Shpongle is a psychedelic electronic music project from England that formed in 1996. The group includes

Hallucinogen Hallucinogens are a large, diverse class of psychoactive drugs that can produce altered states of consciousness characterized by major alterations in thought, mood, and perception as well as other changes. Most hallucinogens can be categorized ...

and Raja Ram (one of three in

The Infinity Project The Infinity Project (TIP) was a British 1990s goa trance band. Members included Raja Ram, Graham Wood and Anjee Sian, with Simon Posford occasionally working with them. Other contributors include Martin Freeland ( Man With No Name) and Nick ...

). The duo are considered to be one of the

progenitor In genealogy, the progenitor (rarer: primogenitor; german: Stammvater or ''Ahnherr'') is the – sometimes legendary progenitor, legendary – founder of a family, Kinship, line of descent, clan or tribe, Nobility, noble house, or ethnic group. ...

s of the psybient genre - a genre combining world music with

psychedelic trance Psychedelic Trance, Psytrance or Psy is a subgenre of trance music characterized by arrangements of rhythms and layered melodies created by high tempo riffs. The genre offers variety in terms of mood, tempo, and style. Some examples include full ...

and

ambient Ambient or Ambiance or Ambience may refer to: Music and sound * Ambience (sound recording), also known as atmospheres or backgrounds * Ambient music, a genre of music that puts an emphasis on tone and atmosphere * ''Ambient'' (album), by Moby * ...

. Their musical style combines

traditional music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

from all over the world and vocals with contemporary western

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis ...

-based psychedelic music. When asked to describe Shpongle's music, Posford has responded that it is "like nothing you've ever heard before." Shpongle's first track, "Vapour Rumours", was released on TIP Records' ''Infinite Excursions'' compilation in 1996. Their debut album, ''

Are You Shpongled? ''Are You Shpongled?'' is the first of six albums released by Shpongle. ''Are You Shpongled?'' sold in excess of 30,000 copies. A remastered version of ''Are You Shpongled?'' was released on 30 June 2017, along with a limited edition super-deluxe ...

'', was released in 1998 on Twisted Records. On 9 September 2014, Posford confirmed beginning work on a sixth album, which was released as ''Codex VI'' on October 23, 2017. On 3 October, even before the release of ''Codex VI'', the duo announced via a Facebook video that they have begun working on their seventh studio album. Since June 30, the duo have also been releasing remasters of their previous albums, focussing on releasing special edition vinyl records. Posford is generally responsible for the synthesizers, studio work, and live instrumentation, while Raja Ram contributes broad musical concepts and flute arrangements. Raja Ram stated in an interview that "Shpongle" is an

umbrella term In linguistics, semantics, general semantics, and ontologies, hyponymy () is a semantic relation between a hyponym denoting a subtype and a hypernym or hyperonym (sometimes called umbrella term or blanket term) denoting a supertype. In other ...

for feeling positive and euphoric emotions. Shpongle's music is heavily influenced by

psychedelic experience A psychedelic experience (known colloquially as a trip) is a temporary altered state of consciousness induced by the consumption of a psychedelic substance (most commonly LSD, mescaline, psilocybin mushrooms, or DMT). For example, an acid tr ...

s and frequently makes use of sonic textures that approximate

psychedelic state A psychedelic experience (known colloquially as a trip) is a temporary altered state of consciousness induced by the consumption of a psychedelic substance (most commonly LSD, mescaline, psilocybin mushrooms, or DMT). For example, an acid tr ...

s as well as vocal samples relating to consciousness expansion,

hallucinations A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the qualities of a real perception. Hallucinations are vivid, substantial, and are perceived to be located in external objective space. Hallucination is a combinati ...

, and

altered states of awareness An altered state of consciousness (ASC), also called altered state of mind or mind alteration, is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking state. By 1892, the expression was in use in relation to hypnosis, though there ...

. For example, the track "A New Way to Say 'Hooray'" contains a vocal sample of

Terence McKenna Terence Kemp McKenna (November 16, 1946 – April 3, 2000) was an American ethnobotanist and mystic who advocated the responsible use of naturally occurring psychedelic plants. He spoke and wrote about a variety of subjects, including ...

describing the effects of

DMT ''N'',''N''-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT or ''N'',''N''-DMT, SPL026) is a substituted tryptamine that occurs in many plants and animals, including human beings, and which is both a derivative and a structural analog of tryptamine. It is used as a ...

