Laurent Garnier Added by Tygo, 28 August 2002

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Since his debut at Manchester’s Hacienda in 1987, the beginning of the Acid House explosion, Laurent Garnier has played a key role in the development of the electronic music scene. Over the last ten years he has built up his international reputation by playing at all the major clubs and festivals worldwide. During this time he has been voted best international DJ by the music press and has built up a very special relationship with his public. Laurent Garnier is very different from your average DJ. You only have to witness the queues of enthousiasts in front of the Rex Club in Paris or L’Anfer in Dijon where he held long-term residencies.

Laurent Garnier is respected by both the godfathers of techno in Detroit, with whom he has built close links, as well as by the younger generation of producers and DJs to whom he has given a taste for electronic music through his DJ sets and radio shows…

Aside from his successful DJ career, Laurent Garnier has always produced his own music. In 1991, he released a series of Eps on the Fnac Dance Division label. This work continued with the creation of his own record label F Communications in 1994, with Eric Morand. The release of tracks such as ‘Acid Eiffel’ and ‘Wake Up’ on FNAC Dance Division served as a springboard for a new French electronic scene. Rarely before had French music been so easy to export.

In effect, Laurent Garnier became the first ambassador for French house and techno abroad. In October 1994, he released his first album ‘Shot in the Dark’ and subsequently became one of the first French artists to be invited to perform on the prestigious ‘Peel Sessions’, broadcast on BBC Radio 1.
The release of his second album ‘30’ was another turning point in Laurent Garnier’s career. From here on, Garnier decided to slow down his hectic DJ schedule in order to concentrate on producing more of his own music. However, this did not prevent him Djing on the main stage at the first Techno Parade in Paris in September 1998, in front of an audience of 100,000 people. That same year he won the ‘Victoire De La Musique’ award for his album ‘30’ ;a great honour as this was the first year that there was a category for Dance music. During the award ceremony at the Olympia in Paris, he performed ‘Acid Eiffel’ live, accompanied by violin and percussion. As a result of this performance being broadcast live on French national prime-time TV techno, which had previously been misunderstood finally began to gain recognition from a wider French public.

He fine-tuned his live show whilst performing at several of the major European festivals (Sonar, Borealis, T in The Park, Creamfields…) before returning that same year to the stage of the Olympia accompanied by 14 musicians and dancers. The experience of this performance and the full European tour that followed , including the Montreux Jazz Festival, proved to be a very important influence for what was to follow.

With the release of “Unreasonable Behaviour” in 2000 Laurent Garnier produced his most accomplished and personal album to date. This surprising record does not shy away from exploring more diverse and tormented sounds than we have previously been accustomed to in his work, resulting in praise from the press as well as the public with over 250,000 copies sold and one undeniable hit “The Man With The Red Face”

This album also enabled Laurent to continue to explore his fascination with the visual element and young directors. Following the succes of videos such as “Flashback” directed by Quentin Dupieux, Laurent called on Vito Rocco, Siraj Jhaveri and César Vayssié to create videos for several tracks on the album keeping true to the same off beat humour and mixed up emotions.

When “Unreasonable Behaviour” had been completed Laurent Garnier embarked on a tour of over 60 dates across Europe and USA. Whether playing sold out gigs at the Elysée Montmartre in Paris or headlining at the Werchter festival in Belgium in front of over 70,000 people, Laurent’s charisma and the generosity of his music seduced a large public.

The best is yet to come…………Following a tour of Asia in winter 2001, Laurent Garnier will start work on a new album.

Laurent Garnier
Frankrijk
http://www.laurentgarnier.com/

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