Magma

Several centuries in the future, when society as we know it today has decayed into chaos, a group of earth people seeking a new start flee to the distant planet Kobaïa, to start a new civilization. Magma is a concept band whose albums explain the origins and development of the new civilization on Kobaïa, all in the new language of that planet. As might be expected, the music from Kobaïa is very unlike what we are accustomed to on earth, as is their language. Magma's music is very strange and beautiful, but does take some time to get accustomed to. Led by drummer Christian Vander, the group has gone through many personnel changes throughout the years, and the alumni list reads like a who's who of french musicians: Klaus Basquiz, Guy Khalifa, Jannik Top, Bernard Paganotti, Michael Herve, Rene Garber, Didier Lockwood, Francis Moze, Benoit Widemann, Jeff Seffer, Francois Cahen, Teddy Lasry... the list goes on and on. The first album is a double, and traces the story from its origins on earth through the first months on the new planet. Musically it shows the band's roots, a spirited jazz-rock style not far from Soft Machine of the same period. The second 1001° Centigrades explores further in the same general musical territory. The following year they released The Unammables under the pseudonym "Univeria Zekt" - on a different label, which quickly justified legal action on the part of their record compant, resulting in the album being pulled from store shelves, creating an instant rarity. MDK is very different from anything they had done before, a very repetitive modal type of music, dark and gothic, with the power of a full choir backing them. Wurdah Ïtah was the soundtrack to the film "Tristan Et Yseult," and carries on similarly to MDK, but with a leaner lineup, basically as a 4 piece. Köhntarkösz moves into new realms, with a more ethereal majestic approach, a soothing album with one 32 minute track split between two sides of the album, with two shorter tracks rounding the album out. The live album presents material from their all of their albums to date, including a full live version of Köhntarkösz; This is definitely the best album to start with, as it mixes instrumental and vocal material, louder and quieter tracks, and gives a good retrospective of the band in what most consider their finest period. Üdü Wüdü delivers a much harder edged, more grotesque sound, in a period when the band was fragmented. Inedits is a live album of performances from throughout their career, and while the sound quality is not as great as the double-live, the performances are excellent, and it documents some interim lineups of the band that are not recorded elsewhere. Attahk was the first album which overtly offered strong evidence of John Coltrane's influence on the band, a much jazzier album than any of its predecessors, and in general a more fluid approach, akin to Köhntarkösz. After a long and grueling tour, the band went into hiatus, working on solo albums and spinoff projects. Around 1980 the band reformed and toured, which resulted in the Retrospektiw albums the following year; These albums contained mostly reworked versions of their older material. By Merci, the lineup had nearly completely changed, and the sound had moved even further towards the Coltrane inspired jazz only hinted at in Attahk. This is probably the least appreciated of their albums, as it's the first that is in no way connected to Theusz Hamtaahk (the Kobaïan history) and features songs sung in French and English. It's not my favorite either. Mythes et Legendes is a compilation of early singles and scaled down versions of longer tracks, with spoken introductions (in French) presumably explaining the story behind them. the Offering projects are more jazzy than anything before them, but not commercial sounding like Merci; the lyrics are now essentially scat, and the music is much lighter than before, mostly piano, acoustic bass, occasional flute and drums. Where To Start ? Live, no question about it, this is the best introduction to their music. After you get used to it and decide you want more, then go for Köhntarkösz, Attahk, Üdü Wüdü, and MDK
-- Peter Thelen

