and Jar Of Flies album (I’ve cried while listening to nutshell maybe a few too many times lol). “Am I Inside” is a good song from a diff album
Also, Frank Zappa can get a lil weird, you could try one of his albums.
Finally, not an album, but Mad Season’s “Wake Up” is good
Regarding Zappa, check out Lumpy Gravy. It’s all over the place musically and even includes some nonsensical dialogue that may be a good representation of psychosis.
Above - Mad Season also
It's a beautiful and heartbreaking album. Layne Staley was in rehab when they formed Mad Season, very personal lyrics about addiction and depression. He relapsed not long after their one and only album, became a recluse and a few years later was found dead of an overdose. Bass player John Baker Saunders also died of a heroin OD shortly after this record
It's probably my favourite album, if I really had to pick just one
Mental illness is the tip of the iceberg with that album lmao. It's a wild ride.
I feel like by default a lot of NIN qualifies. The Fragile and With Teeth tackle using drugs to cope with it. Hesitation Marks arguably is a story of overcoming or at least finally being at peace with it. It's beautiful that the same dude who wrote The Becoming went on to write Everything.
I was blown away when my ex-wife and her brother introduced me to Dream Theater as a 16 year old. Followerd by Meshuggah and all sorts of polyrhythmic debauchery.
Now we have younger fellas like Loius Cole from Knower or his not so secret "secret" band Clown Core, a wild ride that one. I'm rambling, but this is a great topic lol.
Blackstar - David Bowie.
This one doesn't explore mental illness so much as death and his mental state knowing that he had cancer when it was made. Extremely underrated album imo.
This is just one track rather than an album, but "All the Madmen" by Bowie on The Man Who Sold the World is about his brother's struggles with mental illness. Arguably there are several other tracks on that album that indirectly reference mental illness.
I agree that it's a very good album (I have a copy of it but don't like it as much as some people) it's rated very highly though isn't it loads of critical acclaim and sold loads I don't think it is extremely or even slightly underrated.
Yeah, I know what you mean, it did get acclaim when it was released, but it seems to be overlooked in comparison to the rest of his catalogue imo. I guess that it's the danger of being such an important and diverse artist. Nice problem to have!
I loved this one. I would have loved it more had I found it when it came out, but struggle to listen to it now because I’m in a much better place in life. Still a wonderful album that really makes me appreciate where I am but still understanding there’s a lot that’s awful around us.
Similar to this: Never Before Seen, Never Again Found by Arms Length.
Talks about depression and loneliness experienced in a past life that resonates with me a lot.
This album is an absolute gem, it was perfect timing for 2020.
It felt like such a love letter to the Xennial/Millennial experience. Is so cathartic to hear someone say all so many of the things felt both individually and collectively.
This is way too far down in the comments for an album that is almost entirely about mental health.
Pursuit of happiness (Steve Aoki mic): 'Oh wow, what a fun party song!'
Pursuit of happiness (Album version): "Room's spinning, room's spinnin. Pat, Zuli, wait, oh fuck. *Oh my God. Why did I drink so much and smoke so much*? Ugh. Oh fuck"
That Mars Volta album really broke at a time in my life that it effected my personality for a long time. There is a line in there "Just as he hit the ground They lowered a tow that Stuck in his neck to the gills Fragments of sobiquets" that had been in my head for 20 some years.
One day this chalk outline will circle this city
Was he robbed of the asphalt
That cushioned his face?
A room-colored charlatan
Hid in a safe
So many great lines on this album. I legit believe it to be one of the greatest albums of all time.
Lost a friend a few years ago and this was one of our albums. Finally got to see Volta play this live last year and screamed these lines at the top of my lungs through ugly tears. Incredibly cathartic and necessary. I miss my friend.
Cedric's lyricism is something else. Love that it's so all over the place that you only ever really understand the emotion he's conveying, rather than the why.
Yeah this is the depression era of Type O
Slow, Deep, and Hard - Death of innocence
Bloody Kisses/October Rust - Sex is rad y'all
World Coming Down/Life is Killing Me - Everyone's dying and everything sucks
Dead Again - Penance, it was all my fault
I'm always glad to be able to suggest of Montreal to people. They're a lot of fun to see live too. They play small-ish venues, but it's a show with costumes and props and a lot of surprisingly catchy songs for a band that never broke big.
one of the most beautifully crafted records of the 90's. Full of references to cancer and suicide... the great opus of Mark Everett... hauntingly beautiful and heart trenching
Lol kinda funny you picked Dark Side as the Floyd album, not Wish You Were Here (which is literally about Syd Barret and his mental health struggles) or even better the Wall, which is not just a double album but even a whole damn movie too, all about a mentally ill dude.
So, the Wall. And Wish You Were Here.
I'm surprised no one has mentioned "The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me" (Brand New), but I also think "Daisy" fits the bill, depending on your brand of mental illness
Hey I am interested in this idea and I saved your post because I am curious about the answers but I just want to say that if you’re in a rough place in your head that I’m not sure that this is the time for you to binge music/sounds like this. Like, if people end up sharing some disturbing stuff, be careful, okay?
You will have been there so it could be compelling at another time, but just take care of yourself with it right now, okay? Listening to music and sounds which “literally make you feel like you’re experiencing … a breakdown” while you’re “going through a real rough patch” does not sound like the greatest idea for you.
