Christine and the Queens – Redcar les adorables étoiles
Christine and the Queens' newest album, by hypermasculine persona Redcar, feels more polished, produced and powerful than previous records
Where Chris was a dreamy flourish of lo-fi nostalgia, Redcar les adorables étoiles entrenches itself in a percussive 80s sublime. Redcar, the hypermasculine persona of Christine and the Queens, is born and brings the ethereal vocals that allowed Chris to transport listeners to narratives of queerness and heartbreak – but a heavier, deeper sound gives flâneur Redcar his mature lustre.
The album opens with the bon vivant’s luscious voice on Ma bien aimée bye bye, echoing around and around in cycles, bidding goodbye to his beloved – and introducing us to the bassy, glamorous compositions of his mind. By second track Tu sais ce qu'il me faut, his seductive performance is accompanied by a hard-hitting drumbeat that reveals the 80s splendour that powers the album.
Les étoiles opens with a misty, ritualistic synth, and the crooning producer pleads in Looking for love through its pounding, high-energy tempo. Exploring retro music as inspiration can sometimes anchor acts to a sound, but in addition to the overarching transformation into this suave stranger, this artist’s ability to reinvent the album’s genre – hip-hop, R’n’B, synthpop – with each track makes Christine and the Queens' debut as Redcar transformative and enticing.
Listen to: Tu sais ce qu'il me faut, Looking for love