I don't take drugs of any kind, even alcohol. It's not any sort of ethical or religious decision, I've just never felt the need and I can't stand the taste of alcohol (and I've tried many times).
At the same time, Radiohead is one of my favourite bands of all time; in fact, I listen to a lot of music even weirder than they put out, from Captain Beefheart and John Cage, to Battles and The Flaming Lips. I enjoy Aqua Teen Hunger Force, I find the surreal humour produced by the likes of
Channel 101 to be hilarious, FLCL is one of my favourite animes, and I enjoy other things like Look Around You and
Don Hertzfeldt's cartoons.
I'm not gong to rant against drug use, because frankly I don't care. However, I rarely go to concerts because I find the inevitable haze of pot smoke to be extremely distracting and annoying. When I saw Radiohead in 2003 it was probably the breaking point; there was basically a cloud of pot smoke over everything, I don't even know what the hell those people in the front of the floor were up to (except that the band actually stopped the show because someone collapsed at the front, waited for them to be taken to an ambulance, Thom made a couple of awkward comments, etc.). But I'm digressing, because the main thrust of this topic is just why?
Does getting wasted actually improve your perceptions or something? I can enjoy a song like
Everything in it's Right Place just by listening to it. I'll admit that my mood will alter how I feel toward a given piece of art (or entertainment), but am I missing something by not dropping acid before I go to a show? What worries me more is that some people only seem to enjoy certain things WHEN they're high. Shouldn't the art itself be able to transport you?
tl;dr: Does getting high or wasted qualitatively improve certain bits of art or entertainment. Are people who experience things sober actually missing out?
Competitive Gaming and Writing Blog Updated in October: "Song (and Story) of the Day"
Anyone want to beta read a paranormal mystery novella?
Here's your chance.stream
Posts
Frankly, though, talking about this to somebody who doesn't do drugs is a little like trying to explain color to a blind man. That's not meant to be a dig on you, it's just that verbally describing the way drugs alter perception doesn't really do it justice.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
but they're listening to every word I say
Then I caught a whiff of the stuff and had to leave the room. I'd probably be one of those annoying guys who just sits around and acts retarded when high, anyway, so no big loss. ;o
Anyone want to beta read a paranormal mystery novella? Here's your chance.
stream
a Weight Watchers ice cream sundae was suddenly the best sundae I'd ever had
or, I was watching a documentary about the ocean and I could not get over how beautiful the fucking jellyfish were
or, I played Beetles Rockband and the intro was mindblowingly awesome
so yeah, I think drugs can alter your experiences and cause you to notice or enjoy things more than you otherwise might
alcohol doesn't have this effect, that I've noticed
friend: I've got this bottle of red wine, I'm feeling so good right now.
me: sounds good.
friend: going to play some speed chess.
5 minutes later
friend: lolol this is the best shit ever. I'm playing so retarded and I don't care. This guy is pissed as hell, but I won't rematch.
Substitute speed chess with super low-stakes online poker once and a while and you get the general idea.
Seems fun enough, wish I could taste something besides alcohol when I try to drink.
Anyone want to beta read a paranormal mystery novella? Here's your chance.
stream
wut
A big greasy poutine is the best food on god's green earth after a night of awful beer and worse rum
I just started smoking
I've been drinking for a long time
so maybe alcohol isn't as wonderful to me anymore?
<<
>>
Oh man. Limed so hard.
Ugh. If I ever have one more person tell me to get baked before listening to an album I think I'ma slap them.
Pluto was a planet and I'll never forget
INORITE
how dare they enjoy something!
no, see
I quite enjoy being stoned out of my mind (well not stoned normally but you get the idea)
I'm just not out there trying to convince people it gives me wonderful perception of art that I never had before
Pluto was a planet and I'll never forget
And yeah, you can have fun without drinking or doing drugs; you can also start a fire with a couple of sticks, but why bother when we've invented the fucking lighter?
Every advancement in civilization has been done to make smoking pot easier and more rewarding
I did shrooms once, and it went poorly for all sorts of social reasons, but the actual hallucinations were great. I'd love to get the chance again in a more controlled environment.
Edit: for topicality, drugs can absolutely go well with art. I used to love getting wasted and watching TV, which I think is a pretty common thing. Comedy gets funnier, and drama gets more moving. It's a roller-coaster. It's not necessarily that drugs are putting you into contact with a better realm of aesthetic appreciation... merely a different one. I certainly wouldn't want to be drunk every time I watched TV for the rest of my life.
I think certain things are more interesting than other things in the same vein when high. Like, Jaws high is a lot more interesting than, say, Schindler's List high.
That is, if you can get passed the menu. I once got stoned and intended to watch Wanted but the music during the DVD menu was so good at the time that I just let that play on loop for an hour.
