Magma

Around drummer, singer and composer Christian Vander, Magma took shape in Paris in 1969, initially with bassist Francis Moze, in a distinctive crossover of progressive rock, jazz fusion, choral music and repetitive composition. Magma early on developed its own universe, structured by ostinato basslines, cyclical rhythms, voices often treated collectively, and the use of Kobaïan, an invented language that accompanies a mythology conceived by Vander. The first albums, Magma (1970) and 1001° Centigrades (1971), established this aesthetic prior to Mëkanïk Dëstruktïẁ Kömmandöh (1973), followed by Köhntarkösz (1974), Üdü Wüdü (1976) and Attahk (1978), which display varying balances between rock tension, jazz improvisation and vocal work. Over the years Magma has operated as a collective with a changing lineup, drawing on musicians from the French jazz‑rock and progressive scenes, including Klaus Blasquiz, Stella Vander, Jannick Top and Bernard Paganotti. After an initial period that ended in the 1980s, Magma resumed activity in the late 1990s and released, among others, K.A (2004), Ëmëhntëhtt‑Ré (2009), Félicité Thösz (2012) and Zëss (2019), extending a repertoire in which composition remains central, both on stage and in the studio.