Timing is everything. Justice understood this fact upon achieving the massive success of their debut album †. It was too easy to cash in and release a filler sequel in 2008. But as more time elapsed, fans and detractors alike wondered if they would ever return. After all, no act has energized or polarized the electronic music scene with the fanfare of Justice since Daft Punk were still making albums rather than film scores. The last known signs of life for their follow-up came on June 19th, 2010, in the form of an interview with Ed Banger head honcho Busy P from Australian site In The Mix, where Pedro had this to say regarding the new record:
This quote certainly whetted the appetite of fans, who could take solace in knowing only a proper sequel would be released if such a large break was needed to achieve their desired vision. Another smart move from Justice and Ed Banger is their reluctance to appear in social media as so many other bands do incessantly with the advent of Twitter as the chief source of musical information and interaction. By avoiding the temptation to stay in the public eye at all times, they have avoided becoming a band reduced to "the people who play that one song from that car commercial." (still a great way to get promoted, but a discussion for another day)“They actually started to work on it not that long ago,” Busy P revealed. “They started on the first parts of it about two months ago, so we’re going to give them some more time to keep working on it.”While Pedro wouldn’t go into specifics about how far Justice had progressed with album number two, he stressed that he wasn’t putting any pressure on the duo to power through the recording process.“I keep telling them that I don’t want them to rush things, because at Ed Banger we are free, we can do it our own way,” he explained. “From me being the boss of the label they have all the time that they need.”“If they need another year to make a record then I would give it to them,” Pedro added, likely sending chills down the electro community’s collective spine. “People always say ‘we’re waiting for the new Justice’, but if you look at some artists like Beastie Boys or Daft Punk, they sometimes take four years between albums, so we’re still on time with Justice. I’m confident in their skills and if the album is out in 2011 then I will be happy.”
By keeping this mystique and anonymity in an age where everyone instantly knows everything, Justice have the opportunity to keep their artistic integrity and to release an album that will only bolster their career rather than declare it officially fizzled. The latest signs of life from Justice come from Steve Aoki's Twitter feed, where he hinted at new Justice music being spun at Pier 10 in Puerto Rico as recently as last night (January 5th).
The reason this all matters? † (Cross as it had to be renamed by the record company) was one of the most important albums of the recently concluded decade. The album is a microcosm of everything exciting happening in modern music. Consider the following elements:
- Sampling - The kids love mash-ups. Girl Talk gave away his album for free and yet was able to quit a biomedical engineering job to do a national tour. His craft? Samples. † is full of them, and when released it was rumored that there were as many as 300 uncleared samples present in the record. This kind of underground songwriting is at the forefront of music and the use of nostalgia as an expressive weapon only continues to enhance the life of young bands (James Blake, Twin Shadow, Tennis, etc.)
- Branding - In 2k11, branding is more important than ever. The internet is the last frontier of commerce and industry, and Justice is a product of this movement. Gaspard and Xavier both worked as graphic designers before they became rock stars with turntables. Consider also the album artwork, with it's bold logo both expressing a theme of the album (a disco-opera) and simply just being an amazing, iconic image. Think the xx cover. Also, Ed Banger Records maintain their chic through their Cool Cats blog family. How many other labels have cult followings for their fashion lines? Justice are the ones who made all of the hype possible in the first place.
- Fusion of genres - What exactly do you call this music? Why do we label music in the first place? Hybridization has become standard fare for bands yearning to get noticed in the Twitter era. † fits the mold perfectly, sampling over 400 albums, including hip-hop and metal samples, to create a concept album that is both stunning artistically yet works more effectively for the dance floor. Such a bold venture has not been accomplished in electronica to such widespread acclaim since Daft Punk. The effects? Everyone remembers how fun D.A.N.C.E. parties are. And yes, now you always spell it out.
