Track Listing

1. Genesis
2. Let There Be Light
3. D.A.N.C.E.
4. Newjack
5. Phantom
6. Phantom Pt II
7. Valentine
8. The Party
9. Dvno
10. Stress
11. Waters of Nazareth
12. One Minute to Midnight

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8609 in Music
• Released on: 2007-07-10
• Number of discs: 1

Album Description
Justice's monster beats, massive hooks, thunderous drums, and near-religious determination to demolish dance floors cast them in a light no contemporary can catch. The group's US debut single, "Waters Of Nazareth" arrived in 2006 and solidified their sound: huge slabs of beats, brutal strings, and cathartic release. That record sets the stage for this, their debut full-length, boasting the already ubiquitous disco pop anthem "D.A.N.C.E.", which features the best English children's choir since "Another Brick In The Wall Pt. 2".

Amazon.com
Justice is the moniker of the Paris-based production duo Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay. Their approach to crazy-quilt dance-pop hybridism is infectious, if a tad off-putting here and there. The duo rose to fame due to an MP3 single and super smart video for the excellent, kiddy-chorused house-pop number "D.A.N.C.E." in 2007, and they soon thereafter signed to the suitably named label Banger. They manage to make really silly and fun music in a way that frequently comes off in a pretentious manner. It's ridiculous to name your album after a symbol, especially if it's †. This is not meant derogatorily. Really. Justice does appear to be that rare breed of dance artist equally capable of stimulating the body and the mind, though neither Richard James nor the Basement Jaxx need fear this act. After just one listen to "Waters of Nazareth," it's very difficult to avoid wondering "how the hell did they mix and match noise and pop so beautifully" while also dancing furiously. --Mike McGonigal

Amazon.com
Rarely does a European DJ/dance album hit the U.S. with as full a head of steam as this one, but after the twin jabs of the singles "Never Be Alone" and "Waters of Nazareth," French duo Justice was poised and ready to follow with Cross. As a strong contender for the dance album of 2007, this 12-track debut shows Xavier de Rosnay and Gaspard Augé flexing more musical elasticity than the "dance" or "house" tags can possibly convey on their own, never mind the "French Touch" movement with which the pair is loosely and rather reductively associated. Having remixed tracks from artists as dissimilar as Britney Spears and Franz Ferdinand, the pair seems to have been building its chops for exactly this kind of resolutely defiant masterwork. From the relentless, gritty electro-bounce of opener "Genesis" and the stuttering, four-on-the-floor propulsion of "Let There Be Light," to the children's chorus of "D.A.N.C.E." and the rock-indebted "DVNO," Cross starts with a palette of house and disco beats and then throws the kitchen sink at it. The resulting amalgam boasts a tectonic range of reference without ever sacrificing de Rosnay and Augé's slavish devotion to the fine art of the party album. --Jason Kirk

Customer Reviews

It's all about fun
Every now and then somebody releases an album that isn't incredibly serious or groundbreaking, but is, above all, just plain fun. "Cross" definitely falls into that category. It's basically a party on a disc.

It's refreshingly light in approach. Justice obviously doesn't take themselves too seriously as one can tell by tracks like "D.A.N.C.E." - but that doesn't mean they lack substance. Although one can never be sure, it doesn't seem like the work of a one-hit wonder. For one thing, there are a number of strong tracks on the album and, most importantly, they have an original take on the electro-glam sound that is so popular these days.

A lot of reviews compare this to Daft Punk, but I think those comparisons have more to do with the fact that these groups are both French duos working in the same general BPM area. Maybe there are more similarities than that, but Justice isn't not nearly as repetitive as Daft Punk tends to be and their songs are more gritty and dirty. Above all, I have to resist this temptation to pre-judge them based on my feelings about Daft Punk. I hope listeners will hear them as their own group - not mere copycats. Actually, I think they're more like Basement Jaxx than anything else - but that's beside the point.

