This is a sort of odd question with a video for reference:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6UcX7a4yc8

This is a song recorded in 1972 by an experimental musician named Charlemagne Palestine. As far as I know, he recorded it with an acoustic piano at Cal Arts in Valencia, CA. I have no idea how the effects heard here were created, but they are impressive to say the least.

The composition quickly turns into a free form haze, but I am only interested in the intro, which is the first two and half minutes of the song. A simple piano loop is presented, which grows in intensity, but using the same carefully chosen cluster of notes. Beautiful echoed accents can be heard at 1:28, 1:55 and elsewhere, and at 2:02, an incredible flange (?) effect is heard, in which the notes seems to blend together in a psychedelic goo. At 2:35 a climax can be heard in which the power of the various layers combined can be appreciated. To really appreciate the way it grows like a tree, it’s best to listen from the beginning. All of these sonic moments last only for a few seconds, but I think they are really interesting.

I am just trying to understand the inner logic and chronological sequencing of the layering presented here, and how something similar could be created using a guitar and EHX loop pedal/effects in a live setting.