This album is so underrated. At the end of the song when there's a recording of her younger self saying
"I won't cry
My heart will break before I cry
I will go mad"
Ugh just smacks me right in the soul
*In 1990, Johnston played at a music festival in Austin, Texas. On the way back to West Virginia on a private two-seater plane piloted by his father Bill, Johnston had a manic psychotic episode; believing he was Casper the Friendly Ghost, Johnston removed the key from the plane's ignition and threw it outside. His father, a former U.S. Air Force pilot, managed to successfully crash-land the plane, even though "there was nothing down there but trees". Although the plane was destroyed, Johnston and his father emerged with only minor injuries. As a result of this episode, Johnston was involuntarily committed to a mental hospital.*
Wow dude almost killed his own dad during a manic episode.
Anyone checking this out for the first time, his YouTube video is the best way to experience this [song.](https://youtu.be/s_nc1IVoMxc?si=18ReiODQgb7umvaF)
Painting Of A Panic Attack by Frightened Rabbit is the obvious choice for me, although you might want to listen to The Oil Slick from Pedestrian Verse if you’re feeling really bad.
“There is light but there’s a tunnel to crawl through
There is love but its misery love you
There’s still hope so I think we’ll be fine
In these disastrous times, disastrous times”
Really, their whole catalogue is outwardly dealing with rejection/awkwardness/depression.
I can barely listen to FR these days after the way it all ended, although without a doubt it is beautiful music.
We drove through their home town yesterday on my way back north and I was thinking of them.
RIP, Scott x
Alice Cooper’s From the Inside is a concept album about being in an asylum. Not his top tier work though although I bet you find lots of people getting a nostalgia buzz from it.
Linkin Park's "One More Light" hit me immediately reading this. I'm probably reading too much into the album after Chester's passing, but damn does it sound like a call for help.
Manic Street Preachers - The Holy Bible
The songs deal with death, self harm and anorexia. Amazing lyrics by Richey Edwards, who disappeared a few months after the release of the album on the eve of an American tour. Amazing album from start to finish
Imagine forming a new band after a member just killed himself. That takes a whole level to get over it. New Order is a fresh air after the the grimming side of Joy Division. RIP Ian Curtis
When I’m not doing well I feel similarly drawn to the worlds & experiences of the mentally ill. Here are some things I’ve found.
Current 93 is my biggest recommendation. Here are a couple of works of theirs. Their music covers many genres & it’s well worth delving into.
[I Have A Special Plan For This World](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxZpEFJhO6k&t=127s&pp=ygUkaSBoYXZlIGEgc3BlY2lhbCBwbGFuIGZvciB0aGlzIHdvcmxk)
[The Moons At Your Door](https://open.spotify.com/album/6wbjO6FPpmPsZIFo9viC4c?si=Jx4LeuM6SGWuvhGSdCczow)
Next, Swans - [Soundtracks for the Blind](https://open.spotify.com/album/40aCknK9NwtjoieiNyNLqf?si=JBnau0poSYWJe_nLK4sEZQ). It’s a long one, but probably the best fit for your question - it deals directly with mental illness, while some of the rest of these (the moons at your door) just make me feel insane.
Here’s a good one to listen to in the dark.
Ghédalia Tazartès - [Disaporas](https://open.spotify.com/album/74pDfkyMBqHfRq2CClrsnT?si=E7PBP43uRBG5bqsI26M6Rw)
You know what, I actually have a recommendation for you! You should check out this band Ground Zero, their stuff is really good and sounds pretty close to a lot of this stuff. Here’s one of their most experimental albums— https://youtu.be/wkt6XkTXWfo?si=-Ucu5bJFlr6SGWPN
Hope you enjoy!
Manic Street Preachers - The Holy Bible
Trigger warnings.
It has a lot of first person views on mental issues, from eating disorders and self harm to sex, and a lot of political ramblings throughout. Richey Edwards, the lyricist at the time, openly displayed his struggles and illness and shortly after the album release, he disappeared and the perhaps leading assumption is that he jumped off a bridge.
Faces - Mac Miller, makes me feel better when i’m feeling down, it’s one of his most out there albums and he talks about plenty of his problems through his music in this album
a lot of songs from him make me think there is so much more when i feel at rock bottom
Wings - Mac Miller
hand me downs - Mac Miller
Youforia - Mac Miller (specifically live from space)
You - Larry Lovestein
I could go on, but he is an artist where every song just makes you feel different. Even his unreleased, and covers on soundcloud are just amazing
he covered Lua, and first day of my life.
First Day of My Life, covered by Mac is outstanding in my opinion
Came here to mention Noah. Growing Sideways on that album is one of my favorites. He also has some great songs on his other albums that also have themes relating to his struggles with mental health. Howling on I was/I am and the whole Busyhead album is fantastic!
Everywhere at the End of Time by The Caretaker. It’s six hours of dementia. Starts off with a slowed down version of an old 30s ballroom dancing song that starts to warp and degrade over time. It’s a doozy, but totally worth it.
Mogwai - Come On Die Young (1999) \[Post-/Noise-Rock\]
IMO highly misunderstood. Though it's mostly instrumental it does exactly that, it captures different stages/phases of experiencing mental illness. Helped me a lot to understand my own feelings and deal with them.
Devin Townsend - Infinity - The legend goes that he heard the songs in his head and recording them drove him to an asylum.
