Charli XCX : "Music, Fashion, Film"

She is wise not to take her Brat Girl Summer head-on. She eluded it on the "Wuthering Heights" soundtrack. Now she knows it's time to step up and see where it goes. Of course there have to be guitars on a song called " Rock Music". It feels like she is pivoting from hyper-pop and has an eye on what Oliva Rodrigo is doing. She knows what she is doing, and the stakes could not be higher for her. The first two songs have not been a Brat-sized banger, but are solid songs, more of a bop, as the kids would say. Then things get weird.

Weird in the best way for "Card Declined," that comes across like some oddball indie rock from the late 90s. This album is really well produced, but it is not big and in your face like her last two. There is more of an indie rock strum to "Camera' that works off a jangle that is remixed. These are good songs; they are just not going to be what you expect or knew you wanted from her. It feels like a change she had to make to not recycle herself creatively. '2007" is another weird one that grows on me, with its danced-out jangle.

"I'm Afraid" and "Yeah" feel like companion pieces, working off the energy in a subtle way that underlines the genius of this album. "Wink Wink" feels like a more organic 90s inspired version of what you might expect from her. "Persona" has an overdriven bass line and woozy shoegaze-like guitars. It's got more pop hooks than the bulk of the record. "Magic Metal Montana" is experimental but works in the context presented well. It is fitting that David Croenberg's voice is used on the last song, as this sums up what kind of pop album this is. If it is a pop album, you could just as easily call this one an indie rock album. I hope Taylor Swift doesn't try to release an album this year, as it's hard to compete with this. 

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