As the band Justice, Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay have mastered the art of the cosmic gumbo: electronic music that traipses across the funk-disco-house continuum but also nods to the headbanging sounds of arenas past, whether progressive rock or heavy metal.
The Parisian duo rose to prominence amid the EDM boom of the aughts with chic songs that mixed gurgling bass lines, four-on-the-floor beats and anthemic vocals: Think the Michael Jackson referencing on “D.A.N.C.E.” or their scene-defining smash “We Are Your Friends.” In the years since, the duo have gone micro, exploring the recesses of their influences, and macro, making harder-better-faster-stronger live shows.
For “Hyperdrama,” their first album in eight years, the pair got back to the central tension of their music, between the warm, lived-in grooves of funk and disco and the machine-made synthesis of electronic music. And while they worked to tip the scales toward playfulness and spontaneity, the duo weren’t afraid to play up the contrast, recalling a quote by famed Argentine chef Francis Mallmann.
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“A journalist asked him, ‘What is the perfect wine pairing for this type of dish?’ And he said, ‘I’m bored with the idea of pairing. I like when things fight for attention, and I prefer a wine that doesn’t match with what we’re eating, but something that struggles a bit with the food,’” de Rosnay related over Zoom.
On “Hyperdrama,” released in April, Justice leaned into that type of sensory clash as a way to update a blend of disco and electronic music that is “old news” anyway, de Rosnay said. The result is an album full of block-rocking beats, including the robotic stomp of “One Night/All Night” and the saw-toothed angst of “Generator.” But there are also moments of disco dream weaving on such songs as “Neverender” and “Saturnine,” which feature the vocals of Tame Impala and Miguel, respectively.
In concert, Augé and de Rosnay balance a similar dichotomy as both conductors and players, managing the build and release of sonic-kinetic energy like DJs while augmenting recorded tracks with live bass lines, chords and solos.
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“We know exactly what we need to activate on what path just to give it this energy and dynamic tension in those parts,” de Rosnay said.
A Justice show is a clockwork contraption mixing the duo’s musicianship and the offstage operators who make the audiovisual disco possible. That doesn’t give much room for improvisation, but does allow them to try to deliver the best possible experience every night.
“We know how to improve every part,” de Rosnay said, “and now we’re really entering the phase where we’re trying to execute it as precisely as possible.”
July 28 at 8 p.m. at the Anthem, 901 Wharf St. SW. theanthemdc.com. Sold out.
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