[ad_1]
"It made us dizzy," recognizes Jean-Paul Roland, the boss of Eurockéennes. Reading the special issue of the monthly "Rock & Folk" retracing the 30 years of the Belfort festival impressed him. David Bowie, Coldplay, Kanye West, Muse, Jay-Z, Daft Punk, James Brown, Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, Led Zeppelin's The Cure, Page and Plant, Metallica, Amy Winehouse … superstars have stayed on the idyllic peninsula of Malsaucy!
The 30th edition of the festival is held from Thursday to Sunday, without stars but with an excellent rap and roll poster.
Christian Proust, the creator of Eurockéennes (when he was president of the general council of the Territoire de Belfort) and Jean-Paul Roland, director since 2001, come back on the great moments of this festival which showed the way to the Old Plows, Musilac and other Hellfest.
1989 : first edition
In 1989, Christian Proust, president of the general council of Belfort for seven years, seeks a good event for the youth and the image of his small department (140 000 inhabitants). He finds in Switzerland the good idea: a big outdoor music festival. "I was inspired by Paleo and Leysin," admits the elected retired today.
At the time, France has great festivals in town – Bourges, La Rochelle, Rennes – but does not arrive to perpetuate open-air gatherings, like the Breton precursor Elixir
"It's the strong local political will that has changed everything," admits Jean-Paul Roland. "We also benefited in 1989 from state aid for the bicentenary of the Revolution, says Christian Proust. But the first was very difficult. It was to be organized on the balloon of Alsace, but the ecologists refused to protect the black grouse that the noise would have made sterile. In four months, we had to redo everything.
The first Eurockéennes with Catherine Lara, Jacques Higelin and Noir Désir attracted 20,000 spectators, including 10,000 payers.
"We took the broth and had to take a loan to repay, tells Christian Proust. Jean-Pierre ( Editor's note: Chevènement, then mayor of Belfort and Minister of Defense ) recommended me to stop. Jean-Pierre does not like the risk and the inhabitants were amazed to see these hordes of young people arrive. When The Cure came, their crows-like fans all dressed in black, that made talk in Belfort. "
1995 and 2007: two unforgettable shooting stars
The only pbadage in 1995 by Jeff Buckley (deceased in 1997) marked Christian Proust: "I did not know him, admits the former elected. He played on the 2 e scene in front of 5,000 or 6,000 people and there was a lot of emotion. For me, who is mostly an opera fan, it was a revelation. The Eurockéennes have been for many, including me, an opening to the world.
Jean-Paul Roland quotes Amy Winehouse in 2007, before her descent into hell and her disappearance in 2011. "We had the chance to spot it before the album Back to Black ] does not come out, he says. She had arrived in the morning and she spent the day walking around, taking pictures. It was a happy twig. His concert was magical.
2001: the hazing and the storm
Christian Proust and the elected officials held out and, three years after the first, the crowd exploded with 60 000 spectators. In 1993, he recruited for the department's communication and the poster of the festival a graphist fan of rock, Jean-Paul Roland. The latter became the director of the festival in 2001.
"My first was a lot of hazing," smiled the latter. I had to evacuate 25,000 people the first day because of a storm and a storm. But we did well. In the evening, there were unfortunately dead people in a park in Strasbourg.
2006: Daft Punk's show at a bargain price
In April 2006, Daft Punk struck a big blow at the Californian Coachella festival with a show out of the ordinary. All events want to add their names to their programming.
"I'm in Paris, eating a kebab, when I get a call," recalls Jean-Paul Roland. The Daft Punk want to come to Eurockéennes . I'm choking. Our programming is complete, we have more money to welcome them. I am told that they will adapt because they want to play in a French rock festival and generalist. They already came here in 1996 and loved it.
"Obviously, everyone plays the game and the Daft Punk come in," the festival director continues. The team worked all night to set up the show and the next night, at 2:30 in the morning, begins an incredible concert. Nobody wanted that to end.
2010: Jay-Z and Beyonce arrive in limousine
It's a bad financial thought. But the festival team keeps a mythical memory of Jay-Z and Beyoncé. "We had the impression to bring the pope, laughs Jean-Paul Roland. They had to arrive from Basel by helicopter. We had found land with peasants to land them, but finally they arrived by plane to Montbéliard and then joined Belfort in a limousine. We drooled before, but on the spot, they were very nice. A big patron who wanted to take a selfie with Jay-Z spread Beyoncé's picture believing it was a member of the team. Fortunately, we saved the situation.
Today, these superstars are unaffordable. "Spend more than a million euros for Radiohead, we can not afford it with 9 million budget, says the director. But it does not matter. We focus on discoveries, which has always been our DNA. Hoping to find the future Coldplay, Muse or Amy Winehouse …
Find the complete programming of Eurockéennes de Belfort since the creation of the festival on this site
READ ALSO> Our selection of festivals the summer of 2018
[ad_2]
Source link
