Routes Music is a documentary film acting as a roving music census, taking in the true musical passions (and disgusts) of the American people. We’re traveling all across the country, stopping along the way to interview local bands, take footage of live performances and chat with anyone and everyone. Learn more about the documentary here; check out all previous entries here.
We met Mushroom Montoya in Long Beach after a long, hard day on Malibu Beach. A practicing “modern shaman” for nearly three decades, Montoya views music as more than entertainment: he uses it for healing the mind, body and spirit. His tools are the drum and the didgeridoo, a hollowed-out pole that, when blown into, sounds like a nest of idle bees. Montoya’s choice of the didgeridoo is no accident; the instrument is said to be man’s first wind instrument dating back thousands of years. Aboriginal shamans in Australia used the didgeridoo in their own rituals and ceremonies.
Well, it just so happened that Phil was complaining of congestion, so Montoya took out one of his three didgeridoos to help clear our crew member's sinuses. Watch the video below:
