Jean-Michel Jarre Wraps Up a Trilogy 40 Years in the Making with New Album, ‘Oxygene 3’

French electronic music legend Jean-Michel Jarre has announced a new album, Oxygene 3, out December 2.

The LP completes a trilogy 40 years in the making. In 1976, Jarre released his album Oxygene, which is now widely considered a seminal work in the development of electronic music. The second installment, Oxygene 7-13, was released in 1997.

According to a press release, inspiration for the LP hit while Jarre was recording his last album, Electronica Vol 2: The Heart Of Noise, released this past May, which hosted a wide-ranging cast of collaborators including Jeff Mills, Peaches, Pet Shop Boys, and Cyndi Lauper. The goal for Oxygene 3, he points out, was not merely to recreate his breakthrough body of work, but to give it a modern update.

"What made the first Oxygene so different at the time, is probably the minimalist aspect, and the fact that there are almost no drums," he said in the album's press release. "I wanted to keep this approach, creating the groove mainly with the sequences and the structure of the melodies only. I did the first Oxygene on an 8-track tape recorder with very few instruments, with no other choice than being minimalist. I tried to keep this minimalist approach for Oxygene 3."

Oxygene 3 Tracklist
01. Part 14
02. Part 15
03. Part 16
04. Part 17
05. Part 18
06. Part 19
07. Part 20