MYTHES ET LÉGENDES, VOLUME I

Last year, Magma were able to celebrate their 35th anniversary. The band played 4 weeks at Triton in Paris, each week with a different setlist representing the different eras in the history of Magma, and a different notable guest musician from the band's past. "Mythes Et Legendes Vol. 1" is an excellent document of the band's first week at Triton. Along with former vocalist and percussionist Klaus Blasquiz, the band performs 8 of their early classics.

Every single piece performed on this DVD is simply superb. At first I was skeptical about the new Magma line-up, but I can now safely say that they do not disappoint. The arrangements generally stick closely to the originals, with a few things changed around here and there, probably to fit this line-up better.

The highlight of this disc is an absolutely blistering rendition of Theusz Hamtaahk, the first movement of Vander's epic trilogy. The voices of Blasquiz and Mrs. Vander beautifully accomodate each other while the man himself attacks his drumkit like there was no tommorow. Of course, they have aged, but it is hardly noticeable. The younger members play along hypnotically with James Mac Gaw adding a bit of McLaughlin and Phillipe Bussonnet's bass being every bit as menacing as Jannick Top's. Magma's playing is simply flawless - when Vander coined the expression "music of the celestial might", this is what he meant.

On the technical side of things, the video quality is generally very good, even though it is noticeable that the DVD was "just" filmed with digital camcorders, some on consumer- level. There are no annoying flaws, and the home-made quality makes the DVD a more intimate experience that captures the atmosphere of the small venue very well. The Dolby 2.0 audio mix is also nearly excellent; the only fault is that Blasquiz is sometimes placed a bit too low in the mix.

All in all, this is an excellent DVD that I think every Magma fan should get. And I think I can safely say that we have only seen the beginning - in the backstage footage after the concert, Vander is seen talking to a certain leather-clad bassist! All will be revealed on Vol. 2!

This DVD is an absolute must for every proghead, here magma delivers 8 brilliant early composions (1970-1972) , where the highlights for me are "kobaia" "Theusz Hamtaahk" and "Sowiloi/KMX" Incredible sound and magnificent playing, hypnotic and mesmerizing!

Magma - Mythes Et Légendes, Volume I DVD (2006)

First of all, my rating is based on how useful this document is for fans of Magma or those interested in the band. Almost all live footage dvd's of Magma would otherwise be masterpieces because of the extremely high quality of the compositions and the live performance of this unique band.

On the Mythes et legendes dvd series Magma shows it can still play the material of it's entire career! On this first dvd (of the four) Magma digs into the first two albums of '70 and '71 and the long Theuhz Hamtaahk piece of '72. The arrangements and even the crew of the band are very resembling of the original recordings. For those who like the gothic Magma, this might be a step back. This is Magma as it was in the beginning: a jazz-rock/avant-garde band with psychedelic yet intelligent composition. I myself very much like the first two Magma albums and I'm delighted that the band gives some serious attention to this fruitful period of the band.

The three-piece wind-section works very well and classic Magma vocalist Klaus Blasquiz gives a very entertaining performance. His voice is very much like on the early Magma recordings. It amazes me how the sound of the pieces resemble the original recording. All pieces, even the avant-garde styled, are played without any visible problems and they sound really good. Stoah, Aurae and Iss are my favorites.

The quality of the dvd itself is not exceptional. The concert is filmed in a small venue and there are perhaps three of four cameras in static positions. The footage itself is not that exciting, but the performance is well recorded and that's what's important, isn't it? The sound quality is good.

Conclusion. This first dvd of the series is perhaps one of the most important. The material presented hasn't been played on other live albums/dvd's and this footage shows the compositions are really worthwhile of playing live. Some tracks from the debut-album have a better sound quality on this release. If you like the first phase of Magma or jazz-rock and avant-garde this is a real good treat. Four stars. Excellent!