I've particularly enjoyed the way they can blend harsh noise and dissonance with such catchy melodies and pop hooks. "Let There Be Light" is brutal, but compelling. By all calculation, it should be grating on your ears, but instead you just want to dance. While the rhythm is tight, there's this wonderful feeling of looseness as if the instrumental parts weren't entirely quantized on a grid. The lack of rigidity seems to be one of the key factors in the very danceable nature of this disc.

As a side note, I couldn't finish this review without a nod to my favorite Italian prog rock band, Goblin whose soundtrack to Dario Argento's "Tenebre" makes an appearance on "Phantom." Well, more than an appearance - it's basically the whole song. I realize that Goblin isn't as popular as they once were, but I hope some Justice fans will check out their music because they were using synthesizers waaay back in the days of Kraftwerk.

Overall, this is an inspired debut from a promising new band. Although it may not entirely live up to some of the raves here, it's strong and good for repeat listenings. If you're a fan of electro or anything like Basement Jaxx, I would highly recommend this CD. It's fun and easily accessible right from the start, but it has enough depth to make you keep listening again and again.

Rockin' album
This album is a lot of fun. I'm a guy with eclectic tastes ranging from alternative country to ambient breaks and I dig this album because 1. it defies categorization. 2. it's orginal. Sure, maybe the sound has been "done before", but it still sounds fresh to my ears. It's the kind of album you can listen to a long time and find a new layer to entertain you. 3. The music manages to combine a sense of humor and fun with a hard/dark edge which I love and few acts do well these days. Think Daft Punk meets Chromeo meets Hexstatic. The first track is awesome, like 2 DJs doing Darth Vader's March vs. a Joy Division cover while on laughing gas. It could be the soundtrack of a classic Kung Fu movie meets MJ's Thriller video remake. The rest of the album is great too, only a couple tracks that I haven't really liked so far (D.A.N.C.E. among them, but it grew on me.) If you're a musical purist, and complain about how it's not really this or that genre/style, or too derivative of Daft Punk or anything else, don't get it. If you like smiling and listening and grooving at the same time, buy it. You won't regret it.

A solid and enjoyable electronic album
I heard this CD while browsing through an indie CD store. The distinctive distortion had me asking the clerk if it was the new Daft Punk CD. In response he handed me "Cross" by Justice. Seeing the giant cross on front of the CD, and track titles like "Genesis" and "Waters of Nazareth" made me think it was some sort of Christian Rock, so I put it back on the rack (nothing against Christians, it's just that Christian Rock isn't my thing). Over the next 20 minutes while hunting through the bins, I was able to give Justice a good listen. It sounded so good that ended up grabbing the CD on the way to the counter.

This is one of the best electro-dance CD's that I've heard in a long time. Some other reviews written here disagree, but this does remind me of some of my favorite mid-to-late 90's albums like "Exit Planet Dust", "Dead Cities", and "Homework". Justice's "Cross" album is not on the same level as those masterpieces; but in the current desert of good electronic music in the late 00's, it is certainly is a breath of fresh air.

The music flows from track to track in a very smooth manner. There are great beats and they use noise and distortion in a blissful way. Some of the songs slow down a little too much for a good dance flow, but those songs make it a great CD to have on while relaxing at home or for listening to in the car.

There is one drawback. I hate the track "Tthhee Ppaarrttyy". It is the latest rip-off of "Supersonic" by J. J. Fad ("Fergalicious", "Wind It Up", etc.). Whether or not his track is tongue-in-cheek, I can't tell. Still, that's what my FF button is for.

That aside, this is a great album with some clever samples. I think my favorite is their sample off the odd Booji Boy intro "We're All Devo" by DEVO on the track "Stress". It's a very strange (and obscure) sample to use, but they really make it work. It was a nice moment that added a cherry to the top of this very enjoyable album - especially as a DEVO fan. Pick this up if you want to hear one of the best and most listenable dance albums to come out in a long time.