1976 Albums

After the live album and further touring in 1975, Magma retracted to its core lineup of Christian Vander, Klaus Blasquiz and Jannick Top. The band recorded two further studio albums before folding. Üdü Wüdü saw release in 1976, again on the Utopia imprint of RCA, and by Tomato Records in the USA and Canada (part of Gramavision). The first side opens with the uncharacteristic "Üdü Wüdü," a lighter, jazzy tune with a calypso-like beat. Vander supplies the vocal, with a call-response from the female chorus.

After their fiery debut, Nova suffered from some lineup changes. The rhythm section was the first to leave, while Danilo Rustici wasn't far behind. Corrado Rustici and Elio D'Anna then recruited a keyboardist—Renato Rosset from New Trolls Atomic System—and reached out to the fusion world for the rest of the lineup: Narada Michael Walden, ex-Mahavishnu Orchestra, provided drums, while Percy Jones, Phil Collins and Robin Lumley, all on loan from Brand X, filled in with bass, percussion and production, respectively.