Few people have heard of Yahowha 13, which is a shame, because this band rocks as one of the best American bands of all time. Yahowha 13 were a cult/sect led by Father Yod, and were responsible for some of the most tripped out and divinely inspired music ever put on record. The band recorded most of their material totally improvised, and their amazing results verified just what they claimed: that they were in touch with God. Truly, no American band has gotten as close to the intensity and glory of Krautrock as Yahowha 13 did on Penetration, their best release, which must rank as one of the top 10 forgotten classics of all time. On it the band play like a mixture of the Cosmic Jokers, Guru Guru, Serguis Golowin…one of the songs even ends sounding like Conrad Schnitzler! I don’t know if Yahowha 13 were busy listening to German Kraut or not, but they sure as hell replicated the burning vibe that had previously been lit by Ash Ra Temple. On Penetration the band comes across as the holiest force on earth, playing with a righteous intensity that will mealt your mind in glorious bliss. If there was ever an album to play during the apocalypse, Penetration is it.
The only problem is that an original copy will cost you close to a thousand bucks! I’m not kidding! But for a lot less, you can pick up the massive 13-cd boxset, “God and Hair” which was released by Captain Trip. This boxset contains everything the band ever released, including some sessions with Sky Sunlight Saxon. Although not all of the 13 cd’s on “God and Hair” have withstood the test of time, as a whole, the good far outweighs the bad. In addition to Penetration, Yahowha 13 also released the classics, “I’m gonna take you home” and “To the Principles for the Children.” Definitely a band worth checking out by heads the world over. Yahowha!