Gaining Altitude: 6 Albums to Listen to While High

There are countless studies reflecting the power music has on the brain. Not only can listening to music enhance intelligence, focus, and cognition, but it also holds the power to boost your immune system, instill confidence and self-esteem, and strengthen overall mental health and wellness. 

Sound familiar?

Cannabis interacts similarly with the body, so it should come as no mystery that listening to music while consuming cannabis is one of the most powerful, emotional, and inspiring approaches to sound.

People have been listening to music while under the influence of weed for centuries – and these are some of the best albums to have on hand the next time you decide to get high to the beat.

1. The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd (1973)

In regards to music that inspires you to smoke weed (and vice versa), very few albums hit as consistently hard as The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd. 

Since its initial release, the album has acted as a pillar of late twentieth century rock ‘n’ roll, and has gone on to influence countless music artists across a wide variety of genres.

2. Live/Dead by Grateful Dead (1969)

Grateful Dead is another counterculture band that had tremendous influence over the early U.S. cannabis community. Their album Live/Dead features a roundup of their best live performances throughout the year of 1969.

Listening to this album transports you back in time, directly into the ethos of late-60s/early-70s America – a.k.a., the golden age of the legacy cannabis market.

3. The Space by Somali Yacht Club (2022)

If you’re interested in a newer release, Somali Yacht Club’s The Space is the perfect album to get hazy to. With a sound as dreamy as it is hard-hitting, the band held nothing back, leaving listeners with a lineup that is post-rock, psychedelic, and packed with angsty longing.

4. Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming by M83 (2011)

This album’s cover art alone is enough to get high and lost in, but M83’s Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming has a sound that is unforgettable and otherworldly. 

The double album is packed with tracks that are subtly decadent and full of lasting flavor – like a perfectly moist slice of lemon cake.

5. Omnium Gatherum by King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard (2022)

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard never sleep, and their latest and 20th studio album, Omnium Gatherum, is proof of that. Omnium Gatherum defies genres, fusing a folksy funk with what can only be described as surf-sunshine-soul-death-metal. Now, imagine fusing that with weed. You’re welcome.

6. Live From Joshua Tree by RÜFÜS DU SOL (2020)

Recorded in the midst of the Mojave Desert during the peak of the pandemic, Live From Joshua Tree was RÜFÜS DU SOL’s response to a world that felt disjointed, unprecedented, and unmusical. 

Listening to this in-the-moment album will allow you to feel the pulse of a globe longing for connection while we were denied of it – bonus points if you watch the video version while you toke.

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