Paranoïa, Angels, True Love
by Christine and the Queens
Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
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  1. The Guardian
    Jun 9, 2023
    100
    Hypnotically melodic, clever, stylish, serious, fun, addictively unexpected and euphorically danceable, it’s the kind of pop they don’t make any more.
  2. DIY Magazine
    Jun 8, 2023
    100
    A far way away from debut ‘Chaleur humaine’, yet just as unafraid, ’PARANOÏA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE’ is like no other exploration of grief - a new magnum opus.
  3. The Line of Best Fit
    Jun 8, 2023
    90
    PARANOÏA isn’t without flaw; some tracks work more as spoken poems than as songs due to their slack, unmoving instrumentation. But at almost 100 minutes, Chris’ most astounding work yet expands his craftsmanship to territories surprisingly well-suited for him.
  5. Beats Per Minute
    Jun 12, 2023
    81
    Double and triple albums naturally sprawl, yet there’s an unexpected compactness to PARANOÏA.
  6. Clash Music
    Jun 15, 2023
    80
    A record composed of experimental dissonance and slick pop bravery, ‘PARANOÏA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE’ ranks as the boldest aspect of his career to date. A project that searches for honesty, it places Christine and the Queens in a quite singular lane of alt-pop abstraction.
  7. Rolling Stone
    Jun 9, 2023
    80
    The album is a full statement and requires a time commitment to appreciate it. The people who are willing to give themselves (and their precious time) over to Chris’ beatification are the only ones who will begin to understand its divine mysteries. And then they’ll hit play on it again.
  8. The Skinny
    Jun 8, 2023
    80
    There is a lot going on in PARANOÏA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE and yet it remains remarkably cohesive. It skilfully borrows and elevates.
  9. AllMusic
    Jun 9, 2023
    70
    Though Chris fully commits to Paranoïa, Angels, True Love's sweeping scope, as a whole it doesn't feel as rewarding as the diamond-like clarity and brilliance of Chris or La Vita Nuova. Even if it's missing some of the electrifying immediacy of those works, there's a lot of challenging and emotionally powerful music here for fans to appreciate.
  10. Slant Magazine
    Jun 8, 2023
    70
    What follows is a collection of wiry, introspective songs that break from pop conventions while asserting the life-affirming power of love.
  11. Pitchfork
    Jun 14, 2023
    68
    At its very best, Paranoïa, Angels, True Love captures this feverish lightning-in-a-bottle energy. But where Kushner’s many moving parts lock into place, spurring each other on toward a harrowing, rapturous climax, the songs of Chris’s album never quite cohere.
  12. musicOMH.com
    Jul 7, 2023
    60
    It’s possibly an album that’s easier to admire than to enjoy, but you can’t fault his ambition.
  13. New Musical Express (NME)
    Jun 12, 2023
    60
    Presented as a 96-minute opera, his fourth studio album is a haughty gesture weighed down by its own folly, scanning instead as pathos.
  14. The Telegraph (UK)
    Jun 9, 2023
    60
    There are many absolutely gorgeous moments, including a reconfiguring of Pachelbel’s Canon in D Major as a ballad of gender fluid love, melancholy dance song Tears Are Soft, the lovely piano ballad Flowery Days and delicate electropop True Love (featuring 070 Shake). But the overwhelming mood is oppressive as it proceeds at a relentlessly mid tempo pace like a kind of stately march towards ecstatic sexual release.
  15. The Independent (UK)
    Jun 8, 2023
    60
    Paranoia, Angels, True Love is too long and rambling to bring Christine and the Queens any new fans, or much action on the singles chart. Its self-indulgence may even tire some existing fans. But if you give it time to grow its wings, it can really lift you up.

Awards & Rankings

85
#85 Most Discussed Album of 2023

User Reviews

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User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 13 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
  1. Lajaleaa
    Jul 9, 2023
    6
    It is a very frustrating project for what Christine's promises since their first album. And with Madonna all along. Jees.
    I'm very confused.    It is a very frustrating project for what Christine's promises since their first album. And with Madonna all along. Jees.
    I'm very confused. Almost all the songs are rendered incomplete, and yet, they last too long getting somewhere that, overall, this ended up being one of the most empty, unfocused, adrift and in several ways, pointless experience. There are peaces of ambientation here that would've been interesting to see evolve and take form, and I can admire the talent of the composition to put peaces of an ambient or a concept in each song of something that felt at least interesting. Instead, we have a great wall, blurring out everything that would've truly meant something for this album. Christine just needed a clearer direction, but we have a long long, very long way to a nowhere loop, really.    … Full Review »
  2. RipView
    Jun 15, 2023
    10
    His best album. A work of art so gloriously and vulnerably devoted to grief and (I imagine) feeling under the weight of the world. I feelHis best album. A work of art so gloriously and vulnerably devoted to grief and (I imagine) feeling under the weight of the world. I feel blessed that Chris dug so deep and produced work so raw, complex and emotional in Redcar.

    I don't think any of the songs, individually, are in my top 5 Chris songs (maybe a day in the water?) but as an album, this feels so explorative, unexpected, defining and complete - you're rewarded with every listen and never listen to it the same way twice.

    How the hell does anyone define grief? It's such an unfathomable, overwhelming emotion that cannot be described and everyone feels it and processes it differently. For Chris to unpack his grief in this album and subject it to the world, I think is incredibly courageous, considering the enormous mental struggle humans have with TALKING ABOUT IT. Pitchfork said this album felt like a 'first draft'... *sighs*. Personally, I find the rough edges in the production, muffles, missed notes, groans and incompleteness even more bold and moving. They only add to the notion of trying to explain the unexplainable. Chaleur Humaine and Chris showed us Chris is perfectly capable of producing polished pop. The imperfection here evokes intrigue and nuance and shows Chris' willingness to take risks for his art.

    Quick note on the production - wow. The layers and textures here are incredibly interesting and experimental - I can hand-on-heart say I've never heard a sound-scape like this in an album. Without getting too meta, I feel like Chris and Mike Dean (ft. A.G Cook) have created a landscape of grey-shades, soft and jagged textures, bright light and shadows and every song explores a different area within. It's expanse and depth is limitless and completely subjective, scoring this on a scale of 1-10 feels criminally reductive.

    Pure genius. Thank you, Chris.    … Full Review »
  3. AndresDmusic
    Jun 13, 2023
    8
    The first part of this record is brilliant, in its second and third part the album becomes heavy and a bit repetitive to listen to but itThe first part of this record is brilliant, in its second and third part the album becomes heavy and a bit repetitive to listen to but it still has gems that make your interest come back.… Full Review »
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