Nicola Sirkis, Oli de Sat, Marc Eliard, Boris Jardel and Ludwig Dahlberg have already announced a tour in France, starting in early 2025. An intimate concert will be broadcast on Friday evening on TMC.
After an XXL stadium tour, Indochine delivers on Saturday Babel Babela combative double opus, most of the tracks of which were revealed by the group led by Nicola Sirkis during an intimate concert, broadcast Friday on TMC. “What we’re doing is super risky, because you don’t know any of the songs… I hope you like it!”Sirkis, in a total black look and silver hair, balances to the committee of fans a few meters from the stage, their ears wide open to discover the essence of this 14th studio album.
Because, for once, the pop rock group with solid popularity and strong commitments decided to use the magic of live performance to deliver ten of the 17 tracks on this double album, giving away tickets to some three hundred people from France and Belgium. This Babel show was recorded on Wednesday evening in Roissy-en-France (Val-d’Oise), in a room that looked like a logistics hangar flown over by planes, before a broadcast scheduled for Friday at 9:25 p.m. on TMC, the day before the official release of the album. The setting was much more intimate than their last stadium shows – up to 97,000 people at the Stade de France – with a huge stage, central tower and 360-degree screen.
Wars, their fight
However, the tower is once again in question in this new opus because Indochine, never stingy with references, this time tackles the myth of the Tower of Babel, a biblical reflection on human vanity, transposed into a modern world marked by uproar and conflict.
As proof, My life is yours discusses the war in Ukraine, triggered by Russia’s invasion in February 2022, while The song of the swans a title already available, encourages women to resist for their freedoms in Iran. “The bastards, the heroines / Warriors, orphans / Storming the tombs / It’s the heart, the song of the swans / Be strong, stronger still”Nicola Sirkis intones forcefully.
Some of the tracks also sound like tributes, like the unequivocal title Sanna on the crossdedicated to the former Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin. This very popular social democrat, who led the government for three and a half years until 2023, notably took firm positions against Russia, breaking with the historical neutrality of her country. These themes cannot be separated from other core values of the group which are love, hope, solidarity, all wrapped up in the poetry of guitar riffs.
Introduction to electro-reggae style
Indochine also sometimes slips towards other sounds, trying its hand at electro-reggae style (Beauty and the Beast) and especially signing two symphonic pieces recorded at AIR Studios in London (The boy who dreams et Alone in Heaven).
It was all mixed by Mark Spike Stent, a British sound engineer known for his collaborations with Beyoncé, Madonna, Coldplay… and already Indochine, some forty years earlier, on the album The Yellow Peril (1983) where he served as assistant director.
Au Babel Showfans enjoy the moment and point “the universe” musical of a group that has known how to renew itself to last. “They unite. In the concerts, there are many generations, the old and the young.”notes Olivier Michel, 52, who came from Rennes with his 21-year-old daughter.
“They advocate respect for others, being equal. I grew up with that, it made me more tolerant.”also confides Charline Videau, a 33-year-old photographer. Fueled by this energy, Nicola Sirkis, Oli de Sat, Marc Eliard, Boris Jardel and Ludwig Dahlberg – average age 56 – have already announced a tour in France, starting in early 2025.
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