BRAT – Charli XCX

Year	Album	Artist	Stars	Score	Genre
2024	Brat	Charli XCX	★★★½	78	Pop	Dance Pop

Charli XCX has probably become my favorite pop artist of the past decade. The base quality of her tracks is so consistently good – they’re fun at the very least, and often time reach greatness.Her sixth album, Brat, is no different. 

Like her last record, Crash, this one is focused on club and dance tracks, but it doesn’t rely as heavily on nostalgia and samples to capture a mood. The production on Brat is clean and well done throughout and almost relentlessly hard-hitting.

Lyrically, Charli goes more introspective, personal, and a little more serious than usual, even though themes of partying and relationships are still prominent. She sings a lot about what feels like real relationships, with some specific imagery on songs like “Girl, so confusing” and “So I,” which is a tribute to her late producer Sophie. 

Honestly, I don’t think the lyrical emphasis adds anything to the record. Some phrasing feels choppy delivery-wise, where she’s a bit too offbeat for my liking to fit a specific word into a tight space. Some concepts come across as bland, like “Rewind,” and when the concepts could hit harder, some of the lyrics are very surface level, like on “I Think About It All the Time.” It’s a lot of saying exactly what she experienced, exactly where she was when something happened, and exactly how she felt about it. There isn’t much poetry to it, and she doesn’t leave much to the imagination.

However, this doesn’t hurt the album much either. I don’t typically go to Charli for her lyrical prowess or unaltered vocals. I come for the club anthems, synth chord progressions, bubblegum bass, synthetic vocal harmonies, and the emotion and energy that comes from it all. 

The aforementioned “I Think About It All the Time” sounds gorgeous and musically is a great closing sentiment for the record. The lyrical awkwardness on “Girl, So Confusing” might actually help the quirky track. “I Might Say Something Stupid” doesn’t do much for me but provides a musical breather from the other chaotic tracks, making it a welcome tonal shift to transition into the second leg of the record.

“Talk Talk” is the best track here, hands down. It has by-the-book club production, with spotlight violin synths building to full chords and a very catchy, repetitive chorus. The closing bridge really brings it home. “Everything is Romantic” is the most ambitious song from a production standpoint, starting with an orchestral sample that morphs into a booming, driving beat. It’s pretty cool and detailed.    

Almost every track on here is hit quality. Bouncy single “360” and its sped-up and chopped remix “365” are fun. “Club Classics” starts with a pounding Underworld-like drum beat and builds to bright, bendy club synths. “Von Dutch” is a short, revving package of energy. “Apple” isn’t as explosive but is a nice summer track that would fit nicely on any of her past records. “Mean Girls” has some roaring synths that juxtapose pop rock piano passages.

I think the album is fun overall, but while I like most of the production, it is pretty safe from a creative standpoint. If the “risky” part of the album was the lyrical depth, I’m not sure it was executed well enough to elevate the project beyond being just a good, made for radio pop album.