Pascal Mono, the local hero, has released his first album: “Intact”… Already available in stores, don’t hesitate to order it to get your copy! (Universal replenishes according to demand)
He kicked off his tour throughout France, starting Wednesday, November 22, at “Le Réservoir” in Paris… (A near-“mythical” club where “The Cure,” “Radiohead,” “Placebo,” “Ben Harper,” “Louis Bertignac,” “Zazie,” and more have already performed…)
What a show!
Pascal Mono performs the entire “Intact” album plus some new unreleased tracks as an encore. Accompanied by his musicians: Matthieu Imberti on guitar (ex “No One Is Innocent”), Matthieu Saqué (ex “Mono & Santa”), Vince Dudignac on bass (ex “Spor”), and Alain de Campos on drums (Zucchero, David Hallyday…)
Pascal offered us an hour and a half of pure bliss… Not only were his fans present, coming from all corners of France (Paris, Nice, Lille, Marseille…) and Belgium; but there were also some “celebrities” who came to show their support for our artist.
In the VIP section, the first to arrive was another local, Christophe Pinna, his loyal friend, world champion of all-category karate… On a scooter, chilled by the cold, and the rain pounding on the Parisian sidewalk that night. But Christophe wouldn’t have been late for anything in the world… He spent half an hour waiting in line at the doors, among the fans asking for photos and autographs, with the warm openness we know him for.
Then came Raphaëlle Ricci and Philippe Lelièvre. The sincere stage expression teacher from the château, and the comedian conducting his eccentric acting classes. Raphie was thrilled to be there.
She exclaimed at the end of the concert: “He was made for the stage!” No one can say otherwise… It’s so evident that this is his life, his reason for being…
Philippe Lelièvre, sandwich in hand, remained captivated and awed by Mono’s talent. He even said in his unique way, “This kid blew me away!”
Also present that night were: Nono and Bernie Bonvoisin (from the band “Trust,” soon to perform at the Zénith in Paris for four exceptional dates!)
Philippe Paradis, ex “Moulin Rouge” in ’94 with Pascal Mono, they moved to Paris together (in the Blue Renaud 4L, Pascal once confided to me)… Philippe later became an arranger, co-composer, and guitarist for Zazie, Christophe, Daran, Hubert-Felix Thiéffaine…
“Daran” was also present, currently a producer and co-composer for Florent Pagny, Maurane, Sardou… He said he got “a good slap,” as we say in the industry (that just means it was amazing, you know…)
Arnaud Gidoin, the entertainer from the Ruquier crew on France 2, came to congratulate our singer…
Daniel Russo, actor, currently in “Toc-Toc,” the play written by Laurent Baffie, and his daughters, clearly big fans of Pascal…
And finally, former Star Academy participants like Mathieu Johann, Maud & Alexia (SA 5), Pierre, Romain (SA 3), David, and Nicolas (SA 6)…
There were other personalities from the field, but I can’t recall their names, sorry, and I can’t have my eyes everywhere! Lol
8:30 PM, it’s already packed, the concert is scheduled for 9 PM… The “Pas-cal! Pas-cal!..” chants resonate in the filled-to-capacity room (about 400 people) 8:45 PM… Pascal keeps us waiting…
He started after 9:10 PM, following the audience’s loud demands, with the song “Grand A” that immediately ignites the place!
We are witnessing greatness tonight. He gives it his all. From vocal performances to more restrained and deep interpretations, everyone remains captivated by this beautiful live moment. The sound is huge, and everything is heard clearly, excellent sound, hats off to his sound engineer! Also kudos to the lighting engineer for synchronized stage and lighting effects with the singer’s movements…
The 12 tracks from “Intact” will thrill the audience for the entire evening, sung in unison by all the fans, including the irreplaceable “Raphie” who knows the songs by heart and sings along, just like a good part of the room, by the way… But that’s not all! We were also treated to a cover of the “Ramones,” “Poison Heart” at a crazy tempo!
Everything is included, “En Somme,” ecstatic, “Si Je Devais,” Aerosmith-like, “Les Etoiles,” super ethereal, to the wilder ones “Aïe” and “TV Superstar,” in irony…
Pascal closes the show with a fragile “Je Me Casse”… “Je me casse/ J’y pense et puis je me casse/ Comme du verre…” with an exceptional note hold… No less than 24 seconds (yes, yes, I timed it… Lol)
He leaves the audience in a state of joy and hysteria… Some let their emotions flow to tears even… In general, the eyes are shining…
During the encore, he performed solo on guitar/voice, the famous “hidden track” by Led Zeppelin, “Going To California”… A magical moment in pure acoustics where the audience listened reverently…
An unreleased track: “Au Bord de la Mer,” which completely relaxed the atmosphere, and even an a cappella of Janis Joplin’s “Mercedes Benz,” where everyone clapped along cheerfully.
A grand finale with the band returning to the stage for a remix of “Mon Epoque,” the first single of “Intact” with the legendary “Highway To Hell”!… A real thrill!
10:40 PM: Smiles on their faces and drinks in hand, their throats dry from singing at the top of their voices, the audience seems to struggle to recover! The heat is overwhelming…
Pascal will come back from the dressing rooms half an hour later!.. It’s a pleasure to see him then join his family, friends, and fans… The journalists soliciting him will conclude this beautiful evening on a rock star note… We are happy for him… The show we witnessed, it’s just not every day, is it!
A great among the greats (really, I choose my words carefully, you just have to listen to his Led Zeppelin cover, he has a Robert Plant vibe in him and so much more…) yes, a great has been born among us!
Don’t miss Pascal Mono’s upcoming dates!
Official Sites:
www.pascal-mono.com/
Fan Site: [https://pascal.mono.free.fr](https://pascal.mono.free.fr)
