22.05.2026 Gojira

Deutsche Bank Park, Frankfurt (Germany)

The sun slowly began to set, bathing the stage in a dazzling, glaring light as Gojira entered. Brothers Joseph and Mario Duplantier stepped into the ring together with their bandmates Christian Andreu and Jean‑Michel Labadie. With the opener “Born For One Thing” from their latest album “Fortitude” (even if it already has five years under its belt), the sound hadn’t improved much. The technical riffs were still somewhat difficult to make out. But from song to song, and as the stadium filled up, this problem gradually faded.
Gojira used the 360° stage a bit differently than Knocked Loose had earlier. Mario Duplantier had two identical drum kits placed on opposite sides of the stage and switched from one to the other halfway through the set. As always, he wore only shorts (not a bad choice in that heat) and once again reminded me of Animal from The Muppet Show: precise, but absolutely ferocious in the way he attacked his drums. His brother spent most of the time on the opposite side, working his guitar and impressing with his dynamic vocals. He shifted seamlessly between growls, screams, and clean singing, and by the time they reached “Stranded,” the crowd was completely hooked. Only Andreu and Labadie made more extensive use of the ring‑shaped stage, giving everyone in the inner field a chance to get close as they worked their string instruments.
The most memorable moments of the show came from Mario Duplantier. Not only did he repeatedly stand up to play while urging the crowd to get louder. At one point he even held up a sign written in German: “Macht mal richtig Lärm!” (“Make some real noise!”). When that alone wasn’t enough, he added more gestures, and the crowd eagerly followed. He then flipped the sign around to reveal the response: “Scheiße, ist das geil!” (“Shit, this is awesome!”). The other three focused more on delivering the complex, rhythmically demanding songs flawlessly. By the time they reached the Grammy‑winning “Mea Culpa (Ah! Ça ira!),” which the band had performed in legendary fashion at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, the crowd was singing along at full volume. Both the audience and the band gave everything they had, despite the nearly 30°C heat making it a sweaty affair. Thankfully, the roof of Deutsche Bank Park was closed, so at least no one was roasting in the sun. The setlist left little room for complaints, while the last two albums made up the bulk of it, older gems like “Flying Whales” from the 2005 album “From Mars To Sirius” and “Love” from their 2001 debut “Terra Incognita” were also included. They used their timeslot right down to the last second and left behind a satisfied crowd.
By now, this was the third Gojira show I’ve had the pleasure of seeing, but in my eyes, it was unfortunately the weakest so far. Part of that was due to the stadium, while the atmosphere was much better than during Knocked Loose, it never quite reached a boiling point. Their shows are also often enhanced by large, impressive projections behind the stage, but with the barrel‑shaped LED surfaces and the intense sunlight from the setting sun, that visual impact didn’t fully come through. Nevertheless, it was a typically strong performance that delivered musically. Fortunately, the sound improved with each song, eventually becoming quite acceptable. I love their sound, and anyone who enjoys technical, intricate music with influences from death, progressive, and groove metal should absolutely catch one of their shows.