[DISCLAIMER] Photo credit, fair use In the black comedy crime action-horror film From Dusk till Dawn (1996), directed by Robert Rodriguez and written by Quentin Tarantino from a concept and story by Robert Kurtzman, Cheech Marin plays a character named Chet Pussy, working as a doorman at the Titty Twister. At this upstanding establishment /s, also known as La Tetilla del Diablo, outlaws, bikers, and truckers are lured to the bar for unsuspecting nights of debauchery. Here

[DISCLAIMER] The James Talarico Fiasco In my personal and professional practice of care for mental, emotional, and behavioral health (collectively “mental health”), I sometimes encounter the unhelpful effects of stigma—which the American Psychological Association thusly defines: [T]he negative social attitude attached to a characteristic of an individual that may be regarded as a mental, physical, or social deficiency. A stigma implies social disapproval and can lead un

[DISCLAIMER] The American Psychological Association defines happiness as “an emotion of joy, gladness, satisfaction, and well-being,” and defines sadness as “an emotional state of unhappiness, ranging in intensity from mild to extreme and usually aroused by the loss of something that is highly valued.” Given these definitions, I now turn to the electronic dance music (EDM) supergroup Swedish House Mafia. They recently released a song entitled “Happiness Is So Sad”, featur

[DISCLAIMER] When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Momentix, I heard him spin the track “Body Control” (2025) by T78 and Johannes Schuster. The lyrics repeatedly state, “Let the beat control your body.” Now, the American Psychological Association defines body as “the entire physical structure of an organism, such as the human body,” and defines control as “authority, power, or influence [the power or capacity to cause an effect in indirect or intangi

[DISCLAIMER] When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Inamar, I heard her spin the song “Delete Time” (2024) by Sevenn and Space Motion. For clarity, to delete is to eliminate, especially by blotting out, cutting out, or erasing. As well, the American Psychological Association defines time as “a concept by which events are ordered into past, present, and future.” When contemplating the concept of deleting time, a psychoeducational lesson on Rational Emo

[DISCLAIMER] When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Lysa Chain, I heard her spin the track “Never Gonna Stop” (2026) by Marie Vaunt. Unless my understanding of EDM genres is askew, the song represents both acid techno and hardcore styles. At any rate, I dig it! When listening to the fast-paced track, as the lyrics repeatedly state “never gonna stop,” I thought of a psychoeducational lesson on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT). It’s my go-to met

[DISCLAIMER] When providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I teach people about the ABC model of self-disturbance (how people upset themselves through use of irrational beliefs). Now, I’ll address a finer point of this psychotherapeutic model of wellness. For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate how when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, n

[DISCLAIMER] I’ve made no secret of the fact that I befriended gang members when in high school. One gang set with whom I was close was the Sureños (also known as Southern United Raza, Sur 13, or Sureños X3 – groups of loosely affiliated gangs that pay tribute to the Mexican Mafia). Their main rival was the Norteños (also known as Northerners; Norteñas for females, and are the various affiliated gangs that pay tribute to Nuestra Familia). Because I was never a formal affi

[DISCLAIMER] It’s likely noncontroversial to declare that in electronic dance music (EDM), Dutch DJ, musician and record producer Armin van Buuren is one of the quintessential trance music artists. Now, I invite you to consider his second compilation album, A State of Trance 2005 (2005). The anthology contained the track “Mood Swing” by EDM artist John Askew. For context, the American Psychological Association (APA) thusly defines mood: 1. any short-lived emotional stat

[DISCLAIMER] When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Kristen (formerly Kris May), I heard her spin the track “House (Solomun Remix)” (2024) by London Grammar, remixed by Solomun. The lyrics include, “This is my place, my house, my rules.” When living with my dad from half of my fifth grade to half of my seventh grade years, and then for a brief time after graduating high school, I often heard a similar narrative as was expressed in “House (Solomun Remi

[DISCLAIMER] When providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I teach people about the ABC model of self-disturbance (how people upset themselves through use of irrational beliefs). Now, I’ll address a finer point of this psychotherapeutic model of wellness. For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate how when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, n

[DISCLAIMER] When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Saviela, I heard her spin the song “Flashbacks” (2026) by Julian Runge and Tonino. For context, the American Psychological Association (APA) thusly defines a flashback: 1. the reliving of a traumatic event after at least some initial adjustment to the trauma appears to have been made. Memories may be triggered by words, sounds, smells, or scenes that are reminiscent of the original trauma (as in a ba

[DISCLAIMER] When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Kristen (formerly Kris May), I heard her spin the track “Lucy” (2024) by Cherry Tooth and Miss Dre. The lyrics state, “Round and round again, deep inside my head. Round and round again, where there is no end.” When hearing the lyrics, I contemplated a psychoeducational lesson on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)—my preferred approach to care for mental, emotional, and behavioral health (collec

[DISCLAIMER] When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ Set by Lisa Marty, I heard her spin the song “Take Control” (2026) by Alexey Union and Aves Volare. The lyrics state: It’s you that must change when enough is enough You gotta get on your feet when the goin’ gets tough There’s no time to think, just the time to react Life is gone in a blink; it’s a matter of fact No one will come to save your own soul It’s not done till it’s done, you must take full control

[DISCLAIMER] When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Mary Gripa, I heard her spin the track “Lift Me High (Extended Mix)” (2026) by Moeaike, Gaetano Laterza, and Roberto Dell’Osso. The upbeat lyrics state: Lift me higher, don’t let me fall through the fire I hear your call, I hear your call Lift me higher, don’t let me fall through the fire I hear your call, I hear your call Because I often address less than optimistic topics within my blog, when dis

[DISCLAIMER] Earlier, I listened to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set, by a Brasilian DJ going by the name Dani Ebner, as part of her Pão de Queijo Sessions music series. For clarity, pão de queijo is a small cheese bread, baked cheese roll, or cheese ball, which is a popular snack and breakfast food in Brasil, originating in the state of Minas Gerais, Brasil—from which Ebner hails. When enlisted in the United States (U.S.) Marine Corps (1996-2007), while serving as

[DISCLAIMER] As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) was formed by the late psychologist Albert Ellis, who reportedly developed the first cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) psychotherapeutic modality in 1955, this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding his book, Ask Albert Ellis?: Straight Answers and Sound Advice from America’s Best-Known Psychologist. Now, I invite you to consider that as I’m writing this blogpost, I’m passively hearing an electronic dance

[DISCLAIMER] When practicing Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), using the ABC model to dispute various irrational beliefs, I often encounter the matter of falsifiability and unfalsifiability. For context, the American Psychological Association (APA) thusly defines falsifiability: [T]he condition of admitting falsification: the logical possibility that an assertion, hypothesis, or theory can be shown to be false [not genuine] by an observation or experiment. The m

[DISCLAIMER] When recently speaking with a client who frequently attends electronic dance music (EDM) concerts, raves, and music festivals (collectively “shows”), as I once did, I thought of a psychoeducational lesson on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) that I’ll now share. For context, when I attended EDM shows in the ‘90s and ‘00s, the term “cheese” was used for music that people considered cheesy (something regarded as cheap, of low-quality, cliché, overly sent

[DISCLAIMER] While listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Amëriko Nunez, I heard him spin the track “What You Said” by Maddow, featuring vocals by Manela, from the album Back in the Club (2021). On the song, Manela disempoweringly states: What you said Is all over my head What you said Is all over my head Is all over my head Don’t make me sad What you said What you said Is all over my head For context, the American Psychological Association (APA) defines