Top French DJs have called out the government for trying to "quieten down fun"

A group of French DJs, including Laurent Garnier (pictured), has joined forces with some of the country’s nightclubs to protest new sound measures implemented by the French governement

President Emmanuel Macron published a public health decree on clubs and festivals in August, reducing the maximum noise levels by three decibels to 102 decibels, and also puts restrictions on bass output. The decree was designed to reduce hearing problems caused by loud events.

Garnier, along with Jean Michel Jarre and a number of other leading figures in France’s music scene, published a letter in Libération saying the new restrictions would “quieten down fun, muzzle music and stop artistic work living in its physical dimension”.

They argued the physicality of a bassline on a loud soundsytem is “just as keenly felt as a beautiful voice is by other music fans” and spoke of their fear that “artistic freedom is being sacrificed.”

Those that signed the letter also warned of unfeasible costs for venue owners and a decline in the number of people going out.

The party capital in Paris has been on an upward trajectory recently with Concrete handed a 24-hour license and the opening of Terminal 7.

Louis Anderson-Rich is Mixmag’s Digital Producer. Follow him on Twitter

[Photo: Arthur Garnier]