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I just need a place to spill my thoughts.
About the Best Pop Album of the Year(so far)
I've listened to the album a couple more times, and it just keeps getting better.
Charli XCX has attempted several times to fully return to her pop persona: first with the ambitious "Charli", then the wayward "Crash". In the former, she tried to retain her hyperpop identity while sounding commercially appealing (which went well), and in the latter, she gambled on simplicity and nostalgia for pop music from different eras (which did not go as well). "BRAT" is interesting because it lacks both futuristic hyperpop and gloss, but it does have that Charli XCX that some have probably missed for about 10 years.
Don’t get me wrong, the "vroom-vroom-n1a-pop 2-charli-hifn" streak I still consider the most powerful in modern pop music—but there's a segment of the audience that knows Charli only from "Boom Clap" and "I Love It". I had never thought about it, but it's "SUCKER" that actually represents Charli—because if that iconic encounter with PC Music and SOPHIE had never happened, Charlotte's music would have sounded quite different. I suppose somewhat like "BRAT".
The heavy rolls of synths in "Sympathy is a Knife", the electroclash buzz in "Girl, so Confusing", the cosmic French house in "B2B", and the acid drop in "365" deliberately take the listener back about ten years, to when the grass was greener, and pop stars released COOL music. The album even has a very successful attempt to replicate the formula of "I Love It"—that track is "Mean Girls", one of the most powerful from the release. Charli asserts that "BRAT" is her favorite album, and this is one case where I'm ready to take the artist at her word. It’s entirely possible that she could have released such an album back in the mid-2010s—because here we have in full glory the crazy and somewhat ridiculous lady, retaining all the audacity and indifference that initially made people love her.
Amid all the genre diversity and fun, there's a thoughtful production by George Daniel, A.G. Cook, Gesaffelstein, and Hudson Mohawke—the album rocks and is rich in emotions, only occasionally interrupted by depressive revelations. Charli reminisces about her late friend SOPHIE and regrets what's lost, and toward the end of the album even dedicates a whole track to potential motherhood: "I constantly think that I’m wasting time, but what if I have a child—would it give my life meaning?". Against the backdrop of Taylor Swift’s kilometers-long dull poems (who, by the way, Charli disses on the album), such honest lyrics become a breath of fresh air. We cry a little, talk about important things, and continue to dance.
And then one must recall that "BRAT" is essentially a club album. You can’t just move to "Von Dutch" and "Club Classics"—you need to jump and rave. But here, perhaps, lies the main drawback of the album—the strange track order, as well as about three lyrical digressions, spoil the overall picture of the forty-minute party. The situation should be rectified by a remix album, which will bring this Charli era to a logical conclusion—if you don’t believe me, just check out her explosive set at Boiler Room.
Ariana Grande releases neat pop-R&B, Billie Eilish and Finneas make music for critics, Taylor Swift tortures fans with folk ballads, and Dua Lipa… what was that even? Charli bursts into this whole pop paradigm with force, releases her most successful album in years, makes everyone set provocative green squares with brief text as their profile picture, and brings so much energy to the scene, more than any other pop album this year. And I’m totally satisfied with that arrangement: both as a fan and as an unbiased listener.
I've got this huge text about Billie Eilish's and Dua Lipa's albums that I need to finish, but I'm feeling too lazy right now. Maybe I'll tackle it tomorrow.
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obviously ms. xcx has received lots of attention and acclaim this year from the bombshell brat album(s) and era. undoubtely iconic! well, i've been a super huge charli fan, an angel if you will (iykyk) and i really cannot reccomend this album enough. it means the literal world to me. it came out in 2020 and we all know what occurred that year. how i'm feeling now comforted me in a time of total discomfort.
how i'm feeling now is fairly sonically and thematically similar to brat. i believe in her zane lowe idea, charli even referred to it as brat's cousin or sister ? (if you know please comment but i'm probably gonna look it up after i write this anyways lol). how i'm feeling now has a certain.... je ne sais pas... quality to it. how i'm feeling now is influenced heavily by hyper-pop. it explores love, friendship, distance, isolation, longing, and of partying of course! my favorite tracks are anthems, forever, visions, party 4 u, and pink diamond... that's like half the album tee hee. i love that the simple prose with complex meanings (ie; charli's whole discography)
i love charli xcx so fkcing much. Special interest alert 😋🤍
Dec 19, 2024
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My opinion on "Brat" even though no one asked for it.
