From Led Zeppelin’s powerful rock to the enchantment of David Bowie, Pascal Mono does not leave his audience “intact” after his performance on Wednesday night…
By sharing his first live album mixed with some nice surprises, the local boy brings a soul to the 700 room of Nikaïa on April 4th.
The evening begins with a first part, Pascal’s Italian-Niçois friends: The Running Birds. A perfect way to heat up the room with fiery rhythms and pure guitar solos managed by Fabrizio, the birds start to set the tone for the evening… ROCK’N’ROLL!!!
A half-hour concert that seems to please the audience, although very eager to hear Mister Mono make his aluminum guitar roar and sing “his era”…
And when he arrives in the dim light, accompanied by his musicians, there is unanimous acclaim. Oh yes, Pascal was eagerly awaited tonight… Not only by a Niçois audience but by fans from Toulon, Fréjus, Carcassonne, Montpellier, Clermont Ferrand, Lyon, Paris, Italy, all there to support him in his hometown.
With the first lighting effect, the first echo of the bass drum, it’s on “grand A”, one of the most energetic tracks of the album, that Mono transports the audience from the first second of the concert.
Alain de Campos (drums) and Vince Dudignac (bass) who came down from Paris, as well as two Niçois, François Calais (guitar) and Matthieu Saque (guitar & backing vocals), set the stage on fire with furious sounds, perfect to accompany the warm and raspy timbre of our great artist who is giving it his all tonight.
The 12 tracks from the album are reworked for the stage, making it even heavier than in the studio, the kind of rock we love, and keep asking for more.
The electric/acoustic alternation for more atmospheric tracks like “les étoiles” gives full dimension to the show proposed by Mister Mono. At times, he is at the center of a stunning mix that makes the walls of Nice squeak, showing incredible complicity with each of his musicians, and at other times, in feline softness, alone with his guitar and voice, eyes closed, immersed in his world, what makes him live, his source of fresh water, his music.
Dressed in black, spirited, the band tackles mythical titles like “Immigrant Song”, “Poison Heart”, “Starman”… The audience is heard saying from all corners of the room, “how does he do that?”, “I prefer his versions to the originals…”, “This guy is impressive!”
And after an encore due to the circumstances which gives us four additional tracks, including an unreleased one that will be on the next album (scheduled for release in 2008), the concert closes on the flagship title of intact, “my era”, remixed with “highway to hell” by ACDC. Cosmic.
Official Website: www.pascal-mono.com/
Fan Site: https://pascal.mono.free.fr
Photographs by Marie Christine Molina
