Christian Vander/Magma
Ẁurdah Ïtah

Part III

Myths and Legends

It was the late sixties and the world was ready for a new consciousness; ideals for a new humanity in communion with itself and with Mother Earth were spreading.

These were just illusions, and Christian Vander knew it well. That mystical experience of deep unrest (apparently also caused by the disappearance of John Coltrane) had left him with the awareness that humanity would never make that evolutionary leap on its own and that man would be doomed to suffer for his egoism and materialism. It was not at all the era of a renaissance, but the last remnants of a lost humanity clinging to ideals as splendid but fragile as butterfly wings.

Then came the great insight, like the vision of a path to follow; the only salvation for humanity would be to receive guidance from beings more spiritually and technologically evolved, and that help would come from another world.

Vander wasted no time and in '69 gathered a band of virtuosos who would become the first crew of the ship Magma that departed for the planet Kobaia the following year.

The journey was successful, and our heroes set foot in this new world, appearing more like a ragtag band than a NASA team, but what mattered most was the purity of intentions rather than technical preparation. Thus they were well received and quickly learned Kobaian, marveling every day at the socio-economic development achieved by the inhabitants of Kobaia. Everything was ready to initiate the second phase of the project; to recover a spacecraft lost in Kobaia's orbit and use it to make a return journey to planet Earth with some Kobaian friends to transmit and spread their philosophy in an attempt to save humanity from the collapse to which it was inevitably doomed.

And so it happened, and their return was acclaimed by the crowds and celebrated by humanity, which soon, however, assumed a hostile attitude toward the extraterrestrial guests who were initially slandered and then imprisoned. However, having underestimated the Kobaian abilities, humans were unable to prevent a distress message from reaching planet Kobaia, which promptly threatened Earth with destruction. Thus the prisoners were released and returned to their homes, leaving a humanity deeply shaken by this experience.

 

Part I

Wurdah Itah

The period following these events, called Theusz Hamtaahk, or the time of hatred, is within the Magmian myths a dark historical moment, a kind of futuristic Middle Ages, a transitional moment which will conclude with the advent of the prophet and philosopher Nebher Gudatth. This historical moment or cycle is divided into three phases, the second of which is represented by Wurdah Itah, an album whose genesis took place in a very unique way. Conceived and played in the spring of '71, it was revisited only after the release of Mekanik Destruktiw Kommandoh. The first recording was on tape, which was heard by one Yvan Lagrange, who became passionate about it and found it perfect for the film he was making. After watching the film, Vander, though not too convinced, accepted. Thus Wurdah Itah became a soundtrack.

The recording happened, for reasons unknown to me, with the group reduced to the essentials; Christian and Stella Vander, Jannick Top, and Klaus Blasquiz. Incredibly, however, the result is extremely cohesive, the absence of brass and guitar highlights the piano, seduced and dominated by Vander himself, and the choir of Klaus, Stella, and Christian. Even today, Vander claims that this is, "the truest reflection of Magma's real atmosphere". Paradoxically, the album was released under Christian Vander's name, justified by the idea that it was a provisional release while waiting to record an album with the full band. It's part of Magma's spirit of horizontal management; it wouldn't have been fair to the absent members to release the work under the name Magma.

A month after the album's release, Magma was already working on Kohntarkosz, and Wurdah Itah was never recorded in-studio again. The only two versions available, as far as I know, are live; a little over fifteen-minute extract released in the interesting Les Voix de Magma of '92 and in the trilogy Theusz Hamtaahk, recorded and released in 2001, finally complete after thirty years, which brings together for the first time the first movement with Wurdah Itah and Mekanik Destruktiw Kommandoh, of which numerous versions have already been published.

 

Part II

The 2000s

A kind of new youth has intoxicated the Magma of the new millennium, conquering the 2000s with performances of great artistic value that testify to the greatness of this French group. There are perhaps few other examples of artistic consistency and dedication in pursuing a certain style, in our case Zeuhl, for over forty years without losing that sparkle. No changes or innovations (aside from the musicians involved), and who needs novelties anyway when they can elevate supreme art above the barriers of times and fashions, erecting a bridge between the remote and the dream, encapsulating thirty years in the blink of an eye. This is Christian Vander and Magma, perhaps the only archaeologists left capable of restoring treasures hidden in the golden years of progressive.

This will be one of those treasures I will deal with in my next humble writing.

Sage words to a wise listener...