Laurent Garnier has been working hard over last few years to change his public image and become a live performer, dabbling in film, jazz and even classical music. A natural and restless pioneer, his search for new experience and experiments has been the unstoppable driving force behind everything he's done. Not many DJs would choose to give up a successful career in Manchester during the height of acid house and set off to introduce France to techno. That he managed to not only win over his home country, igniting the sparks that would lead to Daft Punk and Justice, but also start a record label and convince a doubting international market that the French can make techno, is testimony to his determination. His move into the live arena was gradual. But as usual it was also predictive, pre-dating the recent trend for re-introducing live instrumentation into dance acts by five years. His live music personae reached a new landmark earlier this summer when he released 'Public Outburst' - a live LP featuring some of his collaborations with artists such as the Rhodes player, Bugge Wesseltoft. Perhaps most significantly, it also featured work with his brass player Phillipe Nadaud - the saxophonist who famously blew himself into the title of the Garnier classic 'Man With A Red Face'. But rather than abandoning DJing, he has returned to his 'All Night Long' eight-hour solo DJ sessions, allowing him to indulge in the enormous variety of music that inspires him.
Laurent Garnier has been working hard over last few years to change his public image and become a live performer, dabbling in film, jazz and even classical music. A natural and restless pioneer, his search for new experience and experiments has been the unstoppable driving force behind everything he's done.
Not many DJs would choose to give up a successful career in Manchester during the height of acid house and set off to introduce France to techno. That he managed to not only win over his home country, igniting the sparks that would lead to Daft Punk and Justice, but also start a record label and convince a doubting international market that the French can make techno, is testimony to his determination.
His move into the live arena was gradual. But as usual it was also predictive, pre-dating the recent trend for re-introducing live instrumentation into dance acts by five years.
His live music personae reached a new landmark earlier this summer when he released 'Public Outburst' - a live LP featuring some of his collaborations with artists such as the Rhodes player, Bugge Wesseltoft.
Perhaps most significantly, it also featured work with his brass player Phillipe Nadaud - the saxophonist who famously blew himself into the title of the Garnier classic 'Man With A Red Face'.
But rather than abandoning DJing, he has returned to his 'All Night Long' eight-hour solo DJ sessions, allowing him to indulge in the enormous variety of music that inspires him.
