Blah Blah Cafe, the Jean-Michel Jarre forum

[Jote]

LOL. I have written this in a sarcastic way, because that's what he said in the other topic. I was the one who defended Jarre against this critisicm.

But I do kinda agree with him. I decided to bail on this year's tour, unless there was a show in Poland, because otherwise it doesn't seem to be worth the effort (traveling, booking accomodation etc.) When it turned out there was going to be a show in Poland after all I bailed on it as well because of the odd location which is not easily accessible without a car. Again - not worth the effort. There's just nothing to get excited about for me, it's pretty much the same playlist over and over again, and now with the older Aero versions, which I'm not a fan of. I've heard (and seen) all those pieces live (well, "live") numerous times, so what's actually the incentive here? None of these shows is going to top the Bratislava experience anyway.

[Kanta]

Jean Michel Jarre Live at Pompeii

Jean Michel Jarre in concert at Pompeii, the show is scheduled for Saturday, July 5th. Nearly 50 years after his greatest success, Oxygene from 1976, there will be a concert by one of the greatest futuristic artists, a visionary who has constantly reinvented himself through music and creativity, at the Amphitheater of the Excavations. A true pioneer of electronic music, who closed the Paris Games of 2024 at the Stade de France in front of 80,000 spectators, but made 1 million at Place de la Concorde, 2 million at La Défense, and 3.5 million in Moscow. Another piece of immense quality in a festival now among the most important in Italy.

Source: https://www.ilmattino.it/AMP/en/jean_mi ... 98053.html

[dzoolook]

06/13/25 Oslo, Norway - Grefsenkollen
06/15/25 Helsinki, Finland - Helsinki Ice Hall
06/17/25 Tallin, Estonia - Unibet Arena
06/20/25 Slupsk, Poland - Dolina Charlotty
06/28/25 Pula, Croatia - Arena Pula
07/01/25 Brussels, Belgium - Royal Palace of Brussels
07/03/25 Pompi, Italy - Anfiteatro Degli Scavi
07/05/25 Venice, Italy - Piazza San Marco
07/08/25 Sevilla, Spain - Plaza de España, Iconica Festival
07/11/25 Stuttgart, Germany - Schlossplatz, Jazz Open
12/31/25 Shenzhen, China - Shenzhen's New Year's Eve music (TBC)

[Jote]

07/11/25 Sttutgart, Germany - Schlossplatz, Jazz Open

That's "Stuttgart", not "Sttutgart"

[Richard-Eastham]

I have tickets for Brussels, because it’s the closest to the UK and easy to get to by train. He’s not getting any younger (and neither am I) so I want to keep making the effort to see JMJ live. But I’m unlikely to attend any of the other shows, because as Jote says, it is most likely the same approach each night. And an approach that’s not likely to be that innovative.

I think this tour has great potential, mainly because I’m so impressed by the choice of locations. It’s a fabulous line-up of European city centre and outdoor settings – the Royal Palais Brussels, Piazza San Marco in Venice, the Schlossplatz in Stuttgart, and amphitheatres in Pula and Pompeii. These all strike me as a throwback to Place de la Concorde and the opportunity to play (retro) futuristic electronic music in a classical or ancient setting (“playing against the venue”) while integrating sound and light technology into a holistic show. Back to his roots!

However, I fear that his approach this time around will rely upon a contemporary festival-like stage. A simple black box, with a lighting rig above and the digital monoliths scattered across the stage – see Francofolies at La Rochelle in 2024.

I doubt any efforts will be made to project images or lights onto the wider architecture, or to break open the black box of create a more open stage setting for a more engaging performance. I guess it will be JMJ, Claude and Adiescar again. No local choirs, no live drummer and no marionettes or extra stage interest.

I wish him well and this isn’t a direct criticism of what he’s doing – this is just my guess about what will happen and me expressing a wish it was more ambitious, as his live performance ambitions are a big reason I became a JMJ fan in the first place.

[Kanta]

Join the exclusive fan presale for Jean-Michel Jarre Shows in Italy on July 3rd and 5th 2025 from 10am.

Sources:
https://shop.ticketmaster.it/presale-02 ... NL_EN_2025
https://www.ticketone.it/artist/jean-mi ... NL_EN_2025

[Oxygene]

Join the exclusive fan presale for Jean-Michel Jarre Shows in Italy on July 3rd and 5th 2025 from 10am.