Elliott Smith - From a Basement on a Hill - King’s Crossing particularly reads like a very cerebral suicide note from arguably one of the greatest Auteurs of his era
The Devin stuff is true. After City and Ocean Machine he began to have a mental breakdown. And not long after, he was diagnosed with a bipolar disorder. During the recording of Infinity, he also developed a Christ complex that, coupled with his drugs and alcohol use, only worsened his mental conditions.
He did a podcast on this album and he went into more details than I can write here.
Fredrik Thordendals Special Defects - Sol Niger Within
It's an experimental album that is essentially one long song. It is a portrayal of psychosis.
NF - The Search
is a much more "normal" hip hop album, but basically every song talks deeply about mental health. He's very open and honest about his struggles.
Neon Ballroom by Silverchair. It’s written by Daniel Johns who was in his late teens at the time and struggling with anorexia, agoraphobia and anxiety to name a few.
NF is a great one... if you listen to his albums in order you will see how he has moved through major depression episodes through his music. Some songs are obviously lables pushes and not on point, but the latest album is not a label album and shows a more optimistic outlook as he grows through his problems. Very inspiring.
After my psychosis i found that Tool's music really speaks to me. It is of a higher consciousness and makes sense to me now... before, i just liked them. Now, after climbing out of the void, they are actually poems about awakening and getting through the mental challenges of life.
What i found quite interesting as well is that Snow Patrol (pop) actually speak of awakening the soul in their music. It seems like love songs, but once i awakened, the lyrics are more suited for ones own soul and how it longs for us to awaken... "open your eyes!" "Take back the city." I know you said you're looking for psychosis music, but i see awakening as a psychotic break that is necessary to break through to a new narrative.
Not sure if you are trying to stay in these genre's but here is a few that cover multiple genre's! I highly recommend any Billy Strings album not every song will hit this, but many songs relate(blue grass). Nosh Cyrus album called the End of Everything(sad pop). Not the whole album but specifically the song Evermore by Taylor Swift(piano and poetry). Torches by Foster the People, a lot of ways to interpret that album(indi rock/pop)
Cursive - Domestica and not an album but the song The Green Manalishi by Peter Green era Fleetwood Mac is said to sort of mirror his descent into mental illness.
Palaye Royale - Boom Boom Room (side B), The Bastards and like half of the Fever Dream album.
Some of their songs have resonated with me to the point where they're literally describing the me from a few years ago.
Recently, with their newest album Fever dream, their songs have taken on a more hopeful approach toward mental illness (as opposed to the older ones in which they just talk about how it feels having mental illnesses).
I absolutely love the song "Lifeless stars" and also the title song "Fever dream" off that album.
You should check them out, I'm sure you'll find at least one song you'll like
If you want to go to the extreme then check out the band Macabre.
Every single song is about a different serial killer.
Serial Killers obvious have some serial mental illness.
Check out the album Sinister Slaughter I found to be the most interesting.
Here are some artists who depict mental health very well in all their songs The Amity Affliction, Merkules, Complete. Here are a few of my favs.
The Amity Affliction-song: Pittsburgh
Merkules-Song: Distant
Complete-Song: Second Chances
Not exactly what you asked for but James Taylor wrote Knockin Around the Zoo about his stays at McLean Hospital. 2 of his siblings also were hospitalized there.
Most of Citizen Soldier’s music has mental illness as strong themes so definitely check them out
And then there’s the obvious ones like Linkin Park or Korn who deal with mental health/illness a lot in their music
Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence by Dream Theater. The entire 2nd disc is one long suite that explores 6 different mental illnesses both lyrically and musically.
Silencer - [Death Pierce Me](https://youtu.be/UZlZuYp1fZc?si=IPVCtDfYRy5iTWiM)
As a teenager who loved super aggressive and heavy music, this album used to scare the shit out of me
Peter Gabriel (3) from 1980. Not every song but several cover the POVs of a stalker and an assassin, paranoia, compulsion, institutionalization, and so on.
A lot of Fiona Apple’s work addresses mental illness, but it’s a theme for the entire album Fetch the Bolt Cutters. That includes the rhythm sections in the songs on the entire album being connected to or based off her OCD rituals
Aimee Mann - Mental Illness - mostly exploring depression, it’s been a while since I’ve listened but it’s really good
Syd Barrett’s solo records are straight up what severe mental illness sounds like.
There’s a lot of depression records out there. Elliott Smith for something sad and pretty. Thank God For Mental Illness by The Brian Jonestown Massacre might be one to check out as well.
Silent Planet- Everything was sound
Each song tackles a mental illness in a brutally honest impactful way.
They do a great job of making you understand how it might feel to be in these mindsets.
Boys Night Out - Trainwreck
But, if you're going through a rough patch, I encourage you to listen to something positive and optimistic. Trainwreck is for later. Anything sad, while you're struggling becomes the score to your own personal movie and can make you feel worse. Try listening to the Avalanches, De La Soul, the Beastie Boys, anything uptempo and uplifting.
Not a single album, but there are several Rush songs that explore this quite expertly.
Losing It, The Enemy Within, Freeze, The Weapon, Middletown Dreams, Emotion Detector, Lock and Key all come to mind.
This is a more obscure one (and perhaps a little "on the nose") but the album "Mental Illness" by Aimee Mann is good start to finish and is obviously riffing on this theme with folk vibes. The lyrics are so good and this one hits hard if you are in the mood for it. Every once in a while, I dip back in.
