Preview: Christine and The Queens
Showbox SoDo, Seattle, WA
10.23.18
Unabashedly forward, uniquely un-box-able. Chris. Christine. Héloïse. The lines are as blurry as they can get, and it’s all very purposeful. As bilingual French pop sensation, Christine and The Queens, Héloïse Letissier stormed the walls of the musical guard with 2014’s Chaleur Humaine, re-released as a self-titled English version a year later. But with this year’s Chris, Letissier explores a revised self as Chris, slashing traditional gender boundaries with a sharp pop sword.
So what does this chapter hold for Chris? It seems transformation. Vulnerability. Strength. Contradiction.
While Letissier’s debut garnered critical acclaim for its undeniably intoxicating rhythms and one-of-a-kind choreography, Chris takes things up a notch. Firmly grounded in pop styling—not to mention nods to iconic pop artists like Madonna, Michael Jackson, et al—and fashion play, Chris wrangles insistent hooks and brutally seductive lyrics into earworms that make you want to move right along with Letissier’s stellar dance troupe.
There is chamber pop and 80s nods and a mish-mash of languages that don’t really matter. For when you feel Chris, you feel Chris, despite the boundaries, despite the barriers. Chris tells a human story, exposing sadness to horniness and everything in between, exploring the musical incarnation of self-liberation. And the live show wraps you up in aggression and euphoria, with just the right amount of empowered funk.
Be sure to catch Christine and The Queens at Showbox SoDo on October 23. Don’t miss out, get your tickets here.
Preview by Stephanie Dore
