Artist: Magma
Label: Seventh Records
Release: 1974
Rating: 4.6/5
Wurdah Itah is officially not even a Magma album, but a solo project by the band’s drummer and visionary Christian Vander. Still, pretty much everyone files it under Magma, so I’ll go along with that too. The album is quite comparable to the rest of the Magma catalog, both in how it continues Vander’s story and musically, since it’s a kind of follow-up to Mekanik Destruktiw Komandoh. Wurdah Itah does continue the story of the planet Kobaia, but it also served as the basis for the film Tristan et Iseult. When the album came out on vinyl in 1974, it carried the film’s name, and only later did Vander swap it for Wurdah Itah.
Even though it echoes MDK in certain ways, Wurdah Itah is a quite different and unique beast. You could almost call it acoustic. It’s also very basic and stripped of all the clutter that gave MDK such a hefty sound. This is a gentler album and, in a way, a more refined one. No guitars, no horns, just a bare-bones lineup: keyboards, drums, bass and vocals… lots of vocals. The record has the most lavish vocals of anything they did in the seventies. Another special touch is that many of the lead vocals are sung by Vander himself, with help from his wife and Klaus (not Kinski, but Blasquiz). Another unique element is the obvious lack of jazz. Most of it shows up in the drumming, and even there it’s sometimes pretty restrained. Otherwise the music is built mainly on classical, rock and, of course, opera, which was their trademark strength back then. The vocal arrangements here are outstanding, only topped by KA from 2004. The album follows similar lines to MDK, with some themes that were clearly important to Vander coming back several times in a similar fashion. It also shows how nearly all of Magma’s albums are interconnected, since melodies from other records pop up too, with one theme especially obvious that returned later on KA.
Up to that point, Wurdah Itah was their most accessible work. There’s far less jamming and jazz, and fewer of the elements that put plenty of people off Magma (the horns, the screaming vocals, the seemingly chaotic composing). It’s more accessible, sure, but Magma still kept the artistic value and the complexity of the melodies. The fact that they managed to craft a more consistent album is proof of how much they’d grown musically. Everybody plays really well. Vander shines in particular, handling all the keyboards himself. He could easily have played the keyboards on every album. Blasquiz is much less noticeable than on MDK, while Stella has a pretty prominent role. Top is also a bit less central and his lines aren’t as mighty, but that’s probably because the album is more refined and not so hard-hitting.
Some people need a long time to get Magma. A few lucky ones get them right away, and some (me included) have to wait ages before they notice anything in the music that they like. Some never get it at all. But no worries, because those who fall for their music fall hard, head over heels. It’s that intoxicating quality of their songs that has built such a huge and devoted following. So if you’re looking for a good place to start with this band, this is exactly the right title. It’s one of their more accessible albums and one of their more melodic ones too.
Lineup
Christian Vander – keyboards, drums, vocals
Stella Vander – vocals
Klaus Blasquiz – vocals, percussion
Jannick Top – bass guitar
Production
Laurent Thibault
Tracklist
1. Malawelekaahm 3:37
2. Bradia da Zimehn Iegah 2:17
3. Maneh Fur Da Zess 1:37
4. Fur Dihhel Kobaia 4:55
5. Blum Tendiwa 3:28
6. Wohldunt Mem Deweless 3:28
7. Wainsaht 2:29
8. Wlasik Steuhn Kobaia 2:47
9. Sehnnteht Dros Wurdah Sums 3:25
10. C’est la Vie Qui les A Menes La! 4:58
11. Ek Sun Da Zess 2:16
12. De Zeuhl Undazir 3:40
