Magma, a modern jazz ensemble led by French percussionist and Coltrane aficionado Christian Vander, creates intense and passionate music that relates a massive saga of the distant, enlightened planet of Kobaia and the Earth as it struggles to attain spiritual perfection. Interstellar colonies, cosmic marches across the universe, and alien invasions are the tales so far.

CHRISTIAN VANDER: Wurdah Itah (CD on Seventh Records)

In 1974, Vander composed and recorded the soundtrack to d'Yvan Lagrange's film Tristan et Iseult. Do not expect "traditional" soundtrack music here, for pure Magma sensibilities and Kobaian lyrics dominate this music. (An attempt to incorporate this classic European legend into the Kobaian saga?)

MAGMA: Hhai (double CD on Seventh Records)

Live in Paris 1975, this release features break-out performances of "Kohntarkosz" and several tracks from the band's first album, plus some new pieces.

The band at this point are: percussionist Christian Vander, vocalist Klaus Blasquiz, vocalist Stella Vander, bass virtuoso Bernard Paganotti, guitarist Gabriel Federow, violinist Didier Lockwood and keyboards by Benoit Widemann and Jean-Pol Asseline. One can see from the instrumentation that Magma's sound has again evolved, adopting different cadences with the presence of violin.

This 86-minute CD features 14 minutes not found on the original double album.

MAGMA: Udu Wudu (CD on Seventh Records)

1976 sees Magma adding synthesizers to the sound and deleting the guitar. For the first half of the 42-minute CD, a thundering fuzz bass and versatile percussion become the focus of the sonic foundation, embellished by sizzling electronics. The vocals lose their chant, crooning now in trembling Kobaian. Although retaining this bass and drum bedrock for the last half of the album, the 18-minute epic "De Futura" composition reverts to the classic Magma style with deep-bass chants counterpointed by the piercing screams of spectral synthesizers.

The story: The attack of the indestructible yet invisible Orks continues, involving spectral menace and zombies. It is discovered that the only way to battle the Orks is to travel through time itself. This voyage teaches us how to stop the illusionary movement of passing time, which prevents us from seeing all.

The band undergoes some alteration, resulting in the primo line-up of C. Vander, S. Vander, Blasquiz, Widemann, Paganotti, Janik Top, Michel Graillier and ex-Heldon keyboardist Patrick Gauthier. Incidental horns are supplied by session musicians Alain Hatot and Pierre Dutour.

MAGMA: Inedits (CD on Seventh Records)

Released in 1977, this 41-minute album features six tracks that cannot be found on other Magma albums. They are presented here in live form, with variant band line-ups that stretch back through the previous few years.

Thick with fuzz bass and hyperactive percussion, the music is more temperate than furious, more clearly resembling progressive jazz than Magma's signature sound.

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MAGMA: Attahk (CD on Seventh Records)

For this 40-minute final chapter to the Kobaian saga, the music becomes a balance of percussion and vocals with bass, keyboards and trumpet oozing through the mix. The chants are relegated to the background, while a shrill solo voice carries the Kobaian lyrics, contralto and hoarse.

A touch of gospel and cafe seep into the Teutonic style, grounding Magma's sound with earthly concerns. But fear not, there are still several tracks that fulfill one's need for that purely Magma essence: tense compositions that rip with monster bass and rhythms that shake you like a pathetic stuffed doll in the grip of a spastic.

This 1978 release brings the saga of Kobaia to a close with the story of Ourgon and Gorgo, a tale riddled with spiritualism and wizards battling the devil.

The band line-up for the final movement of Uniweria Zekt are: both Vanders (with Christian now doing lead vocals, percussion and keyboards), Blasquiz, Paganotti, Widemann and Jean-Luc Chevallier.

This release sports ominous cover art by Swiss surrealist painter H.R. Giger.

Several excellent live Magma albums saw release in the aftermath of the Kobaian legend: "Retrospektiw, Volume 1 & 2" (a double CD), "Retrospektiw, Volume 3", and "BBC 1974 Londres" (all CDs on Seventh Records). The "Retrospektiw" releases originate from a 1980 mega-concert in Paris, and feature dynamic and passionate interpretations of classic material.

Although not released until 1998, "BBC 1974 Londres" superbly displays Magma's dense live sound with a pair of epic tracks: "Theusz Hamtaahk" and "Kohntarkosz". Sheer ecstasy can be expected with this performance.

Seventh Records also has a number of limited edition CD releases that feature other live Magma concerts culled from the band's history.

Of particular sidereal interest is the "WEIDORJE" release on Musea Records, which was a one-off project by Bernard Paganotti, Patrick Gauthier and some others back in 1978. Although not "officially" part of the Kobaian legend, this album superbly duplicates the classic Magma sound with exciting new compositions, haunting and growling powerfully with bass and horns. ("Weidorje" is a song from Magma's "Udu Wudu" album.)

A few more Magma albums came out during the '80s, but their focus was centered on a tribute to the late jazz great John Coltrane. "Merci", "Offering, Parts 1 & 2", and "Offering, Part 3" (all CDs on Seventh Records) all featured the presence of some Kobaian lyrics, but were not intended to contribute to the Kobaian saga. Their sound was light and airy, comprised mostly of piano and choral arrangements. The influence of gospel began to creep into Vander's compositional style. Christian Vander's subsequent music has been restricted to a more traditional modern jazz vein, often in quartet form.

A 9-minute CD single, "Floe Essi"/"Ektah" (on Seventh Records) was released by Magma in 1998, with a restoration of the seething Magma sensibility and use of purely Kobaian lyrics. So perhaps the future holds a return to that distant planet of cosmic wisdom.