The crown jewel of French electro—Justice‘s seminal debut LP, Cross—is by all accounts a dance music masterpiece. Even now, 13 years after its release, the album still holds firm ground as one of the greatest electronic records to date, cementing Xavier de Rosnay and Gaspard Augé’s status as living dance music deities. Originally released on June 11, 2007 via Ed Banger Records, followed by a wider rollout on June 18, the album introduced Justice’s inimitable brand of heady, distorted electro-rock with a flair of operatic drama, eventually netting them a Grammy nomination for Best Electronic/Dance Album in 2008.
Cross was the beginning of a decorated career for the two French electro giants, which, more than a decade later has come to include another Grammy win in 2019, three live albums, two films, and some of the most ambitious live performances electronic music has seen to date. Moreover, the album successfully laid the groundwork for the new rockstar DJ archetype that would fuel the global EDM boom that would follow a few years later. So now’s as good a time as any to revisit where it all began—between two massive sound walls, flanking a glowing cross, as the introductory horns of “Genesis” blare through the speakers. Listen below.
