REVIEW: Christine and the Queens- 'Chris'

By Erin Jennings | Sep 19 2018

There’s no other musician quite like Christine and the Queens. Technically a solo music group, Christine and the Queens attracted considerable mainstream attention back in 2015 with her fantastic experimental synth-pop single ‘Tilted’. This breakthrough was ultimately the ember that sparked the path to international fame. Back on the radar with a new album set for release on 21st September, we’re met with Chris, a macho, bolder and fiery persona. Chris may resemble an alter-ego, but the Christine and the Queens singer, Héloïse Letissier, attests that Chris is how she feels now, an evolved extension of herself. It is an unapologetic expression of defiance, a refusal to being confined to societal norms. The singles released during the summer ‘Girlfriend/Damn, dis-moi’ and ‘Doesn’t Matter’ have already made waves online as her latest impressively choreographed music videos. Chris retains the playfulness of Christine and the Queen’s original sound and her bilingual French flair. Fans should expect more high-tempo and funkier beats, punchy basslines and heavy 80s electro-pop influences throughout the album, and, most noticeably, snappy lyrics with a daring message to get across like in ‘Damn (What Must a Woman Do)’. There’s a lot more in this album than purely a pop reinvention. Chris is an ode to self-expression, mirroring the ever-evolving nature of the human psyche with a modern perspective.In a way, the arrival of Chris could have been predicted all along, as found in the lyrics of the song ‘iT’ from her debut album ‘Chaleur Humaine’ it reveals “she wants to be born again”.