Search - Yatha Sidhra :: A Meditation Mass

Great, mellow Krautrock album

BENJAMIN MILER | Veneta, Oregon | 04/10/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Yatha Sidhra was a little known Krautrock group that didn't get much attention, despite recording for Brain. A Meditation Mass became one of the rarest albums to surface on that label. The original LP came with a die-cut cover, in which The Laser's Edge nicely replicated when they reissued it on CD back in '92. In '95 Spalax in France reissued it again on CD, but this time, without the die-cut replication. Comparisons to Ash Ra Tempel and Popol Vuh are often leveled at these guys, and of course they were contemporaries of such groups. The band consisted of Rolf Fichter on guitar, keyboards, Indian flute, and vocals, Klaus Fichter on drums/percussion, Matthias Nicolai on 12-string guitar and bass, and Peter Elbracht on flute. The album is loaded with flute, while Rolf Fichter plays the guitar in the style of a sitar, trying to create a droning effect. Moog and electric piano surface from time ti time. As the album title suggusts, A Meditation Mass tends to be mellow, so the music isn't hurried. That means you won't get raw, intense, in-your-face passages like you might get with Ash Ra Tempel at times. The music tends to keep one pace, except when the band decides to venture off in to jazzy territory, which you do have your fair share. The music is basically one long piece divided in to four parts. Each part revolving around a theme or a jam, while the final part is basically previous themes on the album revisited. Great stuff, but requires a few listens to get it. I very much highly recommend this album."

A timeless release

Joseph L. Kolb | harris, mn USA | 05/06/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"for me, this is one of the more perfect blends of electronic, rock, jazz, and eastern blends around. very mellow, meditative prog music might be another way to describe them. my only complaint is its length. it's only 40 minutes long. but a very reflective 40 minutes it is. if you're into bands like Between, and to a lesser extent, Embryo, this might be right up your alley."

Arguably, the best German prog album

Boris Firsov | Moscow, Russia | 03/04/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There is a word widely used by authors of rock encyclopaedias, that can add a grain of salt to a perfect record or track: "dated". In fact, almost everything in rock music can be "dated", i.e. traced back to the time of its origin. Heavy metal, prog, progressive, etc. all have very characteristic traits that will tell you when and where exactly this work of art was created. The best music, however, should always sound fresh. No one calls The King, or, say, Beethoven, "dated". The one and only album by Yatha Sidhra, an obscure German rock band of yesteryear, is not "dated" in a wider sense: if you listen to it for the first time, you'll never guess its year of original release. It can be dated from 1980 as well as from 2003, and its quality would be the same. In fact, it was made in 1973, and it defies all attempts at genre affiliation. It is a concept album, a seamless succession of musical ideas that are never exaggerated, but reach their several climaxes in the most harmonious way. One always has a feeling that not a single note can be dropped or added, not a single tone raised by 0.1 dB. An absolute music, devised in a prog rock format. Of course, if you need reference points, I can name Agitation Free, Tangerine Dream, or even Anekdoten. But please do not be biased... and expect more!"