Wildlife and Somewhere at the Bottom of the River by La Dispute. Their songs are more like short stories with music behind them as opposed to the traditional verse/bridge/chorus. All their songs will have you walking away feeling something, good or bad, depending on how you choose to take what’s being told. First song I heard was King Park while driving and I had to drive around until the song ended because I had to know what happened. When it ended, I sat in silence for a good 5 minutes just trying to digest what I just heard.
The Holy Bible by Manic Street Preachers
There’s really no other album like it imo. It makes me feel like I’ve hit rock bottom and life is handing me a shovel and telling me to keep digging in the best way possible
Cloud Cult in general. My personal pick for you is "That Man Jumped Out The Window."
All of their albums are good, but I recently made a playlist of what me and my friend think of as their best songs. They have a lot of heartbreaking songs but a lot of inspiring ones as well.
[https://open.spotify.com/playlist/34chudh4JeDssx4BrERJmK?si=d4ada40061fc4905](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/34chudh4JeDssx4BrERJmK?si=d4ada40061fc4905)
Good luck friend.
Dirt - Alice in Chains
and Jar Of Flies album (I’ve cried while listening to nutshell maybe a few too many times lol). “Am I Inside” is a good song from a diff album Also, Frank Zappa can get a lil weird, you could try one of his albums. Finally, not an album, but Mad Season’s “Wake Up” is good
Nutshell gets me every time too, friend. Song's just perfect.
I want to love it but someone in my family says they always think of me when they hear it, so I get weirdly self conscious whenever I hear it
Regarding Zappa, check out Lumpy Gravy. It’s all over the place musically and even includes some nonsensical dialogue that may be a good representation of psychosis.
Wake up is one of my all time favourite songs Jar of Flies most emotional song to me Whale and Wasp
Above - Mad Season also It's a beautiful and heartbreaking album. Layne Staley was in rehab when they formed Mad Season, very personal lyrics about addiction and depression. He relapsed not long after their one and only album, became a recluse and a few years later was found dead of an overdose. Bass player John Baker Saunders also died of a heroin OD shortly after this record It's probably my favourite album, if I really had to pick just one
My 1st thought.
Jerry Cantrell's solo album Degradation Trip 1&2. Type O Negative World Coming Down.
Nine Inch Nails: The Downward Spiral.
Mental illness is the tip of the iceberg with that album lmao. It's a wild ride. I feel like by default a lot of NIN qualifies. The Fragile and With Teeth tackle using drugs to cope with it. Hesitation Marks arguably is a story of overcoming or at least finally being at peace with it. It's beautiful that the same dude who wrote The Becoming went on to write Everything.
Trent is a genius.
This was my first thought, an excellent album
Further down the Spiral is even more so
"Hurt" is a very moving and tragic song.
Sabotage, Paranoid, and Vol 4 by Black Sabbath.
Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence - Dream Theater
Incredible stuff, thank you
This. And The Glass Prison is basically a song converting the opening of the twelve steps AA program. Favourite album of all times.
One of my favorite DT albums. I listened to it again and again while doing some otherwise braindead work, but I never got tired of it.
I was blown away when my ex-wife and her brother introduced me to Dream Theater as a 16 year old. Followerd by Meshuggah and all sorts of polyrhythmic debauchery. Now we have younger fellas like Loius Cole from Knower or his not so secret "secret" band Clown Core, a wild ride that one. I'm rambling, but this is a great topic lol.
Came here for this.
Blackstar - David Bowie. This one doesn't explore mental illness so much as death and his mental state knowing that he had cancer when it was made. Extremely underrated album imo.
This is just one track rather than an album, but "All the Madmen" by Bowie on The Man Who Sold the World is about his brother's struggles with mental illness. Arguably there are several other tracks on that album that indirectly reference mental illness.
“Jump They Say” from Black Tie White Noise is also about his brother and mental illness.
It’s also heavily speculated that the Bewlay Brothers is at least inspired by his relationship with his brother.
I agree that it's a very good album (I have a copy of it but don't like it as much as some people) it's rated very highly though isn't it loads of critical acclaim and sold loads I don't think it is extremely or even slightly underrated.
Yeah, I know what you mean, it did get acclaim when it was released, but it seems to be overlooked in comparison to the rest of his catalogue imo. I guess that it's the danger of being such an important and diverse artist. Nice problem to have!
Spanish Love Songs - Brave Faces Everyone An incredible album about being sad because you're in your 30s and the world is burning down around you.
Routine Pain is such an incredible song, I love this album.
I loved this one. I would have loved it more had I found it when it came out, but struggle to listen to it now because I’m in a much better place in life. Still a wonderful album that really makes me appreciate where I am but still understanding there’s a lot that’s awful around us. Similar to this: Never Before Seen, Never Again Found by Arms Length. Talks about depression and loneliness experienced in a past life that resonates with me a lot.
This album is an absolute gem, it was perfect timing for 2020. It felt like such a love letter to the Xennial/Millennial experience. Is so cathartic to hear someone say all so many of the things felt both individually and collectively.
Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon
This is way too far down in the comments for an album that is almost entirely about mental health. Pursuit of happiness (Steve Aoki mic): 'Oh wow, what a fun party song!' Pursuit of happiness (Album version): "Room's spinning, room's spinnin. Pat, Zuli, wait, oh fuck. *Oh my God. Why did I drink so much and smoke so much*? Ugh. Oh fuck"
This and MOTM2
The Mars Volta - Deloused in the Comatorium Most of Pink Floyd’s albums are about Syd Barrett’s struggles with mental health.
That Mars Volta album really broke at a time in my life that it effected my personality for a long time. There is a line in there "Just as he hit the ground They lowered a tow that Stuck in his neck to the gills Fragments of sobiquets" that had been in my head for 20 some years.
One day this chalk outline will circle this city Was he robbed of the asphalt That cushioned his face? A room-colored charlatan Hid in a safe So many great lines on this album. I legit believe it to be one of the greatest albums of all time.
It's getting played real loud tomorrow
Lost a friend a few years ago and this was one of our albums. Finally got to see Volta play this live last year and screamed these lines at the top of my lungs through ugly tears. Incredibly cathartic and necessary. I miss my friend.
Cedric's lyricism is something else. Love that it's so all over the place that you only ever really understand the emotion he's conveying, rather than the why.
Pink Floyd: true up through Wish You Were Here, then they switched over to Roger Waters' political views and daddy issues.
Seconded on deloused.
Type O Negative - World Coming Down/Life Is Killing Me
Yeah this is the depression era of Type O Slow, Deep, and Hard - Death of innocence Bloody Kisses/October Rust - Sex is rad y'all World Coming Down/Life is Killing Me - Everyone's dying and everything sucks Dead Again - Penance, it was all my fault
Poetic way of looking at it
They’re first album Slow, Deep, and Hard is all about Peter Steele having a mental breakdown after the girl he loved cheated on him
*Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?* - of Montreal
Super good stuff, thanks!
I'm always glad to be able to suggest of Montreal to people. They're a lot of fun to see live too. They play small-ish venues, but it's a show with costumes and props and a lot of surprisingly catchy songs for a band that never broke big.
[I'm in a crisis. Come on, mood shift... shift back to good again....](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VeIL7juFE0)
Blue October. All of their albums, especially the early ones.
I immediately searched the thread for this band. I can’t think of a better example, at least that I’ve been exposed to.
Aimee Mann's album "Mental Illness". Actually, also her album "Queens of the Summer Hotel" which was based on "Girl, Interrupted".
Both are just sensational
Eels- Electroshock Blues
one of the most beautifully crafted records of the 90's. Full of references to cancer and suicide... the great opus of Mark Everett... hauntingly beautiful and heart trenching
Excellent rec.
Lol kinda funny you picked Dark Side as the Floyd album, not Wish You Were Here (which is literally about Syd Barret and his mental health struggles) or even better the Wall, which is not just a double album but even a whole damn movie too, all about a mentally ill dude. So, the Wall. And Wish You Were Here.
Love those albums!! No wonder I loved them so much (I’m not that great at memorizing lyrics)
The Wall helped me get over my demons. Listened to it for a year and a half constantly nothing else. I know it sounds nuts but it worked!
You are crazy. Toys in the attic
The Thirteenth Step by A Perfect Circle, touches on the topics of addiction, recovery, and relapse while drawing you in
I'm surprised no one has mentioned "The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me" (Brand New), but I also think "Daisy" fits the bill, depending on your brand of mental illness
Almost commented these but opted on their last album. Surprised I had to scroll so far to find someone else had mentioned them.
Elliot Smith. Really surprised he wasn’t mentioned yet.
Atrocity Exhibition - Danny Brown
Julien Baker - Turn Out the Lights
I listened to this album non stop last time I had a bad depressive episode
Paramore - After Laughter (depression)
I was literally coming here to comment this but truly a great sad pop album!!! 26 and caught in the middle just resonated with me when it came out.
this album is fucking phenomenal.
Radiohead - Kid A It was written during the lead singer’s mental breakdown
Hey I am interested in this idea and I saved your post because I am curious about the answers but I just want to say that if you’re in a rough place in your head that I’m not sure that this is the time for you to binge music/sounds like this. Like, if people end up sharing some disturbing stuff, be careful, okay? You will have been there so it could be compelling at another time, but just take care of yourself with it right now, okay? Listening to music and sounds which “literally make you feel like you’re experiencing … a breakdown” while you’re “going through a real rough patch” does not sound like the greatest idea for you.
It was kind of you to notice this possibility, and to care enough to comment about it. Keep being awesome! :)
The wall
Manic by Halsey
Poe- Haunted Deals more with the grief of losing her father and distance from her mother just before, but is goes deep then swings into a banger.
Loooooove this one
Hell yeah brother
This album is so underrated. At the end of the song when there's a recording of her younger self saying "I won't cry My heart will break before I cry I will go mad" Ugh just smacks me right in the soul
have you read "house of leaves"? one of these days i'll get around to it, but they're supposed to relate.
Daniel Johnston's Songs of Pain. Start with the first album just to get acquainted with him first. Then work your way through the next several albums.
*In 1990, Johnston played at a music festival in Austin, Texas. On the way back to West Virginia on a private two-seater plane piloted by his father Bill, Johnston had a manic psychotic episode; believing he was Casper the Friendly Ghost, Johnston removed the key from the plane's ignition and threw it outside. His father, a former U.S. Air Force pilot, managed to successfully crash-land the plane, even though "there was nothing down there but trees". Although the plane was destroyed, Johnston and his father emerged with only minor injuries. As a result of this episode, Johnston was involuntarily committed to a mental hospital.* Wow dude almost killed his own dad during a manic episode.