Sources:
https://shop.ticketmaster.it/presale-02 ... NL_EN_2025
https://www.ticketone.it/artist/jean-mi ... NL_EN_2025

The Link for Venice doesn't work. I just received a new link for Venice: https://www.ticketone.it/artist/jean-mi ... iliate=PI2
Password is: JMJVenezia2025
A new newsletter will be sent out as well.

[Jarrepeggiator]

No local choirs, no live drummer and no marionettes or extra stage interest.

Local choirs... for what, The Architect or Azimuth or Herbalizer? Many of you seem to totally disregard the fact that he is playing a very different type of music today, so he can't go on stage with 50 musicians, because you can recreate most of these tracks on stage from zero by having several people in front of keyboards. How could he play The Architect, a Detroit techno influenced song with a very fast, repetitive melody and very digital beat like that, like a rockband? No electronic musicians go on stage like that today, that's impossible with the electronic music produced on modern softwares. And Jarre is not interested in retro shows like that. That kind of shows were the product of the 80s. He could play his early tracks like that, but he wants to create a coherent sound to a concert.

And when it comes to setting, I can totally understand why he doesn't want to travel around Europe and use some cheesy, dated 80s looks in front of a new, younger crowd. You could also ask why he now has short hair and why he wears darker clothes instead of the colorful red or green suits and things like that. Well, because it's 2025.

[Jarrepeggiator]

LOL. I have written this in a sarcastic way, because that's what he said in the other topic. I was the one who defended Jarre against this critisicm.

But I do kinda agree with him. I decided to bail on this year's tour, unless there was a show in Poland, because otherwise it doesn't seem to be worth the effort (traveling, booking accomodation etc.) When it turned out there was going to be a show in Poland after all I bailed on it as well because of the odd location which is not easily accessible without a car. Again - not worth the effort. There's just nothing to get excited about for me, it's pretty much the same playlist over and over again, and now with the older Aero versions, which I'm not a fan of. I've heard (and seen) all those pieces live (well, "live") numerous times, so what's actually the incentive here? None of these shows is going to top the Bratislava experience anyway.

I don't want to repeat my self, so my response to that is basically my last response to him in this topic: https://www.zoolook.nl/forum/viewtopic. ... 4&start=30

[Jarrepeggiator]

The historic setting in Venice will be amazing!

This is so exciting, I did not expect the 76/77 year old Jean-Michel Jarre to do a proper summer tour with so many concerts. I was happy to be there last year in Bratislava, I thought it could be one of this last concerts. I never though he will do such a long and intense tour at this age. And it's not a retro tour, so many younger festival attending people will be exposed to his music. This is why he says that he doesn't mind losing some older fans, because he is always gaining new ones.

Even if only a small part of those younger electronic music fans will go and check out his albums or will become a fan, it's already exciting that a 76/77 year old man can do that. Look at some of the comments on reddit by younger fans who became a fan thanks to a recent concert, recent album, an Electronica collab. This means that JMJ's music will not disappear even 30 years after his life, because not all fans are as old as him, his fanbase won't age with him.

It's fantastic that he is so healthy at his age that we know that we don't have to worry about him retiring in the near future or about his health. It's good to be a JMJ fan, even now in 2025. At least for me.

[Richard-Eastham]

No local choirs, no live drummer and no marionettes or extra stage interest.

Local choirs... for what, The Architect or Azimuth or Herbalizer? Many of you seem to totally disregard the fact that he is playing a very different type of music today, so he can't go on stage with 50 musicians, because you can recreate most of these tracks on stage from zero by having several people in front of keyboards. How could he play The Architect, a Detroit techno influenced song with a very fast, repetitive melody and very digital beat like that, like a rockband? No electronic musicians go on stage like that today, that's impossible with the electronic music produced on modern softwares. And Jarre is not interested in retro shows like that. That kind of shows were the product of the 80s. He could play his early tracks like that, but he wants to create a coherent sound to a concert.

And when it comes to setting, I can totally understand why he doesn't want to travel around Europe and use some cheesy, dated 80s looks in front of a new, younger crowd. You could also ask why he now has short hair and why he wears darker clothes instead of the colorful red or green suits and things like that. Well, because it's 2025.

A choir joined him on stage just last year in Bratislava for Second Rendezvous, did you forget? It was one of highlights of the show, a show that also included tracks like Herbalizer and Azimuth. These things are not mutually exclusive.