Shpongle live

Shpongle has played several live concerts, and Simon Posford tours frequently, performing live DJ sets. Raja Ram has occasionally accompanied these sets with live flute performances. Shpongle's first live performance was at the Solstice Music Festival at Motosu Highland in Japan in July 2001. They returned to Japan on New Year's Eve 2003 to play the New Maps of Hyperspace event at

Tokyo Bay NK Hall Tokyo Bay NK Hall was an indoor sporting arena located at the Tokyo Disney Resort in Urayasu, Chiba, in Japan. It opened in 1988, closed in 2005 and was demolished in 2015 to make way for Toy Story Hotel. The capacity of the arena was 7,000 peo ...

together with 1200 Micrograms (featuring Raja Ram) and Hallucinogen. Prior to the release of their fourth album Shpongle played a sold out live concert at

The Roundhouse The Roundhouse is a performing arts and concert venue situated at the Grade II* listed former railway engine shed in Chalk Farm, London, England. The building was erected in 1846–1847 by the London & North Western Railway as a roundhouse, ...

venue in

Chalk Farm Chalk Farm is a small urban district of north London, lying immediately north of Camden Town, in the London Borough of Camden. History Manor of Rugmere Chalk Farm was originally known as the Manor of Rugmere, an estate that was mentioned ...

, North London on 31 October 2008. The band featured

Andy Gangadeen Andy may refer to: People * Andy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Horace Andy (born 1951), Jamaican roots reggae songwriter and singer born Horace Hinds *Katja Andy (1907–2013), German-American pianist and pian ...

(drums), Nogera (percussion), Chris Taylor (bass), Pete Callard (guitar),

Harry Escott Harry Escott (born 9 September 1976) is a British composer living in London. He has composed the scores to several films, including ''Shame'' (2011), ''Hard Candy'' (2005), '' A Mighty Heart'' (2007), and ''Ali & Ava'' (2021), for which he won a ...

(cello), and Dick Trevor (keyboards and programming); Michele Adamson and Hari Om (voices), three dancers, and for one song only ("Nothing is Something Worth Doing")

Manu Delago Manu Delago (born 31 July 1984) is an Austrian Hang player, percussionist and composer based in London. Biography Delago was born in Innsbruck, Tyrol, and took music lessons as a child in accordion and piano. As a teenager he mainly played d ...

on hand pan. This was followed on 20 December 2008 by a concert in Moscow featuring the same lineup. Shows were also planned for 7 and 9 March 2009 in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia, but these were cancelled due to non-payment of the deposit by the promoters. In 2009, Shpongle played a headlining date at the

Ozora Festival The Ozora Festival, stylised as O.Z.O.R.A., is an annual transformational festival and arts festival near the Hungarian village of Ozora. History and growth The festival has been held on an estate in Ozora near the small village of Dádpuszta ...

held near

Ozora Ozora is a village in Tolna, Hungary. It has been notable since the Middle Ages, when Pipo of Ozora built a castle at this site by permission of Sigismund of Hungary in 1416. Artúr Görgei won an important victory in this area at the Battle ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croa ...

on 15 August; Shpongle also played a latenight DJ set at Rothbury Festival in Rothbury, Michigan over Fourth of July weekend and two album launch shows at the Roundhouse on 30 and 31 October. The duo returned to Moscow to play at Milk on 12 December 2009. On 3 August 2010, they opened the Ozora festival in Hungary. This was their tenth documented live performance. In January 2011, Shpongle toured Australia, playing dates at the Forum Theatre in Melbourne, the Enmore Theatre in Sydney, and headlining the

Rainbow Serpent Festival Rainbow Serpent Festival is a four-day annual open-air music and arts festival that takes place during the Australia Day (26 January) long weekend, in Lexton, Victoria, west of Melbourne, Australia. The festival is mainly known for its focus on ...

in Victoria, Australia. In June 2011, Shpongle played at the Electric Forest Festival with the Shpongletron. New unreleased material from the forthcoming album was incorporated in the 2011 tour, the Shpongletron Experience. The tour featured the Shpongletron, designed by visual artist

Zebbler Zebbler (Peter Zebbler Berdovsky) is a visual artist, video jockey and the founder of Zebbler Studios, who is known for his work with Shpongle, EOTO, and Zebbler Encanti Experience. Zebbler first gained worldwide fame for the 2007 Boston Mooninit ...

. The Shpongletron included a DJ booth and multiple custom-made, video-mapped projection surfaces. "Shpongle Live" performed at Camp Bisco X on 8 July 2011 in Mariaville, New York. This was Shpongle's first ever performance as a full ensemble in the United States and was greatly received by fans and newcomers alike. The band also performed two sold-out American shows on Halloween weekend in 2011, playing at the

Hammerstein Ballroom The Hammerstein Ballroom is a ballroom located within the Manhattan Center at 311 West 34th Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The capacity of the ballroom is dependent on the configuration of the room; it seats 2,500 people for theatri ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

on 28 October, and at the

Fox Oakland Theater The Fox Oakland Theatre is a 2,800-seat concert hall, a former movie theater, located at 1807 Telegraph Avenue in Downtown Oakland. It originally opened in 1928, running films until 1970. Designed by Weeks and Day, the theatre is listed on the Nat ...

