Because Music France Vinyl & CDs

Review: One of the joys of Christine and the Queens' impossible-to-pigeonhole output has always been guessing what the gender-fluid artist will conjure up next. Even the Frenchman's most obsessive fans, though, will have predicted Paranoia, Angels, True Love, a triple-CD-length affair loosely based on Tony Kushner's legendary work Angels in America, a two-part experimental play about gay men in New York experiencing hallucinatory discussions with angels amidst the AIDS epidemic. It's not a wholly unsurprising turn, but still an unlikely project - and unlikely projects have always been the artist's bread and butter. Musically, it's a strong set that expands on the artist's now familiar blends of pop, r&b and electronica, and also contains some eye-catching collaborations and guest appearances - not least from the Queen of Pop herself, Madonna.

Review: It's easy to forget that Justice were once one of dance music's most hyped acts, gracing magazine covers and gate-crashing the pop charts with a succession of crunchy, electro-house bombs. Times may have moved on, but the Parisian duo remain big news. Woman is their first studio album for five long years, and smartly moves between quirky, radio-friendly pop and thrusting club workouts. In the latter category you'll find the spiraling, low-slung, Italo-disco-with-balls of "Alakazam", the classic Ed Banger growl of "Chorus", and the vintage Daft Punk madness of "Heavy Metal". While these are impressive, it's actually the more downtempo songs - "Love S.O.S" and the dreamy "Close Call" included - that arguably stand out.

Review: If there was ever a duo with the bombast and flair to pull off the 18-minute electro-rock-opera, it's surely Justice. Gaspard Auge and Xavier de Rosnay created Planisphere in the wake of conquering the world with their debut album Cross, initially for use on the catwalk but subsequently shared on their MySpace. Of course such releases now attain a kind of cult mythos, and Planisphere is no exception. In the Ed Banger era of dirty French touch, this is a fans dream come true - the gnarly monster that keeps on giving, now pressed up on a single side of vinyl for continuous listening, with a classy etching on the reverse.