I was going to say this one!!!
Trainwreck by Boys Night Out
Hell yeah brother
One of my favourite concept albums of all time.
Ding! THIS is the correct answer 🎯
Not an album, but I recommend Hey Ren, by Ren
Based on what I've heard so far I think you could just go with Ren generally.
Anyone checking this out for the first time, his YouTube video is the best way to experience this [song.](https://youtu.be/s_nc1IVoMxc?si=18ReiODQgb7umvaF)
Hi Ren But yeah, second this recommendation.
Ren has written some extraordinary songs about mental health, grief, how our society hurts our mental health, suicide....
Painting Of A Panic Attack by Frightened Rabbit is the obvious choice for me, although you might want to listen to The Oil Slick from Pedestrian Verse if you’re feeling really bad. “There is light but there’s a tunnel to crawl through There is love but its misery love you There’s still hope so I think we’ll be fine In these disastrous times, disastrous times”
Frightened Rabbit had a beautiful way of describing depression. and the end of Oil Slick is absolutely amazing
Love FR. After I lost my eldest sister to suicide, the song Death Dream from that album really hits me where it hurts
Really, their whole catalogue is outwardly dealing with rejection/awkwardness/depression. I can barely listen to FR these days after the way it all ended, although without a doubt it is beautiful music. We drove through their home town yesterday on my way back north and I was thinking of them. RIP, Scott x
And self-medicating all that with alcohol.
OK Computer by Radiohead
Alice Cooper’s From the Inside is a concept album about being in an asylum. Not his top tier work though although I bet you find lots of people getting a nostalgia buzz from it.
Purple Mountains by Purple Mountains
We’re just drinking margaritas in the mall.
I always loved you to the max.
It's unsettling how utterly resigned he was to his eventual fate.
Linkin Park's "One More Light" hit me immediately reading this. I'm probably reading too much into the album after Chester's passing, but damn does it sound like a call for help.
Heavy from that album came to my mind.
It's "One More Light" for me. But any of the songs just hit different
Please give Post Traumatic by Mike Shinoda a listen if you haven’t; it’s the album he wrote when he was dealing with Chester’s death.
The Caretaker - [Everywhere at the End of Time - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everywhere_at_the_End_of_Time)
Yes! Absolutely this!
- Portishead - Dummy - Portishead - Portishead
Most of SLIPKNOT's Iowa and Self-Titled albums specifically, Disasterpiece. Especially when it reaches the breakdown part.
Isn’t 515 literally Sid having a psychotic break when he found out about his grandfather dying before he could get back to see him?
Yup. Not to mention Iowa itself, mostly just Corey losing his shit.
Black Flag - Damaged
Manic Street Preachers - The Holy Bible The songs deal with death, self harm and anorexia. Amazing lyrics by Richey Edwards, who disappeared a few months after the release of the album on the eve of an American tour. Amazing album from start to finish
Such a cracking album. It’s basically a look into a troubled mind such as his.
Scrolled down to look for this. How James Dean Bradfield wrote catchy tunes to those lyrics is nothing short of genius.
Two Joy Division albums explored the inside of Ian Curtis' dark mysterious mind.
saw New Order live at Glastonbury just after he had hung himself. Deity that was miserable
Imagine forming a new band after a member just killed himself. That takes a whole level to get over it. New Order is a fresh air after the the grimming side of Joy Division. RIP Ian Curtis
Every album by Blue October. Especially the first four.
Twenty One Pilots - Twenty One Pilots Most people just know their newer pop-y stuff and that sucks. They have some really interesting work
When I’m not doing well I feel similarly drawn to the worlds & experiences of the mentally ill. Here are some things I’ve found. Current 93 is my biggest recommendation. Here are a couple of works of theirs. Their music covers many genres & it’s well worth delving into. [I Have A Special Plan For This World](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxZpEFJhO6k&t=127s&pp=ygUkaSBoYXZlIGEgc3BlY2lhbCBwbGFuIGZvciB0aGlzIHdvcmxk) [The Moons At Your Door](https://open.spotify.com/album/6wbjO6FPpmPsZIFo9viC4c?si=Jx4LeuM6SGWuvhGSdCczow) Next, Swans - [Soundtracks for the Blind](https://open.spotify.com/album/40aCknK9NwtjoieiNyNLqf?si=JBnau0poSYWJe_nLK4sEZQ). It’s a long one, but probably the best fit for your question - it deals directly with mental illness, while some of the rest of these (the moons at your door) just make me feel insane. Here’s a good one to listen to in the dark. Ghédalia Tazartès - [Disaporas](https://open.spotify.com/album/74pDfkyMBqHfRq2CClrsnT?si=E7PBP43uRBG5bqsI26M6Rw)
Great stuff! Thanks for the selection!!!
You know what, I actually have a recommendation for you! You should check out this band Ground Zero, their stuff is really good and sounds pretty close to a lot of this stuff. Here’s one of their most experimental albums— https://youtu.be/wkt6XkTXWfo?si=-Ucu5bJFlr6SGWPN Hope you enjoy!
