Gojira / Motorpoint Arena / Nottingham

Back in Nottingham for a home town gig, as French eco-metal band Gojira head to town. Door at 18:00 I arrive for 18:30, as the guestlist is always about half an hour later, to find a queue and a wait until 18:45, but phew…. The list arrives, I’m on it and I head to get my bag checked.

A false start, there’s only a ticket, no photo pass, so back to the box office I go. A further wait while they check it out, I enter the venue later at almost 19:15, so missed half of the first set by opening band, Employed to Serve. As I opened the fire doors to step in to the stadium bowl, the noise level almost flattens me. A British band on the rise they powered through the rest of the set with confidence, singer Justine Jones was on fire and had the crowd in the palm of her hand.

From what I saw of the set (sorry) they were certainly not out of their depth on a large stage, and blasted out some powerful riffs and assaulting the ears in a positive way. Highlight of the latter part of the set for me was the track Dull Ache Behind My Eyes.

Set List

Universal Chokehold

Owed Zero

Force Fed

Sun Up to Sun Down

Dull Ache Behind My Eyes

We Don't Need You

Mark of the Grave

A pretty quick turn round on stage, drums are tested, mics and guitars ring out as everything is prepared for the arrival of New Zealand metal band Alien Weaponry. I’d not heard of Alien Weaponry before and was keen to see what they would be like. As they took up their positions, drummer Henry de Jong performed a traditional Haka from behind his set. Wow, what a start as his war cries echoed out round the area, everyone stood in silence, respectfully watching, before they hit the first number Raupatu to roars of approval from the crowd. Many of their songs are performed in their native Māori language.

It struck me just hod good they were, right from the off. The tribal, cultural feel came through in the melodies and drum rhythms, and the Māori language seemed strangely effective for metal. They clearly had a strong pride and sense of love for their culture and it came through in the emotion of the songs. I had come for Gojira, but wanted more of this !

Guitarist and vocalist Lewis de Jong was on top form and bass player Tūranga Morgan-Edmonds made the stage his own, prowling round, pulling poses and holding his bass almost like a spear in tribal displays. The crowd were loving it too and you could just feel the energy in the room.

Best sounding tracks (as I couldn’t tell you what the lyrics were) for me were Ahi Ka (a term relating to people who live on Māori land and maintain the culture, rituals and resources) and the final track Kai Tangata (a song of war). The fans were ready for Gojira now, and with some encouragement from Lewis the crowd were divided in two down the middle to the sound desk. Right on command they rushed in and swarmed in the pit.

Māori metal was something new to me, but since, I’ve been checking them out on Spotify and loving it. Powerful, emotional riffs and pounding tribal drum beats, their passion shone through. I was taken aback by their set. Just incredible.

Set List

Raupatu

Holding My Breath

Tangaroa

Hatupatu

Ahi Ka

Rū ana te whenua

Kai Tangata

Phew, time to catch a breathe after that, and a longer break as the set is prepared for the main act, French eco-metal band Gojira. A huge screen is hung in front of the stage and symbols are projected onto it. As the roadcrew finished their work and the house lights dimmed, a giant countdown clock appeared on the screen.

The smoke machines sprung into life and a heavy stage hugging fog spread out, and dripped down, filling the pit. As the clock ticked down, the band could be seen silhouetted on the screen and as the clock reached 0, bang ! It dropped to the floor and they launched into Born for One Thing from their latest album “Fortitude” released in 2021.

The place erupted and the first of the stage divers started coming over. The four piece band Joe (guitar and vocals) and Mario (drums) Duplantier, Christian Andreu (guitar), and Jean-Michel Labadie (bass) create an intense sound, much fuller than their component parts.

The pace just didn’t dip once from start to finish and they were straight into The Heaviest Matter Of The Universe from 2005’s brilliant album “From Mars to Sirius”. The fog swirls round us in the pit and the huge screen behind the band projects a colourful, swirling ‘black hole’ design, almost hypnotic as you watch. Mario’s drumming is powerful and energetic as he stands and waves at the crowd to encourage them to jump, shout and scream to the tracks.

There are some great metal bands around right ow, and I’ve been lucky enough to see a few recently at this venue, such as Parkway Drive, Volbeat etc, but there’s something abouty Gojira. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but they are different. The sound is incredible, loud but crystal clear and there’s a kind of natural feel to their sound that just sets them apart as something different….. In a very very good way.

Our last song in the pit taking photos before returning to our seats was Stranded from 2016’s “Magma” album. The fire flashes and confetti cannons shot out to wards the roof and the energy levels were off the scale, the crowd bouncing and swirling again in the pit..

Perhaps my track of the set was The Cell, again from 2016’s “Magma” a heavy riff laden almost black metal number. Drums pounding the eardrums and growling vocals rasping at my brain. Stunning.

Another cracker was their most recent 2022 single Our Time is Now. More refined it shows their continued development, but stays true to their ethos. A song about a grim modern world and the need to fight to be us, to stand up for ourselves and take control. With lyrics like “We’ve been deceived, today the world is blind. We’ve lost our sight to the bottom of the sea. No way! Our back to the wall, we’ll change the rules, disobey the mentor. Realize you’re not alone, they’ll love you like a god. Get out there, you belong. Now !” Powerful stuff, and very engaging.

As the set draws to an end, we get the brilliant The Gift of Guilt from 2012’s “L’enfant Sauvage” with intense powerful growling vocals it’s an anthem of a track and has the sea of heads nodding in the stadium bowl.

A simple stage set, no fancy paraphernalia just four musicians, some smoke and fire and a huge visualiser screen. But with Gojira you don’t need anymore. They let their music do all the talking, and boy does it talk ! From start to finish they held the crowd in their grasps with a powerful and energetic set.

This is a show I’d been waiting for ages. I so wanted to see Gojira, and they didn’t disappoint. And then there’s the added bonus of my introduction to the brilliance of New Zealand metalheads Alien Weaponry. This is a night that will last long in the memory.

Set List

Born for One Thing

The Heaviest Matter of the Universe

Backbone

Stranded

Flying Whales

The Cell

The Art of Dying

Grind (Preceded with the drum solo)

Another World

L'enfant Sauvage

Toxic Garbage Island