Yahowa 13

Bonafide cult rock band Yahowa 13 began in 1969 with Father Yod at the helm as band and spiritual leader. Thirty-three years on, the current incarnation no longer features their now-departed fearless leader, yet still add a unique voice to the chorus of the far-out psych bands — no small feat given the glut of reissues and current groups with countless special edition releases! The guitarist's steely, chiming tone, coupled with the inventive use of maligned, effects-like chorus, sets the band's sound apart from their cliché, retro-wannabe, neo-psych peers. Even his prerequisite psych rock fuzz effect sounds fresh beside the RAT pedal-infested clan of axe wielders, with its eerie, cut-rate, '80s solid-state glaze. The loping bass work loosens the rhythm section stranglehold on the pulse a bit, edging the total sound further towards the psychedelic. Intermittent wonky tympani bends also contribute. Devoid of much post-production trickery, this record seems to stem almost from the Blue Cheer school, but replaces tough-guy posturing with more ethereal spiritual concerns, with the music following suit. Occasionally the made-up language vocals induce some slight listener embarrassment, but set that aside and you're left with a record of surprisingly imaginative guitar-driven workouts.