More on Magma, the
band and it's
vision.
Imagine a
world, many
centuries into the
future, when
society as we know it has decayed into
chaos and
degradation, void of
spiritual guidance. The
colonization of
space is well underway, and
space travel has become commonplace. It is in this setting that a handful of
enlightened Earth people seeking a better existence finance the construction of a private
spacecraft and leave the planet in search of a new world where a new, more spiritually guided
civilization can be reborn. They finally find that new home after a long and hazardous journey on the distant planet
Kobaia, where the party settles and begins anew.
Magma is a
concept band whose albums explain the origins and development of the new civilization on
Kobaia , and their interactions with the people of Earth and other planets. All of their lyrics are sung in the language of the new civilization, '
Kobaian'. As one might expect, the music from Kobaia several hundred years from now is very unlike what we are accustomed to on twentieth century planet Earth. Magma's music is very
strange,
beautiful, and
ultimately rewarding.
A brief history
Led by drummer
Christian Vander, Magma began in the final months of the
sixties in
France, pretty much apart from the
underground music scene of the times. In fact most of the original members had worked in other
rock and
jazz groups before, although without much notoriety. The band has since gone through an almost constant stream of personnel changes, but the alumni list looks like a who's-who of top caliber French musicians:
Klaus Blasquiz,
Guy Khalifa,
Claude Engel,
Jannick Top,
Bernard Paganotti,
Patrick Gauthier,
Francis Moze,
Rene Garber,
Jean-Luc Manderlier,
Benoit Widemann,
Didier Lockwood,
Teddy Lasry,
Yochk'o Seffer,
Michel Herve,
Florence Berteaux,
Daniel Denis,
Clement Bailly...and the list goes on. All the while, the one constant is
Vander and his
vision - although the contributions of the other musicians to the execution of this vision cannot be downplayed. The creation of the development of the original concept and the
Kobaian language was in fact a
group effort. Some players were more influential than others, but with each change in personnel came a slight change in the sound of the band.
Note I: Partly based on a text by Peter Thelen.
Note II: I will add Magma's discography as soon as I have it all complete)