PHALLUS DEI

Wonderful first album of AMON DUUL II is, along with CAN's "Monster Movie", a cornerstone of German psychedelic kraut-rock. There is a weird collage of jamming guitar solos, loads of hypnotic percussions, strong bass hooks, wall of mellotrons with some Indian influences in the sitar and violin sounds and freaky unintelligible vocals. It is hard to single out any tracks (maybe "Lucifers Ghilliom" with an early take on Hindu scat vocals - a style to be heard subsequently on Sheila Chandra records - and some eerie violin chords) because the album is equally interesting throughout its length. Title track is a side-long psychedelic jam improvisation with several different sections, unlike the monotonous "You Doo Right" of the CAN's debut in the similar long form. Acid rock of the freaked out hippies at its best, although probably a challenging listen for the uninitiated.