MEKANÏK DESTRUKTÏW KOMMANDÖH

A decade or so ago I was well on my way to prog geekdom. Having cut my teeth on the various "big name" prog acts ? a misnomer if there ever was one ? I wanted to venture out and see what else this genre had to offer to those hungry ears of mine. It seemed there was an endless supply of weird and wonderful music under the prog banner, and soon I was troubling my local music store to import me obscure albums from all over the world, including one Mekanik Destruktiw Kommandoh.

Much like every other album I was picking up at this time I really wasn't sure what to expect from MDK, or Magma in general, just that it had garnered high praise from the prog community and was supposedly quite dark. I remember the initial spin of the disk, found the first track kind of interesting, but overall it was too repetitive to hold my interest after the first 20 minutes or so. In truth, this album was just too different from anything else I'd heard at this stage of my musical journey, being not at all like the more "song based" prog I was used to ? Yes, Genesis, Banco, etc. I gave it a few more attempts but it never grabbed me, and MDK, as well as Magma, were shelved.

Fast forward to 6 months ago. Tired of the music on my portable MP3 player I decide to shake it up a little bit. Not nearly the prog fanatic I was all those years ago, I clear out my current playlist and try and reacquaint myself with some neglected prog. I don't know what caused me to give MDK another spin, but I'm very glad I did.

The music grabbed me in a way it never did before. The relentless rhythms, growling bass guitar, furious chanting, screeching vocals? why had my ears not latched on to this all those years ago? Whatever the reason, I was hooked.

It's futile to break MDK down to individual tracks as this monster really needs to be appreciated as a whole. Having said that, the Da Zeuhl Wortz Mekanik segment represents perfectly in nearly 8 minutes the trademark Magma Zeuhl sound and is probably the highlight for me. While I think the final 3rd of MDK is somewhat weaker than what comes before, that's a minor quibble given the quality of the album.

While Magma most definitely isn't for everyone, MDK is arguably their strongest album and the wisest starting point for those interested in exploring this unique group. Just be warned, it may take a little time for the music to sink in!