Drone music's slow moving ambiance and long repetitive tones position it as a soothing genre, suitable for relaxation, meditation, and therapeutic practices. Yet drone music can also contain harsher vibes, just as many find therapy, and the pursuit of therapy, can produce anxiety even as it attempts to lessen it.

Drone Therapy is a comedy performance series about mental health and treatment access. It began as a Youtube series in 2015, and has continued as Drone Therapy Live, which takes Drone Therapy out of my bedroom to venues, galleries, or festivals, sometimes with guests. In fall 2017 Drone Therapy Podcast launched as a regular audio series focusing on Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT)

"Funny, sincere, super brave" - Sisters I Don't Know What This World is Coming To

• Toronto Accessible Therapy Handbook (last updated November 2017): Drone Therapy Handbook PDF



Photos: Kate Young, Exclaim, InterAccess, Carey Shaw, Juice, The Music Gallery

Drone Therapy Podcast is a regular audio series working through a Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) workbook I received as part of a free group therapy program. It launched in December 2017.

Listen / subscribe:
• Drone Therapy Podcast on iTunes.
• Drone Therapy Podcast on Bandcamp.
• Drone Therapy Podcast on SoundCloud.
• Drone Therapy Podcast on Spotify.

Illustration by TheWaffleHo

Drone Therapy Festival is a performance piece that provides an unlicensed DIY Drone Therapist to festival grounds. Live drone music accompanies discussions about topics such as:

• drugs & alcohol
• prescription drugs
• substance abuse
• addiction
• identity
• dreams
• loneliness
• relationships
• love
• sexuality
• trauma
• phobias
• suppression
• triggers
• anxiety
• depression
• panic
• catastrophic thinking
• financial instability
• climate change
• death
• suicidal ideation
• suicide
• violence
• abuse
• isolation
• shame
• impostor syndrome
• self esteem
• support systems
• safety plans
• safe spaces
• mental healthcare
• cognitive behavioural therapy
• dialectical behavioral therapy
• exposure therapy
• core values
• validation
• mindfulness
• deep listening
• summertime sadness

A Drone Therapist is not meant to take the place of a real counselor or medical professional.

Past

Drone Therapy Live, Interaccess, Toronto, June 7, 2019.

Drone Therapy Live, Moogfest, Durham, USA, April 27, 2019 featuring Dr. Heather Kim.

Drone Therapy Live, SoundsLike Fest, Saskatoon, October 6, 2018.

Drone Therapy Live, Up Here Fest, Sudbury, August 18, 2019.

Drone Therapy Live, Long Winter, Toronto, February 24, 2018.

Drone Therapy Live, Electric Eclectics, Meaford Ontario, Aug 5-6, 2017.

Live photos by Long Winter, @jcwint, video by Tom Beedham

Drone Therapy Live takes Drone Therapy out of my bedroom, sometimes solo, sometimes collaborative with the public and/or with guests. The format varies show by show.

Past

National Drone Day: Drone Therapy Live: Drone Therapy 101 @ The Music Gallery, Toronto, May 28, 2016
Featuring host Jess Taylor, and live drone by Castle If, Allison Cameron, Oriana Barbato, Kat Estacio & co (Pantayo), Brett Despotovich, Jonathan Culp, Sage Kim, Abigail Trotsky , Chris Trotter (Iderdown), Brian Random (Fog Spirits), Johan Seaton, Sid Tangerine, David Jones, Katie Jensen, DreamSTATE, The AMBiENT PiNG, Victoria, Tony Marasco, Stefan Vladusic
More photos: Music Gallery blog.