After a summer break in 2003 Magma were back in the office continuing work on their next CD, which it is assumed will be entitled K.A. The CD will contain a 49 minute long studio version of K.A. which has been the centrepiece of all recent concerts. This will be Magma's first studio album for 20 years, "Merci" being the last, although even this had the hallmarks of early Offering stamped over it. At least that is the plan, however the gossip mongers recently claimed tha Christian Vander considers the latest performances of K.A. far superior to the core of the track that had already been recorded back in April and has therefore decided (as is his wont) to go back to the drawingboard. This was firmly denied by Seventh Records. Anyone who expected to get their hands on K.A. via chimmney mail last December should be OK for 2004's Xmas list. The latest rumour is that Christian has been adding more layers of vocals to the mix which has complicated matters. 20 years is a long time to wait. Look on the bright side, whatever the reason for the delay an extra year is only a 5% inrease in waiting time! September is the latest ETA.
For anyone not lucky enough to have witnessed a recent Magma Concert, K.A. will mark a return to an ethic of old. The early 1970's Magma trade mark of long orchestral like movements were always what Christian did best and for me, the QEH concert in January 2003 evoked a few memories of that era. Here's an e-mail I sent to one of our Japanese friends a few days after the show:
"Magma - Queen Elizabeth Hall - Festival Hall - London - 30-01-2003
What can I say!
They are back to the future!
600 + fans turned up in fast deteriorating weather conditions to witness the
true 2nd coming of Magma
They have done the impossible. Recreated a piece (KA) from rehearsed music from
1972 , that was going to be the next album after MDK but was shelved in deference
to Köhntarkösz
. (I wonder if Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells influenced proceedings)
It has sat on rehearsal tapes all these years (with pieces finding their way
onto "Inedits") and has been brought to life by the new line up. It
is like rediscovering Magma all over again. It is a new, but also an old magic.
The power of the band reminds me of the early 70's. They also seem to be a more
relaxed, happier and balanced group than ever. Christian has relaxed, they are
smiling. They know the music is powerful and majestic, yet they touch the hearts
of the audience with their humility. K.A. has been improved upon since the Sunset
Club Concerts. It is now a complete work in the same vein as MDK and Köhntarkösz
.
It was announced by Stella Vander that it is to be recorded soon as a studio
piece. Köhntarkösz
was dropped in favour of Zëss
to open proceedings. Nothing
was mentioned about recording Zëss
.
There is a new member in the band, Frederick D'OELSNITZ. He's from Southern
France, and Stella heard him playing Jazz and was so impressed by him. It would
appear that he is highly thought of and has slipped into the line up with ease.
He seems very a really nice guy.
Somehow you must get Magma back to Japan! Just to listen to K.A. Live. 30 years
ago I witnessed Magma in London. This concert, more than any before it, was
like turning back the clock and rediscovering Magma all over again. How they
improve upon this is the only question left to answer!"
As you can see I was bowled over, albeit lacking in basic journalistic skills, you know the ones, reporting accuracy, background research etc. But the enthusiasm was there! I can't believe anyone left the QEH that evening feeling anything less than elated. The set list was Zëss - K.A - THEUSZ HAMTAAHK (extract) - TURKEY BALLET (probably not a definitive title). My overiding memories of the evening however were the centrestage bombardment by the two guitarists, James MacGaw and Philippe Bussonett. The two men took prominence and proceeded to mesmorise with what could only be descibed as a staggering, trance like riff that evoked memories of Mekanïk Zain or De Futura. I was exhausted at the end of this section and was convinced that both men would suffer long term repetitive strain injuries from the experience. The other amazing thing concerned the vocals. My experience of many concerts over the years (Not Magma or Offering I might add) is that the vocals are often lost in the mix and drowned out by the instruments, but here it was different. There were four main vocalists Stella, Isabelle, Antoine and Himiko yet there sounded like a dozen of them! I couldn't quite work it out and kept checking to see if there were other band members singing. It even crossed my mind that there could be sound technicians crouching behind the set secretly complementing the main protaganists! I'm really none the wiser as after the show I was lucky enough to ask Stella about this and she told me that it was because of the arrangement and phrasing of the vocal sections. I replied "Oh!", left it at that, jumped on my Skido and shouted Mush Mush! to the Huskies and made my way back up the M11 into a freak winter wonderland traffic jam.
This was Magma's third recent visit to England and they do now seem to be building up quite a following. A few weeks earlier ticket sales were worryingly low and there were rumours that the promoter was having second thoughts. Much hope was placed on walk up sales on the day but when the weather turned nasty that evening, with snow actually starting to settle in the Capital, nobody really could have expected such a healthy amount of support for the band. Perhaps their previous two visits to the Southbank had paid off. The trend that seems to be shaping in the USA of a strengthening of support for Alternative Rock bands, with of course much acclaim for Magma at recent Prog Rock festivals, is being mirrored here in Europe.
Their first return was in February 2000, three months before the marvellous 30 years anniversary shows at the Trianon in Paris. Sadly I was unable to witness their comeback to these shores due to work commitments but many thanks to RIO Grandmaster Chris Cutler for allowing Ork Alarm! to publish his review of the evening. Whilst it is always great to hear a fan's review of an evening, there is something very special about another great musician's take on events. Another review of Magma from around this period comes from one of Ork Alarm!'s contributing benefactors.
Francis and Stella's son is taking the plunge into the genetic pool and following in his parents footsteps. Seventeen year old MARCUS has Drum, Guitar and Vocal duties in his band KOURTYL. According to Stella, they play a very melodic and original kind of Rock Metal. They say their influences are bands like Incubus, Tools, A Perfect Circle, Deftones and Korn. I'm sure Stella and Francis are very proud and Stella told me that through Marcus' involvement, she has been exposed to styles of music that previously she would have dismissed.
Pascal Moru from Soliel Zeuhl Records kindly sent me an image of an advert from Rock et Folk magazine (December 1975). It shows the planned venues for the Magma "Live" tour in France during the early months of 1976. Judging by the advert Magma were planning a trip to the USA which I assume was aborted. As you will see, this advert and our Magma on Tour page have a few anomilies but don't hold your breath waiting for the definitive update!
Many thanks to those of you who have already added to the Magma on Tour pages. I know it falls under the trainspotting section but in the words of Mastermind's Magnus Magnesson "I've started so I'll finish"
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