"It's by far my worst memory since Rock En Seine started," Missonnier told Reuters. To make matters worse, the 2008 edition had seen another headliner, troubled soul singer Amy Winehouse, also cancel at the last minute, leading some to speak of a Rock En Seine curse.
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"Someone told me I would have had more chances of winning the Euro Millions Lottery than having these cancellations two years in a row," he joked.
Missonnier was speaking while fine tuning the three-day music marathon, now in its 8th year, which will be held Aug. 27-29 in the scenic 17th Century Saint-Cloud park near Paris. This year over 40 acts across three stages are slated to perform with top-billers ranging from trip-hop pioneers Massive Attack, Canadian indie-rockers Arcade Fire, to reformed British art rockers Roxy Music and U.S. punk band Blink 182.
Despite the Oasis debacle and a recession, the 2009 event drew a record 97,000 visitors over three days and made a profit. This year looks even brighter in spite of competition from international festivals like Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds in Britain or Benicassim in Spain, which also attract major acts.
"We are headed to do as well, possibly better than last year. In 2009, we put out 15,000 three-day passes. This year, we have already sold nearly 10,000. We are more than a month ahead of last year," Missonnier said.
Reasons for success range from the beautiful setting of a park designed by Andre Le Notre, the garden architect of King Louis XIV, which offers music lovers a relaxing way to end the summer to a line-up mixing mainstream and indie rock while reaching out to hip-hop and electronic music.
"I think we found the right alchemy between various styles. We manage to offer on the same night Massive Attack and LCD Soundsystem. It's rock in a broad sense, rock with no blinders," he said.
This year, indie kids will dance to The Kooks, Foals, Beast, Two Door Cinema Club, Plan B, or Chew Lips. The festival will also give a chance to local acts such as Parisian electro-rock sensation I Am Un Chien or Roken Is Dodelijk from Lille in Northern France.
Other French summer rock music festivals range from Solidays at the Longchamp race track in Paris at the end of June, Les Eurockeennes in early July in Belfort, eastern France, to Les Vieilles Charrues also in July in Britanny. A recent newcomer is The Main Square festival held in July in the northern town of Arras and backed by the world's largest concert promoter, Live Nation.
Rock En Seine's three-day pass goes for 99 euros (about $126). A one-day ticket costs 45 euros (about $52). You can see at least five bands that day, which is a "cheap" proposition versus paying 30-40 euros to see just one of these same bands in a regular venue, he said.
For more information, see rockenseine.com.
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