Basically, it removes a certain sensory filter, so you experience things more intensely. While this won't necessarily make a shitty song or movie good, it can make an okay one amazing. The reason there's a filter in the first place is because it would be pretty difficult to function day to day without it.
What worries me more is that some people only seem to enjoy certain things WHEN they're high.
These are the people who I avoid, because no matter what you are doing they are going to want to make you take what ever it is they are taking. I could be wrong but it always felt that they wanted me to try it to justify them taking it. Everyone is doing it so it's ok.
Event Horizon would be pretty terrible. The first time I tried mushrooms, some idiot put this on.
if you have no interest in experiencing something differently than you have by all means don't try any drugs.
to the point, as I think the first response said, it's not measurably better. for some people the different experience is more enjoyable than the vanilla one.
Paprika is not a good movie to show a first-timer, either.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
Right.
The brain has a natural ability to filter out irrelevant information. Like right now while I write this post I naturally ignore the frame around the text box and the sound of my fingers on the keys and my cat sitting on the floor beside me.
But when that filter is removed or subverted by drugs, you tend to notice nuances that you might not have noticed before. Beyond that, details that might otherwise seem irrelevant take on a much more important quality.
I'll use an analogy for Page-'s benefit. If you've ever seen Citizen Kane, you know that when the main character dies he utters the word "Rosebud" and it's a big mystery what "Rosebud" could possibly mean until the big reveal at the end. If you don't know the twist, you might be wondering if it's code for something or a metaphor or somebody's name; you're running through all the possible permutations in your brain for what the significance of Rosebud could be.
Well, on certain drugs, insignificant details take on a significant quality. It's easy for your brain to go on the same kind of exploratory bread crumb trail, mapping out possible metaphors and meanings for a line from a song or a bit of dialogue from a movie.
Now, you're not necessarily going to learn anything new about the song or movie - and that's fine, because it's all in your head anyway. But that sort of free-flowing mental association is fucking amazing for creativity. If you draw or paint or write or play an instrument, you can find incredible amounts of inspiration from a single experience.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
or at least that's what I've heard.
but that's neither here nor there.
Still, the rest makes sense. I can only relate to altered moods with my experiences of being severely sleep deprived, where things are just different, and I laugh at stuff I never would have otherwise.
Anyone want to beta read a paranormal mystery novella? Here's your chance.
stream
Depends on the drug.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
Just browsing through the wiki, I can see the part where
being pretty goddamn rough.
It's a really hard movie to follow the plot when you're sober.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
Anyone want to beta read a paranormal mystery novella? Here's your chance.
stream
Nothing's forgotten, nothing is ever forgotten
That its a myth is true. I went to art school and theres a fair amount of drug use there. The people using had art no more brilliant (or stupid) than the ones that were not.
i've heard rosebud used as a term for the butthole
Still, correlation doesn't equal causality (and yes, I realize that could work the other way too). It could be possible that they'd be even less creative without the drugs. Or maybe when they're using the drugs, they're not making an effort to focus on being creative.
I'm certainly not saying drugs always make someone more creative, but I definitely think certain drugs do assist in the creative process for some people.
I find this to be the most rewarding aspect for me as well, it's hard for me to just sit down and listen to an slow-paced music without some sort of intoxication because I get distracted; and surfing the web or playing a game while listening to music feels disrespectful to me (if it's the first time you're listening to it anyways), and undermines my judgment or whether or not I actually like what I'm listening to (good art should stand on its own). Drugs put you in 'the mood' to be more receptive towards art, those moods happen from time to time anyhow but then you're not always prepared with the time to appreciate the art or the actual art on hand when they do.
Basically, what Feral said.
I'm still sort of wondering whether or not I'm actually missing out.
If someone needs to get high before they can enjoy John Cage and I can enjoy John Cage without getting high, then I shouldn't need to get high. But if getting high and then listening to John Cage actually changes what you hear or experience in a way I would never get sober then I am missing something. Maybe it's not important, but it's still something.
Anyone want to beta read a paranormal mystery novella? Here's your chance.
stream
Even music. Music is good, sure. But I'm just not that big into music, unlike pretty much everyone else I know. I only get really into, I only feel moved by it when its either live or I'm intoxicated. Funny that Radiohead is mentioned in the OP, because for a long time Radiohead would be the music I'd choose after I smoked a joint.
This applies to other sorts of art as well. It just puts me in the right frame of mind, and interpretive, rather than analytical state.
Think about this: You can enjoy a sandwich without mustard.
Yes you are missing out in a way. For example, you will never experience shrooms unless you eat shrooms.
But theres plenty of valid reasons to never do any of that stuff, and anyone who would judge you for that is someone you can do without.