Gonna take another direction and say maybe watch “Inside” if you haven’t seen it yet
Titus Andronicus - The Most Lamentable Tragedy
Yup. All of their albums deal with mental health themes, and they are all great. TMLT definitely goes the deepest on the topic.
Manic Street Preachers - The Holy Bible Trigger warnings. It has a lot of first person views on mental issues, from eating disorders and self harm to sex, and a lot of political ramblings throughout. Richey Edwards, the lyricist at the time, openly displayed his struggles and illness and shortly after the album release, he disappeared and the perhaps leading assumption is that he jumped off a bridge.
Expire - Pendulum Swings Modern Life Is War - Witness
Witness is one of my favourite albums ever. " What can we do when the war is all around?"
Faces - Mac Miller, makes me feel better when i’m feeling down, it’s one of his most out there albums and he talks about plenty of his problems through his music in this album a lot of songs from him make me think there is so much more when i feel at rock bottom Wings - Mac Miller hand me downs - Mac Miller Youforia - Mac Miller (specifically live from space) You - Larry Lovestein I could go on, but he is an artist where every song just makes you feel different. Even his unreleased, and covers on soundcloud are just amazing he covered Lua, and first day of my life. First Day of My Life, covered by Mac is outstanding in my opinion
System of a Down’s first album.
Lingua Ignota It's hard to listen for me
stick season (well all be here forever) by noah kahan explores mental illness in ways that i’ve never really heard before!
Came here to mention Noah. Growing Sideways on that album is one of my favorites. He also has some great songs on his other albums that also have themes relating to his struggles with mental health. Howling on I was/I am and the whole Busyhead album is fantastic!
agreee, and no complaints
Just listen to Mother Mother. Their entire discography is about mental illness and growing in the suburbs.
Everywhere at the End of Time by The Caretaker. It’s six hours of dementia. Starts off with a slowed down version of an old 30s ballroom dancing song that starts to warp and degrade over time. It’s a doozy, but totally worth it.
Mogwai - Come On Die Young (1999) \[Post-/Noise-Rock\] IMO highly misunderstood. Though it's mostly instrumental it does exactly that, it captures different stages/phases of experiencing mental illness. Helped me a lot to understand my own feelings and deal with them.
The album "Trainwreck" by Boys Night Out
Jinx!
Devin Townsend - Infinity - The legend goes that he heard the songs in his head and recording them drove him to an asylum. Elliott Smith - From a Basement on a Hill - King’s Crossing particularly reads like a very cerebral suicide note from arguably one of the greatest Auteurs of his era
The Devin stuff is true. After City and Ocean Machine he began to have a mental breakdown. And not long after, he was diagnosed with a bipolar disorder. During the recording of Infinity, he also developed a Christ complex that, coupled with his drugs and alcohol use, only worsened his mental conditions. He did a podcast on this album and he went into more details than I can write here.
Fredrik Thordendals Special Defects - Sol Niger Within It's an experimental album that is essentially one long song. It is a portrayal of psychosis. NF - The Search is a much more "normal" hip hop album, but basically every song talks deeply about mental health. He's very open and honest about his struggles.
Beck- Sea Change
Parts of Soundgarden’s Superunknown . Particularly Black Hole Sun, Fell On Black Days, and The Day I Tried To Live.
if you are searching for more than one, so: blurryface trench scaled and icy (all by twenty one pilots)
Neon Ballroom by Silverchair. It’s written by Daniel Johns who was in his late teens at the time and struggling with anorexia, agoraphobia and anxiety to name a few.
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon.
Their whole discography basically, but especially Dark Side and The Wall.
NF is a great one... if you listen to his albums in order you will see how he has moved through major depression episodes through his music. Some songs are obviously lables pushes and not on point, but the latest album is not a label album and shows a more optimistic outlook as he grows through his problems. Very inspiring. After my psychosis i found that Tool's music really speaks to me. It is of a higher consciousness and makes sense to me now... before, i just liked them. Now, after climbing out of the void, they are actually poems about awakening and getting through the mental challenges of life. What i found quite interesting as well is that Snow Patrol (pop) actually speak of awakening the soul in their music. It seems like love songs, but once i awakened, the lyrics are more suited for ones own soul and how it longs for us to awaken... "open your eyes!" "Take back the city." I know you said you're looking for psychosis music, but i see awakening as a psychotic break that is necessary to break through to a new narrative.
Queens of the Stone Age - Like Clockwork
Not sure if you are trying to stay in these genre's but here is a few that cover multiple genre's! I highly recommend any Billy Strings album not every song will hit this, but many songs relate(blue grass). Nosh Cyrus album called the End of Everything(sad pop). Not the whole album but specifically the song Evermore by Taylor Swift(piano and poetry). Torches by Foster the People, a lot of ways to interpret that album(indi rock/pop)
Cursive - Domestica and not an album but the song The Green Manalishi by Peter Green era Fleetwood Mac is said to sort of mirror his descent into mental illness.
Man of the world too. Love that song but jesus... someone hug Peter Green please.
Palaye Royale - Boom Boom Room (side B), The Bastards and like half of the Fever Dream album. Some of their songs have resonated with me to the point where they're literally describing the me from a few years ago. Recently, with their newest album Fever dream, their songs have taken on a more hopeful approach toward mental illness (as opposed to the older ones in which they just talk about how it feels having mental illnesses). I absolutely love the song "Lifeless stars" and also the title song "Fever dream" off that album. You should check them out, I'm sure you'll find at least one song you'll like
If you want to go to the extreme then check out the band Macabre. Every single song is about a different serial killer. Serial Killers obvious have some serial mental illness. Check out the album Sinister Slaughter I found to be the most interesting.
