| Civilization | |
| Cover: | Justicecivilization10032011.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Justice |
| Album: | Audio, Video, Disco |
| B-Side: | Demo |
| Recorded: | 2010–11 in Paris, France |
| Producer: | Justice |
| Prev Title: | TThhEe PPaARRtTYY |
| Prev Year: | 2009 |
| Next Title: | Audio, Video, Disco |
| Next Year: | 2011 |
"Civilization" is a single by the French band Justice and the first from their second studio album Audio, Video, Disco.[1] The single, Justice's first via Elektra Records, was initially set to be released on iTunes on 4 April 2011, before becoming available on other digital retailers on April 11.[2] The track was released early through iTunes France on 28 March and globally through iTunes on 29 March 2011.[3]
The track features vocals from British singer Ali Love.[4] The song was previewed in a two-minute advertisement for Adidas, which was directed by Romain Gavras.[5] Gavras has worked with Justice previously, directing the music video for their song "Stress" in 2008, and filming a documentary 'A Cross In The Universe' about Justice's American tour in 2008.[6] The single was re-released on 6 June with remixes from Mr. Oizo and The Fucking Champs.
Eric Magnuson of Rolling Stone gave the single a rating of three-and-a-half stars out of five, complimenting its "high-end baguette beat-down".[7] He compared the song to a mix of Daft Punk's "Aerodynamic" and The Who's "Baba O'Riley". Ben Gilbert of Yahoo! Music UK & Ireland gave a positive review, calling the song "fried and fiercesome ".[8]
Civilization is in the common time of 4/4. It is played at a tempo of 90 BPM, with a change to 112 BPM on the 17th measure. It is in the key of A minor.
The music video was created by French director Edouard Salier[9] and features a very symbolic portrayal of iconic statues and structures falling after the world upturns—presumably—killing all the buffalo. The clip was produced using a labor-intensive combination of CGI and 3D animation. It was nominated for the 2011 MTV Europe Music Award for Best Video.[10]