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

on 29 October. They debuted the first track from ''Museum of Consciousness'', called "Brain in a Fish Tank," on 28 October 2011. For 2012, Shpongle toured the United States performing DJ sets entitled "Shpongle presents The Masquerade". The last set of this tour was performed on 31 October 2012, at Terminal West in Atlanta, Georgia. On 3 November, they performed with Younger Brother, Hallucinogen, and other Twisted Records artists. Their set included live keyboards and flute, and debuted many new tracks from their most recent album. After the ceremony in 2010, on 6 August 2013 Shpongle is once again opening O.Z.O.R.A. Festival with a world premier concert for their new material called ''

Museum of Consciousness A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

'' (2013). Oct. 2013 full band live in London at the

Troxy Troxy is a Grade II-listed Art Deco music venue on Commercial Road in Stepney, London. Built as a cinema in 1933, it closed in 1960 and became a training school for the London Opera Centre. In the 1980s the building was used as a bingo hall, a ...

. The show was filmed and is available on DVD, released in 2015. Shpongle played live with a full 12 piece band at Red Rocks Amphitheater in

Morrison, Colorado The Town of Morrison is a home rule municipality in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The population was 428 at the 2010 census. Red Rocks Amphitheatre is located nearby. History This small foothills settlement is named after George ...

, on 10 May 2014. The concert was filmed, and released on 23 October 2015 as Shpongle - Live at Red Rocks. On 19 November 2014, it was announced via social media that Shpongle would once again begin touring in the United States throughout early 2015, featuring Phutureprimitive as special guest, the return of "Shpongletron 3.1," and with visuals by

. On 21 September 2018, Shpongle announced their last full public concerts, two consecutive nights at

Red Rocks Amphitheatre Red Rocks Amphitheatre (also colloquially as simply Red Rocks) is an open-air amphitheatre built into a rock structure in the western United States, near Morrison, Colorado, west of Denver. There is a large, tilted, disc-shaped rock behind ...

on 3/4 May 2019:

Although this is their last full public concert, Shpongle will continue to enchant and delight with future studio recordings and album releases, with some Shpongle 7 productions receiving their world premieres at this performance.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

'' (1998) * ''

Tales of the Inexpressible ''Tales of the Inexpressible'' is Shpongle's second album, released in 2001. Simon Posford and Raja Ram hone and expand the style introduced on their debut album, ''Are You Shpongled?''. Raja Ram plays Spanish and East Asian instruments along ...

'' (2001) * '' Nothing Lasts... But Nothing Is Lost'' (2005) * ''

Ineffable Mysteries from Shpongleland ''Ineffable Mysteries from Shpongleland'' is the fourth studio album by Shpongle released on 2 November 2009. The album's track list was released on 12 August via Twisted Records (UK)'s website. Songs from the album began to trickle to the publ ...

'' (2009) * ''

'' (2013) * ''

Codex VI The codex (plural codices ) was the historical ancestor of the modern book. Instead of being composed of sheets of paper, it used sheets of vellum, papyrus, or other materials. The term ''codex'' is often used for ancient manuscript books, with ...

'' (2017)

EP albums

* '' Divine Moments of Truth'' (2000) * ''

Dorset Perception Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , Do ...

'' (2004) * '' The God Particle'' (2010) * '' Carnival of Peculiarities'' (2021)

Remix albums

* ''Remixed'' (2003) * ''Remixed volume 2'' (2005) * ''Unreleased Remixes'' (2008) (download only) * Shpongle & Mad Tribe – ''Stoned Remixes'' (2016-05-09,

Tip Records Tip commonly refers to: * Tip (gambling) * Tip (gratuity) * Tip (law enforcement) * another term for Advice Tip or TIP may also refer to: Science and technology * Tank phone, a device allowing infantry to communicate with the occupants of an ...

, ''download'')Shpongle & Mad Tribe - Stoned Remixes
Tip Records etrieved 2016-06-12/ref>

Other songs

* "The Sixth Revelation" on ''The Mystery of the Thirteen Crystal Skulls'' (2001) * "The Seventh Revelation" on ''The Secret of the Thirteen Crystal Skulls'' (2003)

DVD releases

* ''Live in Concert at the Roundhouse London 2008'' (2009) * ''Live in London 2014'' (2015) * ''Live at Red Rocks Amphitheater'' (2015)

References

External links

Official Shpongle website

Shpongle at discogs.com

Simon Posford's myspace.com profile

Twisted Records

Shpongle at reddit
{{Authority control Musical groups established in 1996 British electronic music groups Psychedelic trance musical groups British musical trios Musical groups from Surrey