With their single ‘Mea Culpa (Ah! Ça ira!)’, Gojira delivered one of the best, if not the most insane, performances of the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics. Most people had never heard of them. That evening, Gojira set death metal ablaze in front of the Conciergerie, carried by the lyrical voice of mezzo-soprano Marina Viotti. The French Revolution resounded under the roaring chords of the band with Marie-Antoinette beheaded in the front row.
A rare bright light on the mainstream scene. The feat finally allowed them to win the Best Metal Performance award at the Grammys, after three previous nominations. This incandescent energy has made Gojira a driving force on the French and international music scene. This is what Jean-Charles Desgroux, journalist and author of several works on rock and metal, recounts in the very first book dedicated to the phenomenal epic story of the quartet from Landes, in the southwest of France.
Founded in 1996, the band formerly known as Godzilla set out to propel metal beyond the stratosphere. The result exceeded its ambition. After thirty years of hard work, they have become the biggest French metal band, praised by their community, and the most exported internationally. This French recognition among a wide audience during the Olympic Games is thanks to a woman, Daphné Bürki, TV and radio presenter, and stylist, with the collaboration of Thomas Jolly, who worked as artistic director of both ceremonies.
But in the land of rock and metal, the British didn’t wait that long to recognise, worship, and honour them. The English press spotted them very quickly, in the early 2000s. At the head of the procession stood Kerrang! magazine, thanks at first to another woman, freelance writer Lucy Williams, followed by Metal Hammer and leading festivals such as Glastonbury.
On 5 July 2025 alone, Gojira were invited to Birmingham’s Back to the Beginning, considered “the metal event of the century”. This concert marked the farewell to the stage of Ozzy Osbourne (1948–2025) of Black Sabbath, who died two weeks later of a heart attack, on the 22nd July. Thus, they joined giants Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer, Guns N’ Roses, and Mastodon, playing songs like ‘Stranded’, ‘Silvera’ and ‘Mea Culpa (Ah! Ça ira!)’.
Throughout the 250 pages of Gojira, les enfants sauvages, Jean-Charles Desgroux’s style is lively and informative, drawing metalheads and newcomers alike into the odyssey of this band, which makes guitars vibrate with a multitude of stunning riffs. He chooses to punctuate his chapters with dates according to album releases, interspersed with passages from their songs, combining lyricism, poetry, and environmental philosophy, which quickly set them apart from other French bands. But also according to the important moments in their lives that shaped their career.
It has been a long journey for the two founders, Joseph “Joe” Duplantier (vocals and guitar) and his brother Mario (drums), who came from their small French seaside resort of just over 6,500 inhabitants, accompanied by Christian Andreu (guitar) and Jean-Michel Labadie (taking over on bass after the departure of original member Alexandre Cornillon in 1998)
Their “ultra-technical brand of metal,” as Desgroux puts it, has gained in fluidity over the course of seven albums. The increasingly chaotic melodies find “moments of spiritual, tribal, and universal of grace that break the standards” of the genre That’s what makes them so unique. If death metal is the music of civil disobedience; Gojira manages to elevate it to unexpected heights thanks to their environmental activism for the preservation of the planet and biodiversity.
A fervent defender of the oceans and whales, and a relentless activist against plastic pollution, Joe Duplantier draws his strength, despair, and rage from the nature of the Landes region, where he faces beaches littered with waste. This vegetarian turned vegan, who is also a meditation enthusiast, disciplines himself to lead a healthy and balanced lifestyle, speaking little and drinking plenty of water to preserve his deep voice during gruelling live performances.
The band quickly embraced the role of “touring musicians, always on the road and on stage”. Their first album, Terra Incognita, cold and dark, won over all metalheads. Tracks like ‘Clone’, ‘Satan is a Lawyer’, ‘04’ and ‘In the Forest’ put their stamp in varying shades of black. Violence contrasts with gentleness, the lyrics transcend the protection of nature, the instrumentals are a constant stylistic exercise where the rhythmic variations, both discordant and unexpected, destabilise as much as they surprise with their subtle details.