In terms of setting, I'm not asking for a return to a "... cheesy, dated 80s look" (where did I say that?) but what I'm asking for is a distinctive staging approach that will continue to give a JMJ show (in 2025 just as it did in 1979 onwards) a particular identity that offers a point of difference from other contemporary pop, rock, hip hop touring shows on the road this year.

Squishing the JMJ experience into a standard 'black box stage' that is dropped into a series of amazing locations has huge potential, but only if he breaks outside of conventional scenography constrained by that box.

My concern is the visual potential these locations offer will not be realised if his staging is too timid, or too ordinary. Would you agree?

[Richard-Eastham]

How could he play The Architect, a Detroit techno influenced song with a very fast, repetitive melody and very digital beat like that, like a rockband? No electronic musicians go on stage like that today.

Except they do. Just look at how Pet Shop Boys over the last two years or so have used two talented percussionists (Africa Green and Simon Tellier) as part of their live shows to recreate the rhythm tracks on both their greatest hits from the 80s and 90s and their more recent music. And both are mesmerising to watch, with incredible stage presence.

JMJ has used a live band successfully in the past e.g. China Concerts, Lyon, Houston, Docklands and Europe in Concert. These were productions that both made and cemented his live reputation. Pet Shop Boys have shown how an "electronic music legacy act" can remain authentic and relevant.

In my opinion, JMJ in 2025 should be reinventing what he's best known for, not moving away from it. Otherwise, he risks becoming too much like everyone else.

[dzoolook]

No local choirs, no live drummer and no marionettes or extra stage interest.

Local choirs... for what, The Architect or Azimuth or Herbalizer? Many of you seem to totally disregard the fact that he is playing a very different type of music today, so he can't go on stage with 50 musicians, because you can recreate most of these tracks on stage from zero by having several people in front of keyboards. How could he play The Architect, a Detroit techno influenced song with a very fast, repetitive melody and very digital beat like that, like a rockband? No electronic musicians go on stage like that today, that's impossible with the electronic music produced on modern softwares. And Jarre is not interested in retro shows like that. That kind of shows were the product of the 80s. He could play his early tracks like that, but he wants to create a coherent sound to a concert.

And when it comes to setting, I can totally understand why he doesn't want to travel around Europe and use some cheesy, dated 80s looks in front of a new, younger crowd. You could also ask why he now has short hair and why he wears darker clothes instead of the colorful red or green suits and things like that. Well, because it's 2025.

A choir joined him on stage just last year in Bratislava for Second Rendezvous, did you forget? It was one of highlights of the show, a show that also included tracks like Herbalizer and Azimuth. These things are not mutually exclusive.

In terms of setting, I'm not asking for a return to a "... cheesy, dated 80s look" (where did I say that?) but what I'm asking for is a distinctive staging approach that will continue to give a JMJ show (in 2025 just as it did in 1979 onwards) a particular identity that offers a point of difference from other contemporary pop, rock, hip hop touring shows on the road this year.

Squishing the JMJ experience into a standard 'black box stage' that is dropped into a series of amazing locations has huge potential, but only if he breaks outside of conventional scenography constrained by that box.

My concern is the visual potential these locations offer will not be realised if his staging is too timid, or too ordinary. Would you agree?

I completely agree with what you're saying. For this new tour, I think it's necessary to add elements to the concerts that break away a bit from what has been done in recent years. I'm not talking about 50 musicians on stage, or the 80s, as someone mentioned earlier. The Bratislava show last year, with the instruments and the choir, was amazing. Personally, I think the Time Machine arrangement was incredible as well. I remember the years 2009-2013 when he performed Calypso 3 live, Industrial Revolutions 2 live, Chronologie 2 with different solos each night, and others... That element of playing live is what's missing from Jarre's recent shows. What difference is there between Oxygene 19 since 2018 Tour, WTTOS (2020) and Versailles or Bratislava/Francofolies 5 years later? musically, none. The same happens with Zero Gravity, The Architect, Opening, Stardust.

[Richard-Eastham]

You could also ask why he now has short hair and why he wears darker clothes instead of the colorful red or green suits and things like that.

- 1988, London Docklands - Black trousers, green jacket
- 1990, Paris La Defense - Black trousers, red jacket
- 1993, Europe In Concert - Black trousers, green jacket
- 2024, Bratislava - Black trousers, SILVER REFLECTIVE JACKET!

He's still got great style!

[jeanbatman]

How many outdoors shows do we have ? Because I doubt the Helsinki show is not an indoor venue?