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Amon Duul was a commune formed by students and radicals in 60's Germany for the purposes of political and social rebellion as well as many artistic ventures. Towards the end of the decade, the commune released several recordings edited together from long group jamming sessions. After this a handful of the more musical minded and ambitious members split off to form their own group and chose the name Amon Duul II. Their first album which I've yet to hear, was released in 1969 with the title Phallus Dei (you don't need much grasp on the language to translate that) and Yeti is it's magnificent follow up. Now, because they're a German band from that era, they're classed as Krautrock but they really don't share that distinctive Krautrock sound of their contemporaries, except maybe some similarities with the equally obscure Ash Ra Tempel. Rather they (Yeti at least) sound like psychedelic bands of the Jefferson Airplane/Grateful Dead variety put through a blender with heavy metal bands like Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath with a bit of prog and folk rock thrown in too. As such, this is an album that sounds immediately familiar but completely unique as well. It kicks off with the Soap Shop Rock suite with sections- a) Burning Sister b) Halluzination Gallery c) Gulp A Sonata d) Flesh Coloured Anti-Aircraft Alarm -that sound as weird as their titles. This is a really trippy bit of music but one that rocks. Just don't try singing along as the male/female dual vocals from the groups two singers (with very long names) that are totally unrestrained shrieks of bizarre imagery. Actually the whole track is a prime example of structured chaos, it sounds crazy but there's alot of brilliant musicianship going on as it moves through it's many sections. Next is She Came In Through The Chimney, a gorgeous instrumental with a pagan folk music sound. Again, it's quite dense but perfectly played. Archangel Thunderbird is the next song and probably the most conventional. Think Sabbath meets Bowie and you'll get a rough idea of it's sound. It's catchy as hell and rocks nicely, escpecially with the cool touch of the two dualling fuzzy guitars getting one speaker each. The female singer Renate Knaup-Kroetenschwanz sings and puts most others to shame with an amazing performance. I'd recommend checking this song out with the link near the top of the page. Cerberus follows, though the title doesn't give an indication of the music. It's a rapid jangly instrumental that towards the end suddenly mutates into a Hawkwind-esque barrage of spacey electric guitar. The Return Of Rubezhal is a short but heavy, almost funky, instrumental with an awesome riff and muscular sound. Eye Shaking King begins with a frenetic jam but soon settles down into detatched, rhythmic strumming. It sounds pulse-like with a couple of guitars going in different directions and some great work from the rhythm section. The vocals are distorted and recall the sound of the daleks from Dr. Who via way of Peter Hammill. It actually sounds great and the music itself is really exciting, especially towards the end where it all gets a bit unhinged. Pale Gallery is one of the most psychedelic tracks on the album with a hypnotic drumbeat and what could be mellotron or keyboards fluttering in and out of the speakers with strangely cold, metallic tones. It's quite surreal but fascinating. The title track is an epic slice of improvisation that is sublime. It brings together all of the elements of the album in an seamless and exciting way. Very listenable, even at eighteen minutes long. Or twenty five minutes long if you count it's coda Yeti Talks To Yogi. It's more of the same really but this is a good thing, it's an awesome way to top off the title track. I've noticed that it sounds a bit like Aumgn from Can's Tago Mago which was released the following year. Although the similarities aren't immediately noticeable, the shimmering structure and driving drum beats wouldn't sound out of place on that album. It's another example of how Yeti sounds familiar but different. The final track Sandoz In The Rain is a plaintative folk song with some lovely interaction between flute and violin. It's acoustic guitar led though, with the instrument being strummed quite fast for such a subdued song. I don't know what on Earth the guy is singing but the sense of longing and quiet despair is easy to hear in his voice. It also begins to drone towards the end in the fashion of the first two Velvet Underground albums which again highlights the fact that the band seem to take all of those memorable characteristics from other bands of that period and incorporate them into their own unique style of music. It's a great song to the end the album with anyway. I can't recommend this enough, it really is a five star album and one of the best I've heard in a while. The more I listen to it the more it sounds like the quintessential album of the transitional period from psychedelica and the jam bands of the sixties to the progressive and metal bands of the early seventies. It's definately worth picking up if you like anything from White Light/White Heat to Safe As Milk to Aoxomoxoa to Paranoid to Foxtrot to Space Ritual and so on. A (should be) true classic.
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