I ought to warn you now that I've got my iPod buds in while I write this, and "Gates of Hades" is playing. So if it turns out that I'm completely wrong about all of this and this review goes off the rails somewhere in the next few hundred words, you'll know what happened.
Last week, Oklahoma City News Channel 9 reported that kids across America were getting high on MP3s (Wired originally reported it was in Kansas), and it's called iDosing. According to the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, the tracks contained "bi-neural" waves that simulate the effects of drugs like marijuana, cocaine and peyote. If you wanted to try it you could download the track "Gates of Hades" for free -- because the first hit's always free -- and once you're hooked on that, you'd beg to pay for more tracks. You're also supposed to get a 40-page book to teach you how to get properly lit when you're using the tracks. Even if you ignore all the other red flags that booklet shit should tell you right there that this does not qualify as a real drug. Nobody looks at a pile of weed, blow or peyote and needs a pamphlet to figure it out. In my younger and stupider days, I did two out of three of those, so I have an idea of what they're shooting for here.
I'm not a cynic about the possibility of audio drugs either. Music is supposed to drag feelings out of you, and everyone reading this can name a song that makes them feel angry, or sexy, or sad. Otherwise, what's the point, right? Why not a track engineered to trip that wire in your head? The way we interact with technology does affect us, and not unlike drugs, can be used to alter and manage our perceptions. It's just no one's written Fear and Loathing and the Electronic Entertainment Expo yet.
I'm sorry to tell you that based on my experiment with iDosing, we're still not there.
For the purpose of this experiment, I downloaded the "Gates of Hades" track, as well as "Orgasm," "Ecstasy," and "Nitrous." I loaded these onto an iPod with a pair of standard Apple earbuds, then laid down on my bed at home, turned off the lights and hit the switch on "Gates."
Here's how the experience is described on i-doser.com:
Smoke of theirI am an authority on darkness, and that statement is bullshit.torment. Weeping and gnashing of teeth. Death. Destruction. No rest day
and night. Tormented. Their worm does not die. Expect nightmares, near
death experiences, and strong onset of fear. A failure of a creation
that we offer only as a premium for those who want to experience both
sides. And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of
the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were
darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.
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From what it sounds, I would suggest picking up a science fiction book and giving that a read instead. Someone said above that their friend developed schizophrenia from it, so I don't think we should dismiss that. I don't think it will lead to other drugs, because dedicated fiction readers, myself included, experience very intense joy from reading, and it actually serves to keep them from drugs because they know that on drugs they will have a brief period of bliss that ends in the gutter. In other words, who would take heroin when they could just listen to a song? I think that the writer of this article was being a little premature, but the same could be said of the music as could be said of drugs, why spend a fortune on music and risk the ire of your parents or the authorities when you could just download a book or meditate?
HAHAHA, remember to buy milk... unless Satan apears. Brilliant.
Peter, your review is excellent. I had a good time reading it. I honestly don't care whether this stuff works or not, if you spelled binaural correctly or if you used inferior earbuds. Whatever. Your story is a nice (and humorous) description of how YOU experienced it. good stuff, keep it up.
Rob
I agree with most other people- do some research and maybe you might not come off as an arrogant douche nozzle. All I have to say is hopefully someone will click on some google advertising so you can afford to recoup from the loss you incurred when you invested in another piece of apple's continuously overpriced $hit. Please choke realized that life is a privilege.
Dear Peter (and readers)
Your review sucks.
You didn't do as the instructions told you to do, first and foremost you need to lay down in a dark room and use NOISE CANCELING HEADPHONES. I cannot stress that part enough, and you should have known that since the website tells you specifically not to use CHEAP headphones like the one's you were using.
It really annoys me when tech bloggers can't properly review things and end up giving the product a no-go just because they didn't follow simple directions, or do any sort of background research that a 3rd grader using google could accomplish in a matter of minutes.
Please retire or L2W
Whats That? Oh it's a 5th gen iPod.
Whats is do? You put your weed in it.
As chuck correctly points out, the correct term is Binaural. The ability of Binaural sounds to influence brainwaves is documented by research.
My personal experience with Binaural audio started about 2 years ago. I was having insomnia that noting could touch. I tried binaural audio and found that frequencies in certain range could help me sleep and wake up feeling rested. I've since then used binaural audio for focus and relaxation.
Some of the main research in this area is by (Hink, Kodera, Yamada, Kaga, & Suzuki, 1980) and (Owens & Atwater, 1995)
While I disagree with iDoser marketing this technology as a drug alternative, Binaural audio is a powerful technology.
Reggie,
Schizophrenia is not 100% heritable. Even in twins there is only a 60-70% chance that both will have the genes necessary to develop schizophrenia (and I've never heard to both twins developing it at exactly the same time). There is no way Binaural beats, and strobe lights can induce the first psychotic break that is an indication of schizophrenia. It's a co-incidence, that is all.
I have used most of the iDoser tracks, including the drugs ones and the supposed "Brain Boosters".
They're all BS. The most dramatic effect I ever had was after I finished the whole boring 30 minutes, everything sounded funny for 20 minutes.
Which was a byproduct of hearing the sounds constantly for 20 minutes.
These kids are gullible morons being victimized by the Placebo Effect who would have better hallucinations if they just started using their imaginations.
I know a girl who developed permanent schizophrenia after using binaural tracks and strobe glasses. She happens to be an identical twin, and the sister who has never used such things has no mental problems at all.
Hey Peter, let's do some fact-checking before writing an article like this...it might save you from looking foolish.
"Bi-neural"? Really? That's a nonsense word, and just a hair off of "binaural", the word you were looking for. Binaural refers to our ability to distinguish sounds on different sides of our heads using our ears, which this music is designed to take advantage of. The effect this music strives for is an altered brainwave sensation, which sadly cannot mimic the effect of real psychoactive drugs.
If you want to give these "binaural beats" the best shot at having an effect, try something else: Instead of the stock iPod earbuds, find some nicer closed-back cans that cover your ears, and block out outside noise. A big factor in this case is the audio quality that reaches your ears, so shoot for the best headphone quality and audio file quality (bitrate). Choose a dark, quiet room with no distractions, so you fully experience the music. It is not supposed to sound rhythmic or melodic, it's just an audio track with a wave pattern designed to trick your brain into synchronizing with it (to provide you with various wacky sensations).
So it may not be anything like the drugs it professes to mimic, but it's completely non-toxic, can be replayed endlessly or deleted instantly, and let's face it, can be downloaded for free by anyone who knows where to look.
Bottom line though, not something to worry about the kids getting addicted to...there will always be real drugs around for that.
Yoou don't get it. You have to smoke weed before you listen to the tracks. Your missing the whole point
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