On ‘Charli’, the singer imagines a world where the future still exists.
has always felt like a familiar artist. She sings with a nasal bravado reminiscent of Gwen Stefani and Santigold; her trap-lite delivery owes as much to Future as it does to Uffie. Thematically, she was obsessed with love, lust, loss, and life filtered with a childlike urgency. Her repertoire has moments of Britney Spears’s early work.
She emerged in 2012 as the First Lady of YOLO, co-penning Icona Pop’s “I Don’t Care”, before leaning into her do-what-I-want tenacity in the chorus of Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy” and on “Boom Clap”, her first solo appearance on the Top 10. On her third studio album, however, she is at her most ambitious and daring. Her sights are set on a far and distant horizon:At 27, Charli XCX is part of a generation whose fate is uncertain.
Founded by Goldsmiths grad A.G. Cook, PC Music -- more of a movement than a record label -- was home to a rotating cast of airbrushed rebels, prima donna pop princesses and chaotic-neutral producers. There was something exciting about their hammed-up synths and pitched-up vocals in a year where “Happy” by Pharrell ruled the charts. It was a space for people who just wanted to be overwhelmed–who wanted to feel more, not better., A.G.
As a songwriter, Charli XCX has always been pop music’s outlier. She picks apart familiar themes of sentimentality with swagger. It’s why we celebrated “Boys” -- the song suspended us in a daydream, rendering “boys” into an idea as harmless and simple as “joy” or “pleasure”. At other points, it’s what left us feeling cold. When Charli linked up with PC Music-affiliate Sophie and Hannah Diamond for herEP in 2016, it was received to dry critiques.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Album Review: Charli XCX’s ‘Charli’A backstory is perhaps not the most exciting way to start a review, but the drama behind “Charli” goes a long way toward explaining why, nearly five years after her last official album, Charli XCX’…
Read more »
Watch Charli XCX Discuss Artistic Growth for ‘Live From the Artists Den’Part of the public television series’ Season 13, XCX’s episode was filmed during World Pride in New York City this past June
Read more »
Listen to a Sampler Of Betraying the Martyrs' New Album 'Rapture': ExclusiveAfter carefully plotting the direction of its last two albums, France’s Betraying the Martyrs “really didn’t set out to do anything” on new set 'Rapture,' according to frontman Aaron Matts. The results can be heard in an exclusive teaser.
Read more »
Hear Robbie Robertson Rebuke Doubters With Glen Hansard on ‘Dead End Kid’Robbie Robertson recalls his hardscrabble youth on the new song “Dead End Kid,” featuring Irish singer Glen Hansard
Read more »
Colin Self Explains The Alternative Queer Kinship Heard On 'Siblings'Jenny Hval on love, honesty, and the imposition of heteronormativity:
Read more »