YA HO WHA 13

A shoddy psychedelic rock band with front man Father Yod taking centre stage with his big kettle drum in an almost Jesus like manner. The last time I saw that much hair on a face I fed it a banana.

'Ya Ho Wha' without the vowels and spaces reduces to YHWH, the Tetragrammaton. That's spooky Aleister Crowley territory in case you're unaware. 'Penetration - An Aquarian Symphony' is full of tribal drums and distorted guitars and is another of those albums that just sounds like a stoned jam by a bunch of hippies with too much time on their hands.

Supposedly they recorded this after meditation between 3.00am and 6,00am in a soundproofed garage. With no overdubs and being completely unrehearsed this should be enough to let you know what you're letting yourself in for. Joyfully, this is the only album I've heard of 'Ya Ho Wha 13' and apparently it's their highlight. Phew, I dodged a few bullets there!

Without even having to consider the possibility, this is clearly influenced by drugs, consumed wholesale by all members of this Los Angeles commune as they fuzz guitar and chant themselves into a state of stupor. Everything is very Lo-Fi and crude without any productional dynamics at all.

Happily there's some nice whistling on the last track where everything else is more subdued which lets the quietly played and tasteful guitar come to the fore. It's still a dreadful album by today's standards and sounds hopelessly lost in time.

In 1974 I would probably have loved this. As it stands today in 2015, it sounds amateurish, poorly recorded and without any thought of how it may be received in future decades .

This is not a review of the album, but rather a clarification for anyone interested in who is singing the very last song on the album, along with the accompanying voices of children. The very last song on this album was written by Tim Garon (aka Aladdin, Hom), also he is singing and playing guitar; and he was leading the small group of children who were in the family at the time to sing along. Although, he is given no creds on the album as this was a Yahowha 13 album and since he didn't actually perform with them; they felt it wasn't necessary to acknowledge him. But, now after 40 years I felt it was time that people knew whose song that belonged to.

What a shiny, slimy instrumental perforation. Let me say this album "Penetration - An Aquarian Symphony" is a kind of Bible for us Krautrock believers.

From the beginning Father Yod's Orientally spiritual, meditative voice cloud and Djin's funkadelic, hypnotic guitar discussion shower, both have been squeezed into our right brain via ears. Echoic shadow with their instrumental moonshine we can feel directly, and mysterious, scattered guitar solos and tribal beats bind our body strictly. Although their soundscape has Kraut-ish rumple and fuzz indeed, their strong commune conscience we cannot avoid at all. Guess Guru can unify them as a spiritual community with his mind altering canon and especially with his musical rebellion. Not so difficult for us too but fine to leave our body and soul as we like.

The third track "Journey Thru An Elemental Kingdom" notifies us this way, with quiet bell ringing and dry, desert string-based shouts of pleasure and freakout. Some heavy tricky tips are kinda killer, whilst we can feel that complete calmness, stillness make sense for us. Heavy, hijacking madness can be heard in the last part, that launches tough meditation and medication into us. The eponymous track, that looks like they (especially Father) have penetrated remarkable enthusiasm, has two brilliant scenes - the first is like under a calm circumstance before the storm, along with whistle and percussion seasoned with eccentric synth noises, and the latter part is a real heavy, deep ritual for The Spirit named Ya Ho Wha, constructed with loud, metallic guitar sadness and wacky drum / percussion madness.

This mixture strategy is superb, and their creativity for such a short while (until Father Yod's tragic death) is really surprising, amazing.

Not sure if the Guru's spiritual / religious commune (named Source Family) can give us comfort or fantasy or anything, but his musical stuffs should shoot magical mystery tour to us. Via this creation "I'm Gonna Take You Home", released in 1974, Father Yod might have showed us his tendency to appreciate natural love affair and sensual spiritualization.

Regardless of indecent vibes, Guru's serious, sincere intention for sexadelic, sexaholic academy, can be heard enough, along with their rumpled (sometimes tight) play drenched in mind-altering psychic smoke and agents. Easily guess this eccentric psychedelia can be created with unpolished guitar sounds based upon floating but deep riffs by their rhythm section. We should get amazed because such an unstable play support Guru's self-assertive, self-complacent voices filled with orgasmic temptation (especially in the Part 3 ... his sexadelic ascension moment can be heard).

On the other hand, like in the Part 4, we can feel something mellow and meditative completed in his private room via their quiet, down-tempo, bluesy music mist. Contrary to Father Yod's crazy, consistent philosophical voices, other four musicians in his background could play sometimes funkily, sometimes loosely, sometimes deeply, and sometimes powerfully and enthusiastically. Their experimentalism flooded with such a kaleidoscopic sound-strategy should encourage the solid spirit of YA HO WHA 13, I do consider.

Listen and feel their spirit, and you can realize what they'd meant to do, really.

