10 Trippy Albums You MUST Hear Before You Die

10. Malfunkshun - Return To Olympus (1995)

Formed in Seattle in the late eighties, Malfunkshun stood out from their peers, due to their sheer eccentricity and glam rock leanings. Released in 1995, several years after its initial recording, and five years after the passing of frontman Andrew Wood, who tragically died from a heroin overdose, Olympus is part personal diary, part fairytale, set to trashing guitar and arena-ready vocals.

Taking on the persona of Landrew the Lovechild, the charismatic Wood, along with his guitarist brother Kevin and drummer Regan, set out to create their own mythology – a self styled brand of “love rock”, accentuated by face makeup and outlandish outfits to boot. The blatant drug references, such as “My señorita dances for me/Complete with Vaseline and a jar of LSD” in “Mr. Liberty (with Morals)” and “White pleasure powder/Drug of the rich” in “I Wanna Be Yo’ Daddy”, are juxtaposed with tender ballads like “Until the Ocean” and “Luxury Bed (The Rocketship Chair)”, taking the listener on a journey of seemingly extraterrestrial origins.

A key artefact in the timeline of the history of grunge, the album is, at worst, amateurish and naïve, and at best, full of mysticism and raw energy, guaranteed to make your brain tingle.