MAGMA [AKA: KOBAÏA]

This is the start of it all, coupled with the Univeria Zekt album, which is a strange early offshoot Magma project. Yes the genesis of the Kobaïan quest and Universe that will pre-occupy Vander's musical adventures, well beyond the obsession point. In all of the rock realm,, rarely has a group or project been so unique, inventive, original and influential. Indeed Vander's strange mix of Coltrane influences with Stravinsky and Carl Orff is so stupendous and flabbergasting that they almost involuntarily created the l music genre on their own, which is as far as I know the only case in all of music.

Among the astronauts that pioneered the Kobaïan galaxy's exploration are singer Klaus Blazquiz, bassist Francis Moze (later in GonG, and the pioneer in Zeuhl bass playing), keyboardist Faton Cahen, reedmen Lasry, Raux and Charlery and guitarist/flutist Claude Engel, and of course Vander himself. This double debut album was recorded in March 70 and was produced by the future French production legend Laurent Thibault. When the album was released in June of that year, it sported an awesome eagle-paw, creating havoc and destruction of the Kobaïan civilization and these red fangs became the fangs of the Magma emblem and logo that was already in use so early in the group's history.

Difficult to describe such original sonic madness, because comparing it to another artiste is obviously reductive for Magma music. The music is generally repetitive, but not minimalist, usually finding a groove and slowly altering itself to evolve in the generally lengthy hypnotic movements. Contrarily to most future albums of theirs, Kobaïa has some space for good and lengthy solos, although I wouldn't call that a major feature in this album, but it does help the album's different soundscape, along with the horn section (sometimes reminiscent of Chicago), but the music is still often more "jazz-rock" than the pure Zeuhl music of the albums to come.

The second disc has a slightly different sound, partly because of Laurent Thibault's composition of Nau Ektila and guitarist Engel's Thaud Zaia and also the following Vander-written track Stoah, which were all written months later than the main body of Kobaia's concept. You'll find a different Magma on the two Non-Vander tracks, especially on Thibault's tune, which has a wide spectrum, sometimes approaching dissonance. Stoah is also a very weird track,, with Blasquiz's crazy vocal passage early on in the track and the quiet moments on the flute later on.

If the original vinyls of this album (released on XXX label) are getting rare, you should now see the Seventh Records label CD versions popping up on the second-hand market, because most of the group's discography gas been recently remastered and re-issued on a subsidiary Les Chants Du Monde label of Seventh Records. The remastered copy on this double Kobaïa album comes in an impressive digipak with an extensive booklet filled with notes and clues to enter the Magma realm, which is of course appreciable, but not fundamental. I personally find the sound better on this remastered version, but the previous issue was already good. If you're afrais of not getting the Magma-ian code to understand their musical adventures, this is really the album you should be starting with, because it's not yet a full-blown Zeuhlian choral work as will the next few albums be. So it(s got many traces of the future musical madness, but it's still dealing with many of its fully secular twists to come. Having revisited this album recently, it might be one of my top 3 Vanderite records.