For those of you who read French, try and get your hands on the book Antoine De Caunes (yes Brit friends, the one who hosts Eurotrash on Channel Four!) wrote about Magma in 1979. The book gives interesting detail about the history and whereabouts of the band. The book was published at the time by French publisher Albin Michel, and is now (late '96) announced as "to be reprinted soon" by them.
I now own a dozen Magma albums, and therefore have what I would call a good general overview of the work of Christian Vander et al. First of all, there are three pieces of work which cover more than one album I wish to signal. The first one is "Theusz Hamttaahk" ("the time of hatred"), of which "Wurdah Ïtah" ("Death to Earth" the Tristan et Iseult album) constitutes the second part, while "Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh" is the third part. The first part, allegedly entitled "Wurdah Glao" ("Death and Blood") never surfaced as such. The story line is more or less what was kinda exposed in the first album: a bunch of dissident earthlings leaving the Earth, founding a mystical utopia on the planet Kobaia ("eternity"), and then coming unwillingly, yet rather violently in contact with the bad guys from earth, who appear to calm down once they know that the kobaians have brought Stoah ("The Weapon") along. The second notable piece of work is "Emehnteht-Re," which covers parts of Kohntarkosz and Udu Wudu, which is a bit more obscure, mixing elements from Ancient Egypt with the usual kobaian paraphernalia. The third one, "Ork" was not concieved by C. Vander, but by bass player Jannick Top. It consists in tracks entitled "Ork Alarm" (on Köhntarkösz), "Ork Sun" and "De Futura" (on Üdü Wüdü). Sleevenotes explain that Orks are to machines what machines are to man (huh?).
Among the classical influences to be found in Magma's work, I wish to add Igor Stravinsky (use of polyrhythms), and Carl Orff (choir style), which are the references usually cited in Europe when talking of Magma.
About spoken or sung kobaian language, I think it has a certain link to good old jazzy scat, as it is mostly used in accordance with how it sounds rather than in accordance with the sense it makes, the latter being sometimes invented afterwards.. Kobaian is, syntaxically speaking (i.e., in the way sentences are built), close to French, with some Germanic influence. The vocabulary used is part Germanised French, part Germanic sounds, part Slavic sounds, and part "doing whatever we care to." Nevertheless, it is interesting to have a close listen to the first album's opening track, "Kobaia," in which the delivery of lyrics is pretty close to what is called "Yoghurt" by French-speaking musicians. The latter term is used to characterize something inarticulate and senseless, but which sounds "English" to French ears.
About written Kobaian, it has to be pinpointed that e-mail cannot render the frantic typographical delirium of the album sleeves, on which most i's and u's bear "umlaute" (ie two dots on top), S's bear w-shaped accents, and W's right-sloping ones ... there is even a specific letter which does not exist in a standard ASCII font. Some of the sleeves do give French traductions of kobaian titles or words, but if you don't read French, you'll have to go on wondering what's going on.
What you should know is that Magma were hugely controversial in France in the '70s. Some journalists even dubbed them as "facist" or "nazi," which is quite an achievement for John Coltrane admirers. What really happened is that France was, at the time (and somehow still is), dominated by musical mediocrity and tasteless, mindless pop or chansons. In such a context, a group coming up with good, complex and demanding music had to be rejected by the corporate press, especially if they are dressing uniformly in black with big agressive red Magma logos on the chest and matching steel necklaces. One has to say, anyway, that Christian Vander sometimed encouraged it, as when he told reporters "I consider the audience as as many enemies, and every time I hit a cymbal means death to one of them."
I know that Magma CD reissues aren't easy to get from you local dealer. In case of difficulties, try contacting directly Seventh Records, who are dwelling somewhere near Paris (sorry, ain't got their coordinates with me now...). The company operates worldwide mail order by letter or fax, selling all Magma albums, as well as associated products (t-shirts, badges, lighters, even the "Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh" sheet music). -- Laurent Mousson

One of the most brutal, intense bands to ever make a record. Punk hero Jello Biafra (of Dead Kennedys) has called Magma the most vicious of the progressive rock bands (I hope I'm getting the quote right!), and anytime a *punk* hero talks about progressive rock you've just got to sit up and take notice for the sheer novelty of the situation. Some have said that Magma are hard to get into; I would disagree, as the raw, primal savageness of their music seems to connect to some dark unseen force seething under the surface of the human psyche. (Or, as a poster to rec.music.progressive put it, "Do NOT play Magma for your girlfriend!") I don't have enough of their albums to suggest a definitive starting point, but you can't go wrong with Live -- I'm surprised the concerts that went into this recording didn't cause as much social unrest as the debut of Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring." Mind-blowing.
-- Greg Ward

Undeniably strange experimental prog band with a far-fetched sci-fi concept they had to invent their own language to tell. The first album is pretty half-baked, some good Soft Machine-like jazzrock for about half of it, but lots of self-indulgent soloing. Vocalist Klaus Blasquiz sounds at his most "conventional" (if you can call it that) here, like perhaps a singer in some German underground band. Stylistically not unlike Moving Gelatine Plates or some of the German underground jazzrockers (Thrice Mice, Out Of Focus) of the time, but over the space of two discs, it becomes a bit wearying. 1001° Centigrade is a slightly less indulgent single disc, but taking them to more otherworldly realms lead by Blasquiz' unconventional vocalizings and based in the intricate horn and reed arrangements. Not their best, but a distinctive style is definitely forming. For Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh, the band was in full bloom. Augmented by a five-woman backing choir, this is the apex of their vocal orientated work, with Blasquiz grunting, screeching and wailing away like a madman, and the band forming mesmerizing textures in the background. Not for the faint-hearted probably, but for the explorative, a must. Köhntarkösz strips away most of the horns for a primary reliance on keyboards (nothing fancy, just piano and organ). The vocals are downplayed as well, but still noticeable. The 30-plus-minute title-track is split into two parts. It's the centerpiece of the album. Another fine one. The double live album features the addition of Didier Lockwood on violin, and is probably the most easily digestible for starters, being as it is in a more fusion mode. One disc features a live version of the previous album's title track, the other is composed of new tracks unavailable in studio versions. Drummer Christian Vander sings lead on at least one of the songs. Üdü Wüdü presents a more fragmentary band, with Blasquiz, Vander and bassist Jannik Top being the core, fleshed out by various session players, mostly members of Heldon. It is the first Magma album to feature synthesizers, so it's back to the dark, murky territory of earlier albums, but in a decidedly more high-tech mode. The 18-minute "De Futura" is the albums apex, with some excellent bass playing. Attahk is another one of the band's more accessible albums, more song orientated with more pronounced jazz and rock influences, and primarily featuring the trilling falsetto voice of Vander, as opposed to Blasquiz' unearthly barks and growls. Merci is almost commercial, but still definitely in the Magma style. Apparently some of the songs have English or French lyrics, either that or there's a Kobaian phrase that sounds JUST like "Oh baby".
-- Mike Ohman

