Review of the Week: Charli XCX - BRAT

 

Calliope Music Review of the Week

Charli XCX - BRAT

A Party for the Ages

 

   Another trip to the neon stages of Electropop and EDM, Charli XCX finds a balance between brash electronics and traditional Pop songwriting. The theme here is FUN, but Charli has a knack for being quite reflective and emotional in her writing. The instrumentals carry the energy put forth from Charli's vocal dynamism, highly technical, yet rather simple in their display.

Whether its through hyped up bass bumps, wiry synth leads, exotic combinations of claps and kicks, or the absolutely legendary synth jabs heard on 'Sympathy is a Knife,' the production never ceases in delivering an intensely vibrant and bubbly sound. The record subscribes to an "in-your-face" attitude, expertly delivering hard-hitting Pop tunes one after another. Vocals alike, Charli embraces an industrial level of autotune to whip in rapped verses and electric refrains that elevate the music to cosmic proportions. The album takes time to reflect on a few more subdued tracks as well, as Charli contemplates social expectations, the loss of a friend, and the internal-pressures of becoming a mother.

While not every track finds its ideal position between energy and delivery, the album as a whole is consistent in its clubbable atmosphere. Assertive and free, yet tightly composed, BRAT is a bold statement on Pop music, effortlessly dancing in the damp streets and glowing raves it was born from.

Best Tracks: 360 -- Sympathy is a Knife -- Von Dutch -- Everything Is Romantic -- B2B -- 365

8.5/10

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