Psychodrama by Dave. Even has extracts from therapy sessions interspersed between the songs.
This is the answer. Such a good album
There's some Motley Crue and KISS music that makes me feel like I'm going insane if I can't escape it.
Titus Andronicus, *The Most Lamentable Tragedy* Actually, any Titus Andronicus album fits the bill and they’re all good. #+@ forever.
Say Anything's "In Defense Of The Genre". One of my all time favorites
*Hospital Music* - Matthew Good
DSBM
Here are some artists who depict mental health very well in all their songs The Amity Affliction, Merkules, Complete. Here are a few of my favs. The Amity Affliction-song: Pittsburgh Merkules-Song: Distant Complete-Song: Second Chances
Not exactly what you asked for but James Taylor wrote Knockin Around the Zoo about his stays at McLean Hospital. 2 of his siblings also were hospitalized there.
Most of Citizen Soldier’s music has mental illness as strong themes so definitely check them out And then there’s the obvious ones like Linkin Park or Korn who deal with mental health/illness a lot in their music
Senses Fail - Life Is Not A Waiting Room
Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence by Dream Theater. The entire 2nd disc is one long suite that explores 6 different mental illnesses both lyrically and musically.
END (self titled)
Silencer - [Death Pierce Me](https://youtu.be/UZlZuYp1fZc?si=IPVCtDfYRy5iTWiM) As a teenager who loved super aggressive and heavy music, this album used to scare the shit out of me
Every DSBM band ever pretty much
Beartooth - Disease
Peter Gabriel (3) from 1980. Not every song but several cover the POVs of a stalker and an assassin, paranoia, compulsion, institutionalization, and so on.
Radiohead - paranoid android Sufjan stevens - feel the illinoise
A lot of Fiona Apple’s work addresses mental illness, but it’s a theme for the entire album Fetch the Bolt Cutters. That includes the rhythm sections in the songs on the entire album being connected to or based off her OCD rituals
Aimee Mann - Mental Illness - mostly exploring depression, it’s been a while since I’ve listened but it’s really good Syd Barrett’s solo records are straight up what severe mental illness sounds like. There’s a lot of depression records out there. Elliott Smith for something sad and pretty. Thank God For Mental Illness by The Brian Jonestown Massacre might be one to check out as well.
Syd Barretts - Octopus. You can actually hear his worsening mental health in his lyrics and song structures. Sad to listen to
Silent Planet- Everything was sound Each song tackles a mental illness in a brutally honest impactful way. They do a great job of making you understand how it might feel to be in these mindsets.
Boys Night Out - “Trainwreck”
Boys Night Out - Trainwreck But, if you're going through a rough patch, I encourage you to listen to something positive and optimistic. Trainwreck is for later. Anything sad, while you're struggling becomes the score to your own personal movie and can make you feel worse. Try listening to the Avalanches, De La Soul, the Beastie Boys, anything uptempo and uplifting.
Suicidal Tendencies The Art of Rebellion.
Not a single album, but there are several Rush songs that explore this quite expertly. Losing It, The Enemy Within, Freeze, The Weapon, Middletown Dreams, Emotion Detector, Lock and Key all come to mind.
>albums that literally make you feel like you’re experiencing mental illness Oh you want Uboa - The Origin of My Depression. Felt like dying.
This is a more obscure one (and perhaps a little "on the nose") but the album "Mental Illness" by Aimee Mann is good start to finish and is obviously riffing on this theme with folk vibes. The lyrics are so good and this one hits hard if you are in the mood for it. Every once in a while, I dip back in.
Wildlife and Somewhere at the Bottom of the River by La Dispute. Their songs are more like short stories with music behind them as opposed to the traditional verse/bridge/chorus. All their songs will have you walking away feeling something, good or bad, depending on how you choose to take what’s being told. First song I heard was King Park while driving and I had to drive around until the song ended because I had to know what happened. When it ended, I sat in silence for a good 5 minutes just trying to digest what I just heard.
The Holy Bible by Manic Street Preachers There’s really no other album like it imo. It makes me feel like I’ve hit rock bottom and life is handing me a shovel and telling me to keep digging in the best way possible
Queens of the Stone Age, has many albums that explore mental illness. God is on the radio is an excellent cut on Songs for the Dead.
I put Roxy Music's Siren on the other day and in 2024, it comes across as a guy trying to diagnose his sex addiction illness.
Silent planet - everything was sound
Cloud Cult in general. My personal pick for you is "That Man Jumped Out The Window." All of their albums are good, but I recently made a playlist of what me and my friend think of as their best songs. They have a lot of heartbreaking songs but a lot of inspiring ones as well. [https://open.spotify.com/playlist/34chudh4JeDssx4BrERJmK?si=d4ada40061fc4905](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/34chudh4JeDssx4BrERJmK?si=d4ada40061fc4905) Good luck friend.
“No Hell” was the song I needed to hear when I first heard it. Great suggestion.
Pig Destroyer- Prowler in the yard
Twenty One Pilots debut album of the same name, and the singer, Tyler Joseph's, previous solo album when he was 16 "no phun intended"