Gojira respond to claims that Paris Olympics opening ceremony performance was “Satanic”

nme.com:

Gojira have responded to claims that their performance at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics was “satanic”.The French heavy metal icons delivered an explosive performance during the Paris Olympics opening ceremony last Friday (July 26) alongside experimental opera singer Marina Viotti.During the segment, frontman Joe Duplantier and co.

performed ‘Ah, Ça Ira!’ (which translates to ‘It’ll be fine’), a song that was popular during the French Revolution, during a segment titled ‘Liberté’ (in reference to France’s famed motto ‘Liberté, égalité, fraternité’).It celebrated one of the most famous events in French history, as well as the nation’s emphasis on freedom.

It also made them the first metal band to ever perform during an Olympic opening ceremony.However, while the vast majority of viewers seemed to love the performance and took to social media to express their enjoyment of the set, some labelled it as being “satanic”.This was, in part, because Gojira appeared on the side of a castle surrounded by fire and bursts of red streamers to represent blood, with Viotti later appearing on a moving prop boat.

Their performance followed a portion dedicated to Les Miserables and came just after a beheaded Marie Antoinette was shown singing.Now, the frontman has spoken out about the claims, and confirmed that both the band and the performance had nothing to do with Satanism.“It’s none of that,” Duplantier told Rolling Stone, “It’s French history.