"Initially, I wanted to make a record that barely had drums on it. Donovan made a record (in 1966), Sunshine Superman, and I wanted to start with that same kind of vibe—Eastern, very grand stories, fairy tales.
The initial aspiration was to produce a record with a stripped-down arrangement, focusing on percussion. The desired tone was set by Donovan's 1966 album Sunshine Superman, which combined Eastern influences with epic storytelling.