Cross (2007)

The untitled debut studio album by French electronic music duo Justice, commonly known as Cross (also titled † or Justice), was first released on 11 June 2007 through Ed Banger Records and Because Music. Recorded during 2005 and 2006 in Paris, Cross was composed as an "opera-disco" album. It features many samples and "microsamples" throughout, with about 400 albums being used as sampled material. These include samples from Prince, Britney Spears and Madonna. The song "D.A.N.C.E." is a tribute to Michael Jackson. French musician Mehdi Pinson appears on "DVNO", and vocalist Uffie appears on "Tthhee Ppaarrttyy". The album was supported by the singles "Waters of Nazareth", "D.A.N.C.E.", "DVNO", "Phantom Pt. II", and "Tthhee Ppaarrttyy". A controversial music video was also released for "Stress".

Cross received critical acclaim and was a commercial success, reaching number 11 on the French albums chart and number one on the UK and US dance album charts. The album was nominated for Best Electronic/Dance Album and "D.A.N.C.E." was nominated for Best Dance Recording and Best Video at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards. Cross was later certified gold in the UK on 9 December 2011, for passing shipments of 100,000 copies. As of 2011, sales in the United States have exceeded 134,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. In 2012 it was awarded a diamond certification from the Independent Music Companies Association which indicated sales of at least 200,000 copies throughout Europe.

Background and composition

Cross was recorded in Paris during 2005 and 2006. The concept for the album was for it to be an "opera-disco" album. Xavier de Rosnay stated about the opera disco concept: We stuck to our original idea to make a 2007 opera-disco album, even if we are conscious that some tracks don't sound like proper disco at first listen. The best example is the song "Waters of Nazareth", which does not sound like disco when you listen to it for the first time. But if you forget that everything is distorted, the bass lines are just really basic disco patterns.

There are three credited samples present on the album: "You Make Me Wanna Wiggle" by The Brothers Johnson was sampled for "Newjack", "Tenebre (main theme)" by Simonetti-Morante-Pignatelli was sampled for "Phantom" and "Phantom Pt. II", and "Night on Disco Mountain" by David Shire was sampled for "Stress". And one uncredited sample: "Sunny" by Boney M which was sampled for "Phantom Pt. II", However, it also incorporates unrecognisable "microsamples" from hundreds of albums. De Rosnay stated:

We do sample really small bits of things that nobody can recognize. Say we use the "In Da Club" hand clap – not even 50 Cent would notice but if you listen to "Genesis", the first track [on Cross], there are samples of Slipknot, Queen and 50 Cent, but they are such short samples no one can recognize them. The ones from Slipknot, for example, are tiny pieces of vocals.

Release and promotion

Cross was first released on 11 June 2007 through Ed Banger Records and Because Music globally as well as Downtown and Vice Records in the United States. Two songs were released as singles before the album's release. "Waters of Nazareth" was the first single released by the group in 2005 and featured "Let There Be Light" as its B-side. "D.A.N.C.E." was the second single from the album released on 23 April 2007. The single also featured the song "Phantom", which was also released on the Ed Rec Vol. 2 compilation album prior to the release of this album. "DVNO" and "Phantom Pt. II" released after and before the album's release, respectively.

The song "D.A.N.C.E." is about and dedicated to Michael Jackson. A music video for the track "Stress", directed by Romain Gavras, was released on 1 May 2008 through the website of rapper Kanye West. It was subject to heavy criticism upon release and received a ban from French television due to its violent content.

The cover art of the album is an homage to the packaging of the T. Rex album, Electric Warrior, designed by the English group Hipgnosis in 1971. It was created by So Me, the creative director of the album's publisher, Ed Banger Records, who said they attempted to "emulate the style [of Electric Warrior] ... the idea of an outline that fades into dots."