Ya Ho Wha 13 is the musical vehicle for the teachings of a spiritual guru known as Father Yod. Father Yod headed a commune in California, & later in Hawaii, during the 1970's that focused on brotherhood, vegetarianism, yoga, & living in T.E.N. (The Eternal Now). He & his followers, collectively known as 'The Source Family', would rise before dawn & chant 'Yod Heh Vau Heh' for 2 -3 hours before Father Yod & his three 'Savage Sons' (guitarist Djin, drummer Octavius, & bassist Sunflower) would enter into their studio (a converted garage that was donated to them) & record hours of unrestrained, psychedelic, improvised music with Father Yod alternately pounding a kettle drum & a gong (often using the gong as a ride & the kettle drum as a tom) while chanting or wailing out whatever it was he wanted to say at that particular moment. 'Penetration: An Aquarian Symphony' was intended to be Ya Ho Wha 13's masterwork, acting as a Merkabah of sorts to elevate its listeners to a heightened state of consciousness - & I must say, it does the trick!

'Penetration: An Aquarian Symphony' is highly recommended for fans of Amon Düül II or Ash Ra Tempel.

Ya Ho Wha 13 is the name of a musical tribe led by the old spiritual Guru Father Yod. Dominated by fuzzed out guitars, odd incantations and ritual drums, Ya Ho Wha 13's musical aesthetism is a good illustration of Father Yod' constant fascination for occultism and sensual meditation. I'm Gonna Take You Home is the second release published under the name Ya Ho Wha 13. It follows directly the musical and stylistical approach anticipated in their first masterpiece Penetration, An aquarian symphony. This freaked out musical adventure starts with a bluesy-catchy acid rockin' piece. It includes dirty fuzzed out guitars, massive ritual drum pulses punctuated by theatrical chants. This song is energically positive and delivers great groovy sensations. The second track is a much more contemplative, floating spaced out piece with spontaneous acid rockin' guitars. The third track is an eccentric, crazy and evocative song with weird voices, psychedelic reverbed guitars. It reminds me Amon Duul II at their most wildy moments. Track 4 is a narcotic, sexadelic instrumental improvisation, including ceremonial, ethno-percussive parts and spaced out, damaged bluesy guitars. This is at the top of Father Yod's musical activity and a highly recommended album for those who love krautrock, savage psychedelic obscurities from the 60's to the early 70's.

Remembering Father Yod ...

A gig of this band missing Father Yod, the spiritual mastermind - is that working in any way? YA HO WHA 13 (sometimes also written YA HO WA 13 or YAHOWA 13) was originally formed in the early 70s and one musical incarnation of 'The Source Family' community living in the Hollywood Hills similar to other hippie communes oriented at eastern religions. Tons of odd acid psychedelic improvised material under several monikers and with changing members had been produced which causes confusion sometimes. The musical legacy was re-issued by some labels in the meanwhile. Father Yod, originally named James Edward Baker, died in 1975 by a mysterious hang-gliding accident which never could be clarified down to the last detail and the community fall apart afterwards. But there are still some people trying to keep up the old spirit and the former band mates Sunflower, Octavius and Djin are amongst them.

Some reunions were celebrated in the past and one gig from November 2007 at Cafe Du 'Nord in San Francisco was recorded and excerpts were used for this vinyl production. Some differences are to point out matching to the majority of the earlier output after more than 30 years. If someone is hoping for a complete reincarnation of that ambiance he'll be disappointed. Two important songs of the 'Penetration - An Aquarian Symphony' album are reworked here dressed in new clothes. Probably as a respect to the former band leader the vocals are reserved. Nearly in the same way as on the album 'I'm Gonna Take You Home' the band is a lot more rocking and grooving than spiritually meandering through time and space.

Ya Ho Wha alone - the initial band song as the title implies - fills one LP side with a fuzzy spaced out parforce run on the guitar. The Father Of Wisdom comes near to the old spirit - drifting, spacey, nearly ambient - a very gripping one but unfortunately faded out after three and half minutes. Homegrown Rising on the other hand remembers much at Tony McPhee's Groundhogs, a high speed boogie dominated by a weird acid guitar once again. A pumping sometimes overdriven bass pushes Yod He Vau He which is another classic song from 'Penetration' - a damned grooving thing with spaced out guitar and compared to the original hard to recognize. The mechanical hypnotic style originally caused by Father Yod's timbal for example is substituted now by the powerful rhythm section of the band.

This album offers superb psychedelic jams - remembering at the old days only in parts and apparently modernized - not really comparable to the mind-blowing 70s mood where Father Yod dominated the songs with his voice and coolness. The band's special craziness has decreased a little bit in the meanwhile. Never mind - probably even an improvement - 'The Feather Of Wisdom' is a recommended live document.