“My name is Charli XCX, but you already know that.” Direct, challenging and confident. That’s how we know her and that’s how she showed herself this past November 20 at her concert in Madrid, which began with these words. The room La Riviera was invaded by the ‘Charli’s Angels’, followers and followers of this English singer and songwriter, eager to party and eager to hear for the first time live the songs of the last album of her favorite artist.
Charli saw the light on September 19 and, like his previous works, he received good comments from the critics. In it we find a clear evolution of the musical style of the performer, that kind of “experimental pop” (avant-pop) that, like her, does not understand clichés. Thus, the tracks that make up the album are mainly based on melodies characteristic of this genre, but in all of them they are altered by glitch textures, typical hip-hop structures or unexpected pops with all the heavy electronic artillery (vocal distortions, beats powerful and marked, drum machines and synths).
She says it is her most personal album so far. And it truly is. Although with the first listening the set of songs seems to be the perfect soundtrack for a party night, once you stop in the lyrics you realize that the message goes far beyond fun and lack of control; The songs that make up Charli are born from love, friendship, empowerment … but also from fear, anxiety, insecurities and even anger.
Although compositions such as Gone, White Mercedes or Cross You Out have their origin in this type of negative feelings, Charli is not a woman anchored to the past (unless it is to worship the sounds or pop idols of the 90 ‘) and says “I didn’t think much about how I felt while doing the album, I just got carried away.” And no, although in his new album he has opened his heart a little more, he also does not give up the spree: “I am inspired to party because when you go out you feel free, you meet a lot of people … everything can happen”.
Thus, the songs that make up the album are an equal mix of a carnal and accurate sincerity with a powerful and seductive sound aesthetic, so the feeling that remains after listening is mostly positive.
Charli is, how could it be otherwise, a record of collaborations. Since the singer denied the path established for aspiring pop stars and resigned to achieve massive success (which she achieved with radio hits like Boom Clap or I Love It) within the industry to preserve her authenticity and have creative reins and logistics of his project, he has focused his efforts on creating his own artistic community to give and receive support.
“As a child I always dreamed of being part of a crew, having my own group where to create … When you compose with someone what you think is unique, it is much more interesting and genuine,” says the artist. Now you can see your dream fulfilled by having become a glue capable of joining different musical genres and providing the resulting set of coherence and personality.
