Stealing heaven.

Last year, autumn 2005 (I was 19), I went mushroom picking at a field near where I live and I got loads of them. I have always been interested in hallucinogenic drugs and their properties so I thought I would experiment and take a large dose, far larger than any other dose I have had. It must have been about 150 liberty caps which was really silly to do but I just wanted to experiment like I said. I was alone when I done this and I started my journey at about 11pm. Tripping alone isn't the best idea, however as a musician I like to work with music while under the influence and when I am working with my music I prefer to be alone.

The preperation was very simple. I made a tea by boiling the mushrooms up with water and sieving to get rid of the horrible gunge. After preperation I left the tea to cool and there was a couple of times that I said to myself: "I really shouldn't do this", but it never stopped me. I sipped away when I felt ready and it was a really horrible taste so I tried to get it down as fast as possible. Upon finishing the cup I put on some music to get things moving and took out my instruments and writing material. I have taken mushrooms many times but it seemed to take effect much quicker than usual I felt, perhaps after like 20 minutes which is a change from the 1 hour wait's.

Thing's started to get really bright and I felt as if my nervous system was being shaked about or something. I also at times felt like I was forgetting to breathe?. The effects were getting stronger by the minute and the thing's running through my head were weird. For example, I went to the bathroom and I felt like a different person, but wearing my clothes?. Ok, I really can't explain it but it was weird. Anyway, as time went on my state worsened and I couldn't even function properly and I couldn't even move my body (I was lying down on the sofa). I felt like my body had shut down or something. Ok, now onto the strangest thing that's ever happened to me. Usually when I take mushrooms I just see little shapes, thing's morphing etc but what I saw was different this time (due to the dose obviously). Everything around me looked like it was made from wood?, and my hands looked as if the were all wrinkly; like a really old persons hands. Nothing was morphing, no shapes or anything... everything was just made from wood, the TV, a shoe box that was on the floor, the walls, absolutely everything around me. Not long after I could hear this really exotic music but it wasn't the music that was on. It was like tambourines, chimes etc. Basically, it was all percussion I was hearing but believe it or not, it was the best thing I have ever heard in my life. Honestly, I felt like there was a spirit of an undiscovered musical genius around me creating these sounds.

This was a year ago and I think about this experience all the time. It's just now that I have decided to share it. Throughout this trip I felt alot of fear and was thinking of myself in a different way, however it was the most interesting experience ever and I'm glad I done it. It is something I will always treasure. I was so out of it at the time and didn't have much ability to create music (I could hardly even move let alone jam). The only thing's I done were done on an electric guitar; I scratched a string with a plectrum and it blew me away. There was a total different meaning to the sound. Other things like de-tuning and playing at the same time sounded great. I felt rather musically experimental but there wasn't any sense in my sound, only I could understand. Up to this day I have used some of the guitar tricks I came up with that night, but made it more understandable of course.

I really do recommend this to other musicians/artists. It opens more doors and things you would never think of seem to just come to you naturally.

Well that's all I have to say. Loads of stuff happened but most of it I can't put it into words I'm afraid. I stole heaven for the day, that's how I felt.


Take care.