Nick Cave the night before, The Cure the day after, and between these two giants, a heavyweight of metal for this Saturday’s headliner: Deftones. And metal, there will be in all flavours for this fourth day at Rock En Seine. Could the day’s lineup reconcile metalheads with Rock En Seine?
It was under a light drizzle that we carved our way to the verdant Domaine National de Saint-Cloud. The rains of the previous days had soaked the lawns, muddy and dotted with puddles. First observation: T-shirts, caps, and other Hellfest-branded gear are plentiful. And even if we’re not in Clisson, many of today’s billed acts have already trodden the Hellfest stages.
Novelists
It’s precisely the case for NOVELISTS, the spearhead of French metalcore. Led since 2023 by Camille Contreras, the Parisians’ set revolves around CODA, their latest album. The quintet has gained in return: the versatility of the singer, who oscillates between clean singing and guttural growls, is impressive.
If the big breaks and pyrotechnics set the mood, the uneven sound and the rain present a final hurdle that will be hard to overcome in fully enjoying the moment. The collaboration on “Heretic” with Flo (LANDMVRKS) and the joyous energy of the band rescue the situation. The group will extend their show on April 23, 2027, indoors at the Olympia.
AFI
There was no question of leaving early, because another band you wouldn’t expect to see at Rock En Seine was about to step onto the Boursobank stage. And for good reason, AFI hasn’t played in France since… 2007! Even though the backdrop is tinted in the colors of Silver Bleeds The Black Sun, released last year, the veteran punk-hardcore outfit serves up a best-of set. From the early punk hardcore roots to the emo gothic anthems of Sing The Sorrow (2003) and Decemberunderground (2006), to the 2013 alternative rock textures of Burials, the Californians revisit their eras without a dull moment.
We sometimes think of Depeche Mode, before thinking of Blink-182 on the next track: the experience is as kitsch as it is jubilant! And even if the generation gap is felt in the crowd, it does not dampen the pleasure for Davey Havok (vocals) and his companions, who close fifty minutes of a set that crackles with the eagerly awaited “Miss Murder.”
LANDMVRKS
Does metal have a place on Rock En Seine’s Mainstage? If Deftones provides an early answer, the appearance of LANDMVRKS closes the debate. It is on the rap-like phrasing of “Creature” that the Marseilles band kick off their hour on a grand scale. At each end of the stage, a towering statue encircles the musicians whose metalcore, tinged with hardcore and rap, has long since crossed borders.
While the sound is massive, the bass sometimes overflows the mix a little. But such detail quickly becomes secondary in the face of the energy that Flo (vocals) and his crew pour into the set, carrying a crowd already won over, whether singing along to “Death” or taking part in the biggest Braveheart moment of the festival on the rousing “Sulfur.”
If LANDMVRKS are often celebrated for their live performances, it’s also because the combo knows how to walk a tightrope with crescendos that make sense on stage. The sequence “Suffocate” and “La Valse du Temps,” where Flo alternates between perfectly controlled clean singing and growls of astonishing depth, is arguably the night’s best moment. Perhaps the strongest showing of the day.
Grandma’s Ashes & Amyl And The Sniffers
With four stages, the dilemmas at Rock En Seine are inevitably numerous. And with nearly 40,000 festival-goers this Saturday, moving from one stage to another is a trek whose arrival time is uncertain. After having watched the opening of the female trio GRANDMA’S ASHES – whose heavy rock had left a strong impression during the Les Foudres ceremony – our duty reminds us that on the opposite side, another band has taken possession of the Mainstage.
Since their highly noted performance at Rock En Seine 2023, Amyl And The Sniffers’ ascent seems to know no limits. True to their reputation, they deliver a furious, non-stop set in a garage-punk spirit that contrasts with the band’s relative youth. It must be said that Amy Taylor is as magnetic as she is charismatic in her role as frontwoman: she multiplies jumps and hip sways without ever tiring. Three times a charm?
Turnstile
If there is one phenomenon today, it is TURNSTILE: two Grammy Awards, a near-sell-out Zénith and, the night before, the release of NEVER ENOUGH: VERSIONS, a full rework of their latest album by artists ranging from Elton John to Dying Fetus. What better illustration of uniting artists and fans? That is precisely what’s happening tonight in front of the Boursobank stage, which overflows to the sides and struggles to contain the army of fans who have turned up in droves for this much-anticipated show.
With a few minutes of delay, birdsong rings out and “Birds” soars into flight. The Baltimore juggernaut arrives, led by a Br ed an Yates who is visibly hyped on vocals. Despite a recent mainstream success, Turnstile hasn’t forgotten their hardcore roots and deftly drops tracks from GLOW ON between more crowd-pleasing numbers (“Never Enough”, “SOLE”). To the point that it’s hard to know which foot to dance on, and honestly, which dance to do: moshing, pogo, and circle pits are all on offer. Unfortunately, the set suffers a few dead moments between songs, which slightly breaks the rhythm and the magic.
As usual, Turnstile shines a light on those who keep the Turnstile Love Connection alive: the fans. Behind the Americans, live, we see happy faces, young and old, captured up close by cameras plunged into the heart of the crowd. A beautiful message of community and universal love that, beyond an intense but always kindhearted performance, does a lot of good in these troubled times. Next time, bet on Turnstile gracing the stage they truly deserve: the Mainstage.
Deftones
To catch Deftones, we unfortunately had to cut Turnstile’s set short. And if you’ll excuse the pun, that turned out to be a blessing, because the Sacramento crew storm onto the stage with the saturated intro of “Be Quiet (and Drive).” Chino Moreno hops around, climbs and descends the steps of a small stairwell at center stage, while his bandmates remain static, glued to their instruments, throughout.
The movement must be sought on the sound and the animations displayed on each side screen of the stage. In turn, the staging projects the hypnotic silhouette of a ballerina, an analog hurricane, visual distortion effects (datamoshing), and surreal imagery drawn from Jodorowsky’s The Holy Mountain. Deftones isn’t just another neo-metal band trying to please the average metalhead: the Californians invite spectators into a form of contemplative reverie. It is at least in this prism that tonight’s show should be approached.
The setlist moves in this vein: cherry blossoms on “Cherry Waves” and the oceanic swells on “Sextape,” Deftones deliver a powerful yet ever so delicate and airy performance. It is on stage that we truly understand that their neo-metal flavored with shoegaze, a genre Chino is a big fan of, makes sense and grows in scope. For while the band doesn’t forget to show some muscle with tracks like “My Own Summer” and “Rocket Skates” to stir the crowd, it’s in this fragile balance that Deftones finds its strength and distinctiveness.
After about an hour and ten minutes, the Americans leave the stage only to return and deliver the coup de grâce of the day on the classic “7 Words.” While Deftones’ show remains a success on many fronts, the set lacked a touch of generosity and spontaneity. The machine is still impeccably tuned, but one could reasonably have expected a bit more from such a headliner.
Metal at Rock En Seine? Yes!
So, are Rock En Seine and metalheads reconciled? It’s hard to answer anything but in the affirmative. Between the irresistible ascent of LANDMVRKS, the communion forged by Turnstile, and the saturated dreaminess of Deftones, this fourth day proved that heavy music has a rightful place at Saint-Cloud. Despite the rain and a few sound issues, Saturday delivered on all its promises. Now, dust off your shoes, because tomorrow we head back to the floor for one last dance with The Cure!
