By Cassidy Byrnes

French artist, Christine and the Queens released his most recent project, PARANOIA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE, on June 9th. This is the artist’s fourth studio album, which has a twenty song track list amounting to an hour and thirty six minute runtime. This shakes out to almost every track being over four minutes in length and one track, “Track 10,” amounting to a few seconds over eleven minutes. There are also two overtures that split the operatic acts in the album.

I recently found myself falling in love with pop music again, starting with The Japanese House and then moving into more electronic, hyper-pop-esc acts like Charli XCX, which is where I found Chris. He has been featured on two of Charli’s tracks, “Gone” on Charli and “New Shapes” on Crash. I am not exaggerating when I say that they both changed my life and view of what pop music can be and honestly, should be. Chris’ vocals stood out to me more than anything. He has a light, airy voice that can easily grab an audience’s attention, I would even go as far to say that it’s siren-like. So, naturally, when I found that he would be releasing a new album, my anticipation and expectations were high. 

The record features Madonna and 070 Shake but I’m not completely convinced that all of the features actually add anything significant to the record. Madonna’s first feature is a spoken outro on “Angels crying in my bed,” which has a mellow, bass heavy production that lets Chris’ light vocals float, but I was taken out of it by Madonna’s god-like, echoing voice, however after sitting with the track and the entire concept of the album for a longer period of time, it actually grew on me. Featuring Madonna in this way really enhances the idea that she is like a guiding light to Chris. 070 Shake’s first feature on “True love,” I actually enjoyed a lot, in which Chris is exploring the experience of falling for someone after a loss. While 070 Shake’s verse is a pleasant addition, again, I am not sure that it was necessary. 

One standout on the record, “He’s been shining for ever, your son,” whose production is grand, like something that would adorn a fantasy adventure film. The vocals on the track are strong and demanding of attention, which is fitting, with the production choices. “We have to be friends,” another favorite of mine, is exactly the kind of innovation in pop that audiences expect from artists like Chris. It showcases a simple premise, creating boundaries with others and respecting them within yourself, but it is built up with a pop melody that is similar to the thematic feel of “He’s been shining for ever, your son,” but with some synths. It feels like it could be featured in an 80’s set television show, like Stranger Things. “To be honest,” feels like one of the lighter moments on the record but still with a darker production quality that sits below Chris’ angelic vocals. This introspective track is a great way to bring the album to a conclusion, with Chris acknowledging truths about himself. “I feel like an angel,” has Chris discussing the idea of “dying” when someone close to you has passed, with lyrics such as “Oh my love/And the woman in red/Said a part of me left with her/Told me to give her away.”

I can see what Chris and co-producer, Mike Dean, were going for conceptually with Chris citing one of the biggest influences on the record being the play “Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes,” by Tony Kushner. The play follows two couples, one straight and the other gay, and their experiences throughout the late 80s. One of the characters contracts AIDs, from there the audience follows him and the other characters into their delusions where they speak to ghosts and other supernatural beings. The exploration of loneliness, death, and the idea of an afterlife seen in the play is pushed throughout Chris’ album, making it pretty heavy for a pop record, but I will say that if you prefer music to take you on a journey, PARANOIA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE, is perfect. This is not a record that you can listen to only once and catch everything, it is filled with nuance and deep truths that Chris is coming to terms with within himself. It is heavy in material but I, honestly, felt lighter in the end.

Check out Christine and the Queens’ new album, PARANOIA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE, anywhere you listen to music.