Lost In Tyme Blog

No, the name isn’t some new model of Japanese car. Ahora Mazda was actually a really intense Dutch psych band of the late 60’s/early 70’s. Taking their name from the Ahoera Mazda which is the god of light from the Zend-Avesta, the holy book of the ancient Persians, AM produced some of the wildest and most hypnotic music of their time. Combining psychedelic sounds similar to Annexus Quam, early Pink Floyd and Soft Machine with the free jazz elements of Sun Ra and Ornette Coleman this amazing band unfortunately had a rather short life. One thing that is immediately noticeable when first hearing the music is the incredible flute playing by Rob Van Wageningen. I’m almost tempted to say this is what Ian Anderson might have sounded like had he gone a jazzier route. Not content with just that, he can also blow a mean tenor sax and sometimes effortlessly alternates between the two. Peter Abbink is the bands singer, guitar player, keyboardist, trumpeter and kazoo virtuoso. Along with brother Winky on the drums, he adds a great deal of character to the band. He has a quite unique voice and sounds perpetually stoned. To make a comparison, I’d say he sounds a little bit like Robert Jan Stips of Supersister but not nearly as silly. Rounding out the band is Tony Schreuder on bass and percussion. According to the liner notes on the CD, the band had quite a reputation for it’s performances in the Amsterdam underground scene. The music has all the elements of great psychedelia and it must have been magical to see them perform live. On the CD there are longer, more free form pieces as well as shorter excerpts from live performances. This gives me the impression that there may be more recordings of this fantastic band around somewhere. If there are, I’d love to hear more! This album is quite a rarity, so if you’re into the psych stuff and ever see it, grab it if you can. Your remaining brain cells will thank me.

originally posted by Lanchester