Christine and the Queens - Chris

Christine and the Queens
Chris
2018
Spotify

I love Christine and the Queens. I remember when I first heard her music years ago and could not believe what was coming out of the speakers. Her infectious blend of pop and funk blasted through and electro pride flag was incredible and vibrant. Her music is unlike anything else because in being so decidedly different than other things in the space it begins to sound better and better. Electro-pop has taken a bit of a beating this year. Three years ago it sounded so fresh and modern, but the best bands in the genre have been turning in some rather lackluster performances. That is partially the reason I have taken some time to get around to this album. I was worried that it was going to be yet another disappointment in the genre. Rest assured however Helen Letissler has delivered another blistering performance here. Chris a double album with the first side sung in English and the second in French, but both the same songs. Chris is Christine's masculine alter ego. After experiencing success and larger access after Her heralded first record Letissler was frustrated that she was still facing artistic roadblocks as a woman that she felt other men in music didn't face. Chris was her response to that, a hory wild front man played by a woman. Her voice makes the music approachable, but then the vibe is cutting and even a little bit dark. The atmospheric and stadium filling vibes she is able to reach on singles like "Doesn't Matter" rival any male in the space and she is making the case that their shouldn't be a difference anyway.

However in taking this more masculine stance She does tend to loose some of the swirling quality that added an incredible dimension to her first record. The beats are much more punctuated on this record and the music more bold. Yet throughout the lyrics she recounts the pain and trauma people like Chris have to endure before they accept and harness their own self worth. There is plenty of existential crisis to be had here and lots of exploring what this new life might actually mean. The term non-binary is thrown around pretty easily these days, in the sense that if you are feeling both masculine and femine moods then suddenly you are a whole new person. But, the real case is that there is a little bit of both sides in every single person, how they express them is just how they decide to interact in the word. "Damn (what must a woman do)" tries to explore this in depth, but it feels like an issue that we keep coming back to over and over even when their is little conclusion to be reached. There should be a space for every person to express themselves how they see fit, without limitation. The character Chris however just is not quite as exciting as what we got on the first album, and in being so wide open looses a bit of the slicker aspects of her music. She tends to linger a bit to long here giving some songs a more experimental than pop vibe. In the end Chris still manages to create something that is unique and vibrant even if it is a conversation that it feels we've had before.

7.2 out of 10