Gojira continually conveys this humanity and commitment in their music. Among the best tracks, ‘Ocean Planet’, from second album The Link contains sampled birdsong, while ‘Unicorn’ and ‘Flying Whales’ off third album From Mars to Sirius feature the sound of whale calls. Their activism also extends to an EP in support of Paul Watson’s NGO, Sea Shepherd. While this five-track mini album is still awaiting release, the song ‘Of Blood and Salt’ refers in particular to the slaughter of pilot whales in the Faroe Islands.
As you read on, you feel Desgroux’s deep admiration and fascination as he closely examines the evolution of this little French band as it grows into something big. Let us remember that it all began in their bucolic native barn, where Joe Duplantier quickly became satisfied with “a life devoid of all materialism”. As the author reminds us: “Nothing seemed to fit into the expected boxes, even in the world of metal, which is considered non-conformist.” So, by force of circumstance, they founded Studio des Milans and the Gabriel Éditions label. The quartet didn’t wait around and kept the beat going without interruption.
And these beginnings come as no surprise. Gojira draws their strength, tenacity and inspiration from Sepultura, one of Brazil’s most influential thrash, death and groove metal bands. The 1993 album Chaos AD left a lasting impression on Gojira, encouraging them to perform six covers and two original songs at their first concert in 1996. Since then, they have been working like hell, while sculpting their own sound. The track ‘Amazonia’, nominated for a Grammy Award in 2021 brings things full circle in an unintentional but obvious tribute.
Among the highlights of the book, Desgroux thus offers detailed analyses of each track on the albums for the most avid fans and connoisseurs, while accurately recounting the numerous stage tours. He even turns these road tours into a celebration of the world’s leading concert halls and stadiums in a dizzying list. By 2011, Gojira have become an international band based in the United States.
Metallica, their other idol, were the first American band to take them under Gojira wing by offering the French group the chance to open for them at their concerts: first in the biggest arenas in North America, then in Europe, at the Stade de France (as well as for their upcoming M72 World Tour in 2026). James Hetfield also introduced Joe Duplantier to his future wife, Vilma Petkeviciute, a Lithuanian artist and animal rights activist, with whom he has two children, Mila and Orest.
In 2012, Gojira reached an important milestone. L’Enfant Sauvage, the group’s fifth album, was released under the Roadrunner label, “the world’s biggest label for ferocious metal”. As a logical follow-up to previous album The Way of All Flesh, Gojira deliver raw and atmospheric pieces. That same year, Joe Duplantier left his cabin in the woods and moved to New York, where he founded Silver Cords Studio in Queens three years later. Following this, the band regularly performed at Hellfest in France, taking up residence on Mainstage 1 in 2022.
Desgroux moves on to Magma, which proves to be yet another turning point after From Mars to Sirius. This sixth album, released in 2016, is considered by music critics to be their most accomplished, imbued with the death of the Duplantier brothers’ mother, Patricia Rosa, following a battle with cancer. With tracks like ‘Low Lands’ as the opening, ‘Liberation’ and ‘The Shooting Star’, “yesterday’s fury gives way to a certain grace,” as Desgroux points out. Gojira continue to stand out from the metal rules, increasingly making a breakthrough in the French mainstream media.
The sleeve, designed by Hibiki Miyazaki, an artist of Japanese descent born in New York, is also one of the first not to be conceived by the Duplantiers. For with Gojira, everything is often a family affair. While Gabrielle, their sister, photographed some of the covers, Mario also handles the design. The visual concept for the album Fortitude, created by Joe, was inspired in particular by Gustav Klimt’s painting Pallas Athena.
This seventh album leaves behind Magma’s melancholy to infuse rock power and energy like a “rallying cry“. It thus follows the release, in the midst of a pandemic, of the single ‘Another World’, unveiled in an animated clip, which takes us into space in search of a new world.
In November 2025, Gojira will be at the starting blocks, preparing for their new French tour in collaboration with Gérard Drouot Productions, and planning to release their eighth album in 2026.
In this very first book dedicated to the French band’s history, Jean-Charles Desgroux invites us to explore this surge of molten metal. He demonstrates how the quartet is pushing its rise to unprecedented heights, appealing even to novices. Above all, they continue to strive for maturity, making metal culture a spiritual experience that is as melodic as it is chaotic.
Gojira by Jean-Charles Desgroux is published by Le Mot et le Reste Editions
