INÉDITS

"Opus 3" sets the standard with its cosmic electric keys and jazzy zeuhl rock variations with Jannick Top doing an extended bass solo, so this is obviously a required recording for us maniacal born-again Kobaians. Although these songs were performed between '72 and '75, I have to say that they all remind me strongly of the main "Kohntarkosz" theme, what with steady yet subtle rhythm work holding around one chord and those unique funeral jazz moments. (Still, it's been said that Kohntarkosz Anteria was written in '72 - and indeed, memorable snatches of the epic do appear on Inedits - so perhaps a lot of what we have here was contemporary with it, possibly to be included in Ementhet-Re? If so, they'll have to cut back on all this relentless improvisation - seeing a musician's talent expand across the stage is wonderful in a live setting but I'd prefer my studio slices of zeuhl to be much more tightly regimented.)

I'll highlight my favourite moment - the third track, "Om Zanka" is flowing piece of 7/8 jazz mood management with Vander soloing against the amazing Benoit Widemann, and neither buries the other. Frustratingly, the quality of the production is most punishing here. Once the duel is over (assumedly called as a draw owing to exhaustion) the traditional Kobaian choirs enter to weave in and out of Lockwood's violin melodies. It's stunning and frankly over far too quickly, although I have a feeling that this piece reemerges on "K.A."

Don't pick this one up first, but if you come under Magma's spell, don't disregard Inedits merely because it's not studio work. Magma fanatics should head here because it'll help them to come to terms with bootleg quality, and to put names to the songs on the ones they've already heard!

I had no idea why I didn't go into INEDITS knowing it was a live recording; I think I realized it when I first heard the album. I'm not even ten seconds into the first track and the sound quality is already pretty bad. Weak would be a perfect characterisation of the sound.

Even then, I can't get into any of the music. Most of this sounds like bland, generic fusion. Granted Magma had jazz fusion elements on earlier albums, say 1001 DEGREES CENTIGRADE, here, the fusion is just so boring that it's really hard for me to listen to this in one go. Sometimes, the blandness gets in the way of what goes on instrumentally. Like when a bass solo occurs, I don't go ''WOW, that's an AWESOME bass thing!!'' because my mind isn't there at the time. Instead, the solo will have gone on for a minute already, then I exclaim, ''Wait, there a bass solo? When did this happen?!?'' This feeling happens throughout much of the album.

I can only recall the first vocal bits of ''Opus 3'' and the opening of ''Gamma''. Nothing else sticks out musically. I'm still trying to get the bitter taste out of my mouth as every other Magma album I've heard thus far is insanely good.