"Brat" eto ochen horosho as my Russian friend said
Charlie managed to produce a successful album—now that's a reason to rejoice. You listen to it in its entirety, understand its general ideas and concept. Not in this vulgar sense of some "super idea," no, this is pop music, everything is simple here, we'll show off some other time. "Brat" is an album about wild fun with a blatant nod to the nineties and about Charlie, who for this album accumulated a lot of internal chaos.
Chaos is everywhere—in the music, which jumps from warehouse raves to auto-tuned ballads, in the lyrics, which bounce from "yeah, party time" to "that self-doubt again :(", and in relationships with the outside world: like the song "Girl, So Confusing," obviously written about complicated relationships with the singer Lorde, filled with pretense. And there's Charlie on the release night reposting a cute story from Lorde about how "Brat is the first album I pre-saved" (lol). And it goes on like that all the way.
But the best moments are when they let Mike Skinner out... The last thing I expected from a bold pop album were street-wise songs. Like "Mean Girls," where Charlie paints a portrait of today's mean girls in two verses. And when the piano kicks in, I genuinely expect Skinner to jump in from around the corner. The same goes for "Everything is Romantic" with a very Skinner-esque style, again creating a clear picture from chaotic images.
And the main song of the album is definitely "365." Where Charlie took the single "360" and transformed it from a cool song into a killer banger that would fit right into the most outrageous scenes from the first "Blade" movie. You know, bodies popping like blood-filled balloons, and then bam—they gather back together. That's the impression the album "Brat" left on me.
PS. "Brat" - from russian translates as brother, and Brat eto ochen horosho means - Bro that is very good.
Jun 8, 2024
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Love how she repurposed the titles of tracks like turning b2b on its head from a relationship to non-stop work, or turning talk talk from a hook-up to a house party, this for me is where the concept works so well
My top 5:
1. Girl so confusing - I’m kind of over this one now cause it’s been out for a while but this version 100% surpasses the original in every way and it undeniably the most poignant moment from this whole brat era
2. Everything is Romantic - This would be my number one if it wasn’t for the icon level of girl so confusing. This is what I wanted out of a brat remix album. Love that it’s a conversation, love the mood, middle 8 vocals insane as always v good
3. I think about it all the time - I just knew this would be good and it was, love the rearrangement, Bon iver and charli‘s voices together works surprisingly well
4. So I - A wonderful re-contextualised narrative around grief - I hope it felt very healing for charli and ag
5. 365 - so good, tied with club classics pretty much for me, but this trumps it because of how explosive it is
Low points for me:
I’ve never like the Addison Rae verse since von Dutch remix dropped, but her scream on the end of the track is so sick. the original version of Von Dutch just can’t be touched idk
Rewind w bladee just didn’t do it for me, though I like charli’s new verse
Sympathy is a knife was disappointing, don’t really like the new hook, think the vocals sound clunky tbh but still cool we got to see charli/ Ariana collab
Only real skips for me are the rewind and von Dutch remixes
Oct 12, 2024
Top Recs from @nebraska
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The best advice I've found, especially as a perfectionist. As someone who always strives for flawlessness, I've realized this mindset can often hold me back. It's easy to get caught up in making everything just right, but that can lead to never finishing projects or, worse, never starting them. This advice reminds me to focus on completion rather than perfection. It's about making progress and not letting the fear of imperfection paralyze you. You can always refine and improve something once it exists, but you can't improve what you haven't created yet. It's about striking a balance between quality and actually getting things done
Jul 17, 2024
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My grandpa once told me:
"Live a worthy life. What makes a life worthy is something only you can define for yourself. So, live a life that feels meaningful to you, as long as it does not prevent others from living theirs. Don't let others define what a worthy life means for you. If for you, a worthy life means building a large family, build it; if it means earning a billion dollars, pursue that goal with all your might; if it means making as many memories as you can, go ahead; if it means being religious and praising God, do so. Live your worthy life and ignore anyone who tells you otherwise."
I couldn't find this quote anywhere so I think it was his own wisdom. Rest in Peace grandpa❤️
Jun 8, 2024
