Review by Alexia Gilchrist and Hunter Arndt Photos by Laura Fox
The way Gojira allowed their pyromania to take control showed Tuesday, May 10th, 2022 during their Fortitude tour at the White River State Park. Gojira started the show with a white curtain drop, portraying hieroglyphic symbols giving off a peaceful trinity vibe. They sure were “Born for One Thing”; rock your heart and give it a stronger beat. The best metal drummer 2021, Mario Duplantier, understood his assignment, and erupted the stage with his beat-defined drumming and ability to interact with the crowd. Duplantier could have thrown at least half a dozen drumsticks in the air to the audience. That doesn’t even talk about all the guitar picks I witnessed the lead guitarist, Christian Andreu, cast off into the audience. Don’t get me started on his beautiful hair flips and killer hard rock riffs. I love how he made eye contact with the audience and even mocked hand gestures! Bass Metalist, Jean-Michel Labadie, often syncopated well with Andreu while maintaining his own groove; however, I love Labadie’s theatrics in jumping around stage and kicking his legs in the air. Now, “Hold On” as we get into my favorite song of the night. Gojira’s ability as a band to create a melody in such a way only to transition the audiendience into a destructive mosh pit. Effortlessly dual wielding vocals and rhythm guitar, Joe Duplantier, kept the audience on their toes with what could come next. The amount of fortitude Duplantier kept in his voice and his riffs brought the fans back to life. Gojira re-energized the crowd with their final song of the night “Amazonia”. The intro combining Duplantier’s penetrating drumming style, and Andreu and Labadie’s bellowing riffs the audience could have been diminished. They were mind-blowing.
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