Justice have been the midst of a resurgence this year, for presumably a number of reasons. It might have something to do with renewed interest in their classic 2007 debut album † (Cross) caused by the 15th anniversary edition released in late 2022. Or maybe it’s because of their first album in eight years, Hyperdrama, and its two memorable Tame Impala-featuring singles that both cracked the Top 10 of Billboard‘s US Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart. It might also have something to do with the new album being surrounded by the French duo’s first US shows since before COVID; I think a lot of us are still trying to get out the pent-up energy from spending 18 months at home, and dancing to Justice for 80 minutes is one hell of a way to do that. The US got its first taste of Justice’s comeback at Coachella, shortly before Hyperdrama came out, and that was just the first of many major festival appearances for the duo this year. They looked genuinely epic on the Coachella livestream, and we experienced their new live show in person for the first time this past weekend at Brooklyn Navy Yard, where Justice played on Thursday (7/25) and Friday (7/26) night.
The duo have always had crossover appeal with the indie rock crowd, but they clearly made sure that their long-awaited return to NYC felt like a rave, not a rock show. They threw it at a huge, cavernous warehouse that was perfect for this kind of thing, and at Friday’s show, they went on at the rave-friendly hour of 1 AM, following sets from their longtime Ed Banger label boss Busy P and fellow French touch veterans Braxe + Falcon. After Justice’s set, Fool’s Gold Records’ Brux kept everyone who stuck around dancing their way into the morning. (The only rave-unfriendly aspect was that the house lights came on and low-volume, non-dance music played during the half-hour breaks between sets. That was weird!)
Brooklyn Navy Yard has been around forever–Dutch settlers used the area as a harbor as far back as the 1600s and it was established the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 1801–and since being deactivated as a naval shipyard in 1966, the remaining warehouses have been used for various other purposes including the occasional event. As of this past spring, it officially became home to a music venue in Building 293, Brooklyn Storehouse, and that’s where the Justice shows were held. The space is the size of a football field and it felt like you walked a couple more football fields on a winding road from the entrance to the actual venue, and the space where concessions and the porta-toilets were felt bigger than most NYC venues on its own. The sides of the massive main performance room are lined with speakers that made it so the music was blasting no matter where you were standing. Justice’s light show lined the ceiling and walls, making the visuals just as epic for those in the back as those in the front as well.
Justice had no lack of classic songs in their set (“D.A.N.C.E.,” “We Are Your Friends,” “Genesis,” “Stress,” “Phantom,” “Tthhee Ppaarrttyy,” etc), and you could tell from the crowd reactions that people were loving the Hyperdrama material and mid-career standouts like “Safe and Sound” and “Audio, Video, Disco” just as much. But it wasn’t just the selection of songs that made it a great night. Justice are great songwriters/producers and they’re also great live DJs. They way they teased tracks, mashed up their own material, and provided build-ups with unpredictable releases had the crowd in a constant state of thrills.
The roller-coaster sonics were amplified by the duo’s light show which was as much a marvel of engineering as design. Making its debut at Coachella, the rig was a collaboration with their longtime lighting designer Vincent Lérisson and took 18 months to create and puts racks of lights (11 tons worth) on motorized beams in front of a giant LED wall. The lights, which frequently depicted a giant version of their iconic cross logo, pivoted in space, seemed to defy gravity, and came perilously close to Augé and Rosnay’s heads a few times. It also mimicked flames and fireworks, and offered as much tension-and-release as the music itself. In an age where eye-popping visuals are standard at even smaller club shows, this was a genuine wow.
We missed Busy P’s opening set on Friday but did catch Braxe + Falcon and they did a perfect job of setting the mood for Justice. Cousins Alan Braxe and DJ Falcon both separately helped pioneer the French touch sound in the ’90s and both were closely affiliated with Daft Punk’s Thomas Bangalter–they were both signed to his label Roulé, Falcon worked with him on the Together songs “Together” and “So Much Love to Give,” and Braxe worked with him on the Stardust hit “Music Sounds Better With You”–and the pair teamed up for the Step By Step EP on Domino imprint Smugglers Way in 2022, Panda Bear collaboration included. In their own way, they’re in the midst of their own resurgence, and like Justice, their set was a great mix of the classic and the new.
Check out more pictures by Bryan Kwon, a fan-shot set of the full Justice set, Justice’s Night 1 setlist, and a fan-shot set of Braxe + Falcon’s full set from the DC show below. All remaining Justice dates here. Upcoming shows at Brooklyn Storehouse here.
SETLIST: Justice @ Brooklyn Storefront 7/25/2024 (via)
Intro
Genesis / Phantom / Phantom Pt. II (Soulwax Remix)
Generator / Love S.O.S.
Mannequin Love / We Are Your Friends
Tthhee Ppaarrttyy
One Night/All Night / D.A.N.C.E.
Safe and Sound
Neverender / Canon
Incognito
Stress
Afterimage (Justice Remix)
Chorus
Audio, Video, Disco
Encore:
D.A.N.C.E. (Live Version) / Safe and Sound / Neverender
The End