matthewdavid - On Mushrooms (A Primer for Mycelium Music) (2023)

Leaving Records boss Matthewdavid charts his relationship with psilocybin on this EP-length primer for his upcoming album.

We have to wonder if there are any synth owners on the West Coast who aren't gobbling magic mushrooms like they're Haribos right now. Usage of the word psychedelic in the last few years (even before the pandemic) has hit critical mass, and if there's any region that didn't need any convincing to open up their third eye it's California. Matthewdavid's "Mycelium Music" is due later this year, and "On Mushrooms" is the primer to set the scene for what's guaranteed to be a trip.

Expectedly, the record's a textured assemblage of gurgling tonal shifts, crackly top end cascades and balmy harmonies. Anything too dark might set the mind into freefall, so Matthewdavid makes sure it's featherlight throughout. Calling a track 'A New Ambient' might be setting expectations a little high, but it's easy to appreciate what he's doing; it's not exactly new, but at least it's acknowledging that having a soundtrack to a trip is helpful.