East Forest Releases Single ‘Dark Thoughts – Live’ Ahead of ‘Music for Mushrooms’ Documentary Premiere

The feature-length documentary Music for Mushrooms from musician East Forest is set to have its theatrical debut on September 13 at the Angelika Village East in New York City, followed by its Los Angeles opening at the Laemmle Monica Film Center on October 4.

East Forest (Krishna-Trevor Oswalt) has been a pioneering figure in the psychedelics community for 15 years, and Music for Mushrooms documents his journey exploring the intersection of music and psychedelics and their ability, in combination, to facilitate transformative healing.

“We aim for this film to offer much-needed hope, perspective, and optimism to those who might feel lost,” said East Forest, a longtime collaborator of the late spiritual teacher Ram Dass.

East Forest uses shamanistic practices to guide psychedelic experiences, allowing participants to “confront their pain and fears, rediscover hope, and reconnect with their inner compass,” according to a press release. Music for Mushrooms explores the healing potential of art, spirituality, nature, and psychedelics through encounters with individuals whose lives have been changed by these experiences.

Also an accomplished musician, East Forest is releasing his new single, “Dark Thoughts – Live,” on Friday, September 6. The track is a “reimagined, live version” of a collaboration with Ram Dass, and appears on the Music for Mushrooms soundtrack, which will be released on October 4 to coincide with the film’s wider release.

“To celebrate the release, the Ram Dass community (Love Serve Remember Foundation) will be partnering with us to help share ‘Dark Thoughts – Live’ and the film with the world,” said East Forest. “We’re thrilled to offer this beautiful merging of music and mindfulness to a wider audience.”

The soundtrack includes songs recorded live during East Forest’s psychedelic ceremonies, offering listeners a tool for harnessing the power of music and psychedelics in their own healing journeys. The soundtrack’s “sister release,” a six-hour album, is designed to guide a psilocybin journey from start to finish.

Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris, Professor of Neurology, Psychiatry, and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, is featured in the documentary, and says East Forest’s music “speaks, I think, to nature.”

“The music provides structure on top of a fundamentally dysregulated state that is the psychedelic state,” Carhart-Harris said. “I think the kind of music that works well with psychedelics is pre-verbal, transcends specific cultural values.”

Theatrical Film Distributor Area 23a Films announced that the “hybrid” rollout for Music for Mushrooms will include traditional theatrical runs and special event screenings, with Q&As in select markets including New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, San Diego, Santa Cruz, Denver, Atlanta, D.C., Baltimore, and Chicago hosted by East Forest and special guests.

“We are thrilled to be working with East Forest and to have the opportunity to connect and inspire audiences across America with this transformational film. It provides communities with a one-of-kind platform to discuss how they can benefit from the use of music and psychedelic therapy to alleviate years of suffering,” said Area 23a CEO Kirt Eftekhar.

To find out if a screening for Music for Mushrooms is coming to your town please visit https://eastforest.org/music-for-mushrooms#m4m-screening

TMX contributed to this story.