{"id":159966,"date":"2026-06-15T12:27:56","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T16:27:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/panm360.com\/?post_type=gig_review&p=159966"},"modified":"2026-06-15T15:52:01","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T19:52:01","slug":"francos-2026-in-the-leloupsphere-in-the-dome-and-its-aftermath","status":"publish","type":"gig_review","link":"https:\/\/panm360.com\/en\/gig_review\/francos-2026-in-the-leloupsphere-in-the-dome-and-its-aftermath\/","title":{"rendered":"Francos 2026 | In the \u201cLeloupsphere\u201d\u2026 in the Dome and its aftermath"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Thirty years ago, Jean Leloup and his buddy James Di Salvio pieced together their best raw takes from the preceding months and years. Flashes of inspiration born of partying, chaos, mental instability, alcohol, sleepless nights (and snorted drugs)\u2026 but above all, genuine talent. Le D\u00f4me was certainly as unpolished as its creator has always been, 14 songs that seem less cohesive at first glance, less so than those on his previous albums. Yet this album remains the best in his discography to date, except for those minds not inclined to appreciate the very real virtues of neurodivergent thinking in art.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Set against the rather classic rock and pop sound of La Sale Affaire, these 14 tracks found their cohesion; magnificent flowers had sprouted from the rubble. Here we found the perfect blend between Leloup\u2019s familiar world and this explosion of styles better suited to the context of 1996\u2014namely, the artist\u2019s attraction to a more arty and raw rock, to heavy funk, to reggae rock, or even rap, all now integrated into his stylistic arsenal. Without abandoning the tales of the night and its excesses, Jean Leloup\u2019s poetry opened up to new horizons, notably to this frosty quest for a paradise lost in the jungle, unearthed at the end of a long journey along a \u201cpoorly drawn path.\u201d One could rise to it by swallowing fluorescent liquids and more, the song tells us. A prelude to all the valleys of reputations that followed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I still remember a D\u00f4me show at the late Spectrum, one of the most compelling performances given by the man himself.
Just one evening ago, on a rainy Sunday, June 14, 2026, on the main stage at Les Francos de Montr\u00e9al, the golden and now established new generation of indie keb was tasked with paying tribute to this now legendary work. Vincent \u201cLes Louanges\u201d Roberge, Safia Nolin, Zach Zoya, Thierry Larose, the duo Rau_ze, Lou-Adriane Cassidy, Thierry Larose, the trio We Are Wolves, and Kl\u00f4 Pelgag were thus backed by keyboardist Alex McMahon and a top-notch band, with the only original member of Le D\u00f4me being the excellent drummer Alain Berg\u00e9, who was also the longtime drummer for Senegalese superstar Youssou N\u2019Dour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


These tribute concepts carry certain risks, especially when they\u2019re dripping with nostalgia\u2014which, fortunately, wasn\u2019t the case on this rainy evening, which nonetheless drew a considerable crowd to the Place des Festivals. Ad nauseam, Quebec\u2019s cultural scene never ceases to search for modern myths, despite a rather limited body of work given the youth of this apparent nation and its small population, but Le D\u00f4me remains an excellent subject for mythification; such a flagship of the music industry must be honored, as was the case on the Rogers stage at Les Francos, all sponsored by Ici Musique and hosted live by former indie columnist Olivier Robillard-Laveaux, who for the occasion was caked in mascara and decked out in a furry costume. Ready for a pilgrimage to Le D\u00f4me!<\/p>\n\n\n\n


All in all, the most compelling performers, in my opinion, were Vincent Roberge, Safia Nolin, Rose Cormier, and Zach Zoya. More specifically, the 14 classics unfolded as follows:
The duo Rau_ze kicked things off with \u201cPigeon,\u201d a very solid rendition, as would later be the case with their cover of \u201cSara.\u201d Safia Nolin was brilliant alongside Lou-Adriane Cassidy in \u201cLa Chambre.\u201d Les Louanges and Zach Zoya performed \u201cLe Monde est \u00e0 pleurer\u201d together, while Les Louanges and Lou Adriane sang \u201cFaire des enfants.\u201d Thierry Larose took the stage alone for \u201cLe Castel impossible,\u201d later joining Safia Nolin and Alexandre Ortiz (We Are Wolves) for a cover of the classic \u201cI Lost My Baby.\u201d Safia then joined forces with Kl\u00f4 Pelgag for \u201cSang d\u2019encre.\u201d The trio WAW performed \u201cVampire,\u201d Thierry Larose and the whole crew performed \u201cEdgar,\u201d and the show reached new heights with \u201cJohnny Go\u201d by Zach Zoya and Rose Cormier. After \u201cLa drop sociale\u201d performed by Zach himself, Rose Cormier and Kl\u00f4 Pelgag began their march toward Le D\u00f4me, with the support of all their colleagues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And since a \u201cfireworks\u201d finale was called for\u2014to quote Les Louanges\u2014the crowd filed out of the D\u00f4me and retraced their steps all the way back to 1990, just to remind themselves, in the 15th movement of this special program, that John The Wolf was also an unlikely yet very real hitmaker, in addition to having left an indelible mark on our culture with his work\u2026 And that the legacy of his work remains just as improbable, except for all the memories yet to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n