Charli XCX has entered her dance pop sellout era. This may read as scathing or critical, but the act is intentional. In a combination of joyous reflection and deep irony, Charli XCX reclaims her pop sound and takes the pop music market head-on. The result is her fifth studio album and eighth long-form project, “Crash” (2022). The album is a sonic trip and is sure to be a club classic. “Crash” brings back the Charli XCX we know and love, returning to the iconic pop sound but with a new aura of reclamation and free-spirited nature. In short, Charli XCX is free. She can be a self-actualized sellout, so long as she wants to.
The career of Charli XCX is an odyssey of sound, all of which must be accounted for in recognizing how and why she may return to this ultrapop style. Her career first began with the embryonic synth pop of “True Romance” (2013), before progressing into the full radio pop sound of “Sucker” (2014), including widespread classics like “Boom Clap” and “Break the Rules.” Charli soon began to change her sound to focus more on house music and club bangers, releasing her cult classic EP “Vroom Vroom” (2016). This was also her first official collaboration with famed producer Sophie, who would become fundamental to her later new-age electronic sound. Next came “Number 1 Angel'' (2017), reaching further into her growing new wave sound. Finally, Charli XCX reached a truly flourished electropop sound, with hints of a burgeoning hyperpop influence, in her iconic mixtape “Pop 2” (2017) and album “Charli” (2019). These albums featured classics like “Unlock It (Lock It),” “1999” and “White Mercedes'' and featured artists ranging from Troye Sivan to Kim Petras to CupcakKe.Quarantine brought a full embrace of the hyperpop genre with “how i’m feeling now” (2020), an experimental album. Now, Charli XCX, after having ascended into the chaotic revelry of hyperpop, triumphantly reverts to that true pop sound of “Sucker.”
The album’s first single, “Good Ones,” exemplifies this return to form. The song opens with a repeating synth underline, soon introducing a banging pop beat that inspires revelry. Over this club beat, Charli drones about her failed relationships, repeating, “I always let thе good ones go.” Within this repeated lyrical structure, Charli riffs and wails yet maintains sonic cohesion. The result is a true-to-form pop hit, one with emotional depth but that is almost entirely danceable in nature.
This is also true of her fourth single and a personal favorite, “Baby.” The song is almost comically simple, with the chorus consisting of Charli repeating the line “I’ma make you my” 16 times over with a simple synth trope and bassline underneath. Still, in its simplicity and its repeated pop flourishes, the song is fun and even campy in nature. The song may not have any depth of lyricism or genius of composition, but that’s the point — it’s so overtly bubblegum pop that it is ironically, in and of itself, a statement piece. That statement, of course, is pure fun.
The album had four other pre-release singles, each of which took a different role in the album's rollout.“New Shapes,” the album’s second single, is a group project. The song features verses from both Caroline Polachek and Christine and the Queens, each bringing their own sound to the ultrapop synth beat underlying the track.“Beg for You,” the third single, also features a guest contribution from Rina Sawayama. The song interpolates “Cry for You” (2006) by September, exemplifying the influence of the iconic radio pop of the 2000s on the album. “Every Rule,” released a mere four days before the full album, brings that electropop style to a ballad. The result is a somewhat dysphoric release of emotions and features some of Charli’s strongest storytelling within the album itself.
Outside of the singles, the album has a couple standouts. “Lightning” is a burgeoning cult classic, with electronic harmonies and a strong dance beat to boot. The song is a euphoric listening experience, moving from the vocoder-steeped pre-chorus of “Heartbreak already hit me once/ They say that it won’t happen twice” to the satisfying beat drop of “You struck me down like lightning.” The song also includes the most technical editing and modulating, reminding the listener that Charli has not forgotten the hyperpop style of her previous few albums. One more hit is “Yuck,” a pop banger about being turned off by a guy that is too into her. Aside from the mere humor that comes with repeating the word “yuck” throughout the chorus, the song is joyous and simple and doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Ultimately, Charli XCX has effectively reclaimed her “sellout” bubblegum pop sound. She’s reverted in form, not forgetting her older sonic growth but rather taking it in stride. The product is 33 minutes of back-to-back hits, with songs that are just plain fun to listen to. For those invested in Charli XCX’s career, the album is filled with self-induced irony and camp and, thus, has the feeling of catharsis. For those who may not have listened to her music before “Crash,” the songs are perfect for the radio, the club or even your running playlist. When Charli mercilessly repeats “I’m about to crash” in her title track, she doesn’t lie; this album brings Charli’s crashing down into her old self, and the results ooze with coy pleasure.