Magma has to be heard to fully understand but just knowing that they were one of the most influential French bands should be enough to realize their importance. Lead by drummer Christian Vander, Magma create a very dramatic and intensely driving form of progressive rock. Vander draws equally from the likes of jazzman John Coltrane and 19th century classical composer Richard Wagner. He combines these influences with his own unique vision and his own language called Kobïan. Their style has become known as Zeuhl and many French (and some not) bands show influences of Magma. Their music is incredible fusion characterized by a strong driving, almost throbbing drum and bass presence over which you'll hear violin, sax or keyboards. There is also a strong vocal (male and female) presence that is very dramatic and expressive. Incredible and intense! I have four Magma albums, Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh, Live, Üdü Wüdü and Attahk. Live makes the best starting point as it is an excellent performance highlighting the intensity that makes up Magma. Üdü Wüdü and Attahk are also excellent. Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh took me the longest to get into, of these four albums. Relentless in intensity, the powerful, almost operatic vocal intensity can take some adjustment for someone used to instrumental prog. Magma are a *must hear* band. However, to check out the instensity without the strong vocal presence, check out Zao or Weidorje, two splinter bands that are equally intense but have little or no vocals. Listen to these two bands to check out the zeuhl style but you should experience Magma. It's incredible.
-- Mike Taylor

Magma were a very influential French band from the seventies whose music was a very powerfully rhythmic combination of jazz influences and rock, fronted by the dramatic vocals of Christian Vander. Attahk, Üdü Wüdü, and Live are, by most considerations, their best works, and make for a very appropriate introduction to the band. Notable to Magma was the fact that the vocals were in a fictional language created by Vander. Yet, with the drama of the music, the vocals do not in any way detract from the full effect.
Magma was the first-evening headliner band at NEARFest 2003, which I attended with my wife, Grace. We'd had a long day and no sleep for the previous two nights. Grace was so tired she almost went back to the hotel, leaving me to catch this last band by myself. I almost encouraged her to do so, knowing Magma's reputation as being a band that scares off women. But, after a cup of coffee at the Marriott next door, she decided to try to stay awake for this last band of the day.
Half an hour into the performance, I looked at my wife ... she was sitting there staring at the band with a glazed expression on her face. I thought, "she's hating this and is fighting falling asleep". I asked her, "Are you OK?" Her response, without ever taking her eyes off the band was, "This is the single coolest thing I've ever seen in my life!" OK, she's liking it, then.
She spent the rest of the night gushing extreme fan worship, even to the point of wondering if she could sell herself as a love slave to Christian Vander to go on tour with them. She was kidding, of course. Mostly. The following day, we bought a copy of the DVD Theusz Hamtaahk Trilogie, and that evening we caught up with Christian Vander at the Marriott bar, and I got a great picture of Grace with her grim-faced new hero (but she won't let me post it here on the GEPR). Grace is a major fan now and is learning Kobaian to better comprehend the lyrics. She's threatening to write a review for the GEPR to tell anyone who had anything bad to say about Magma that they're just plain WRONG, and they don't understand the beauty an majesty of this music.

Regarding the Theusz Hamtaahk Trilogie DVD ... we've played it at least half a dozen times. An excellent recording, both from an audio and video perspective, and I would highly recommend it to fans of Magma. It finally fills out the entire Theusz Hamtaahk cycle (it's divided into four movements on the video), which has been performed live for many years but was never completely recorded on the studio albums. It's awesome. Vander pulled the plug on the recording of their NEARFest performance just before their set, but this DVD contains a similar set of music with a larger version of the band (more vocalists), so it's the closest thing you'll be able to get to the NEARFest performance. However, Vander never gets out from behind his drums to sing on the video, as he did at NEARFest. Oh well, you can't have everything.
-- Fred Trafton

1996 - Updated 8/18/03

Source : Gibraltar Encyclopedia of Progressive Rock
http://www.gepr.net/

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