Shpongle is the London psychedelic electronic duo of Simon Posford (also of Hallucinogen) and flute player Raja Ram, formed in 1996. Their blend of psychedelic trance, downtempo, ambient, and global traditions starts best with Are You Shpongled? or Tales of the Inexpressible. Dig into Shpongle vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Shpongle formed in London, England in 1996 around Simon Posford (also of the foundational psychedelic trance project Hallucinogen) and Raja Ram (Ron Rothfield, born November 5, 1940, Melbourne, Australia, also of the Infinity Project). The project's name was coined by Posford and defies precise definition. They are widely cited as one of the most important contemporary psychedelic electronic music acts. Their distinctive blend of psychedelic trance, downtempo, ambient, world music, and integration of diverse global musical traditions (use of Indian classical music, Middle Eastern music, and other non-Western traditions) established them as defining figures of the contemporary psychedelic electronic music scene. They have continued releasing material across multiple decades.
Shpongle's sound combines psychedelic electronic, psychedelic trance, downtempo, ambient, world music, electronic, psybient, and progressive electronic with virtuosic Simon Posford production (use of innovative synthesizer programming and sample integration), Raja Ram's distinctive flute work, and arrangements drawing on Indian classical music, Middle Eastern music, Caribbean music, and broader global musical traditions alongside contemporary electronic music influences.
Twisted Records pressings of the Shpongle catalog have been issued in color variant editions and limited deluxe pressings, with collector demand.
Listeners new to Shpongle typically start with Are You Shpongled? (1998) or Tales of the Inexpressible (2001).
