we do 4.5/5 hour set - we drink non stop.. normally i would be hammered - but after the set - we're both with it.. is this due to concentrating on the music instead of the drinking? anyone else notice this?