LES CHANTS MAGNÉTIQUES [AKA: MAGNETIC FIELDS]

Surrounded by hundreds of thousands spectators, supported by pyrotechnics and light- projections and amidst a wide range of keyboards, including an odd 'half-moon-shaped' synthesizer, sound-architect Jean-Michel JARRE turned out to be the conductor of his megalomaniac thoughts if you watches his videos. These scenes contrast heavingly with the emotional world of the young Jean-Michel. Once he was a lonesome and melancholic boy who most of the time longed for his father in the house of his grandparents. Dad was a famous composer of movie-soundtracks and because of that job hardly at home. In order to entertain himself, Jean-Michel started to record the radio-frequences of an old radio he was playing with. Music became very important to show his emotions and to numb his sadness about the missing of a fatherfigure. If you listen to the music on his early recordings you can imagine his wide range of childhood emotions, alternating from lost and lonely to happy and cheerful. My favorite album is "Les chants magnétiques", in my opinion his most mature record. Especially the first part of the titletrack is splendid, what a wonderful and exciting mix of strings, synthesizers, sequencers and percussion! Halfway the music features a lush synthesizers string sound and organ, followed by a spectacular changing climate delivering sensational sequencers and catchy synthesizer runs, electronic music meets pop on the border of the Prog Archives region. But it was Jean-Michel JARRE who got the electronic instruments appreciated as real instruments, credit to him for that!