The super-cool electronica band Air is returning to Australia for a one-off Moon Safari 25th anniversary concert!
As far as classic albums go, Moon Safari, by the French electronica pop duo Air, is hailed as one of the greatest of the Nineties. Debuting in 1998, the album was a captivating mix of sophisticated space pop and downtempo chill-out, with a touch of psychedelia.
Met with critical acclaim, the gold and platinum album featured the singles Sexy Boy, Kelly Watch the Stars and All I Need, and while the Nineties saw a surge in grunge, Brit pop, hip-hop and boy bands, Air helped cement a new music genre that led us into the Millennium.
Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoit Dunckel (Air) Photo credit: Mathieu Rainaud
Dedicating an entire concert to a classic album has become an experience of its own. U2 (The Joshua Tree), Bruce Springsteen (Born In the USA), Patti Smith (Horses) and countless Pink Floyd album tours are all examples. While it’s hard to believe Moon Safari has reached the twenty-five-year mark, it’s no surprise to see its longevity.
The ‘Air Play Moon Safari Tour’ has been travelling the globe (with a stop off for the Paris Olympics closing ceremony) and featured two Sydney Opera House shows earlier this year as part of Vivid. Melbourne is about to host the band at the famed Sidney Myer Music Bowl, famous for performances by ABBA, Blondie, Lorde, that other French electronica duo Daft Punk and the Kate Bush Most Wuthering Heights Day. The open-air bowl is the perfect place to hear Air’s classic song Kelly Watch The Stars – inspired by Jaclyn Smith’s character on Charlie’s Angels.
But who exactly is Air? Hailing from Versailles, France, Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoit Dunckel first played together in Orange before forming Air in 1995. After the success of Moon Safari, they provided the soundtrack to Sofia Coppola’s The Virgin Suicides. They created another soundtrack for the 1902 silent film Le Voyage Dans La Lune (A Trip to the Moon), and four more studio albums followed, including Pocket Symphony and Love 2.
Given past conflicting information from the band, it’s unknown if Air is an acronym. For a long time, the name was thought to mean, ‘Amour, Imagination, and Rêve (love, imagination, and dreaming). However, during a 1998 Australian interview, Godin explained it was a rumour.
Air is influenced by artists such as Kraftwerk, David Bowie, Pink Floyd, Grace Jones, Sly and the Family Stone, Joy Division and Iggy Pop. Their unique sound is often created with Moog synthesisers and vocoders in both the studio and on stage, and collaborators have included Beck, Beth Hirsch (on Moon Safari) and Thomas Mars from Phoenix, who joined them on stage at the Olympics.
Air is so ‘chill’ that in 2014 they created Music for Museum, commissioned by France’s Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille which only saw a limited release of 1000 vinyl copies. Amidst the band’s many accolades is the Best Music Video Award at the 2011 Byron Bay International Film Festival for So Light is Her Footfall.
As for Moon Safari, many have ranked it high on the ‘must-hear albums before you die’ list. Melburnians are soon to have that chance – live!
For more visit: airfrenchband.com
& alwayslive.com.au
