I'm Flummoxed!

Boy, do I feel silly! It wasn't a lecture by Dr. Janov; it was a rock group named "Primal Scream"! Who knew?



Of course, my musical tastes in the 90's went into hibernation during my busy Social Work years, so I missed out on all kinds of bands.



I could give you a "Wikipedia" entry on "PS" but you can do that yourself, for doubtless you already know all about them. Furthermore, I don't know all that much about their roots in "Jesus & Mary in Chains" or "Stoned Roses" either...


But a fun concert, nonetheless.

Get Your Rocks off!

This was a mantra employed by Dr. Janov and his associates this evening to whip his followers into a frenzy. I thought it odd that instead of lecturing, the good Doctor sang his teachings and had companions playing drums, guitars or keyboards and had two big back up singers to accompany him. Though he has changed his modus operandi since the 70's, it certainly seemed to do its job. He spoke/ sang to a packed house of young people, all of whom really got into his speech and plunged their fists into the air, jumped up and down and screamed their lungs out. No knocking the guy's methods, he spoke for 2 hours and the crowd screamed the whole time and even asked for more.

Definitely an intriguing way to spend the evening and the cathartic effect upon the masses left everyone feeling much better.
Primal Scream Therapy WORKS!

Scream and Scream Again.

Back in my University days, I studied all kinds of Psychology, Freud, Jung, Piaget, etc... One that intrigued me, but we never got into in great depth, was "Primal Scream" therapy by Dr. Arthur Janov. One of the fundamental principles of Primal Therapy remains that therapeutic progress can only be made through direct emotional experience, which allows access to the source of psychological pain in the lower brain and nervous system. Sounds pretty cool.

John Lennon went through Primal therapy in 1970, and shortly afterward produced his raw, emotional album, "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band". The album featured a number of songs which were directly inspired by his experience in therapy, including "Remember," "Isolation," "I Found Out", "God," "Mother," "My Mummy's Dead," and "Working Class Hero."


So tonight, I'm very excited to go see Primal Scream at Zepp Sendai. It'll be interesting to see how Japanese audiences react to Dr. Janov's methods and whether it translates well.