Charli XCXtook pop culture by storm last June, when she released her mega-hit album, “Brat.”
Brat was deemed theword of the year for 2024by Collins English Dictionary.
Charli XCX was everywhere.
Image via Vogue
However, this moment felt long overdue for longtime fans of Charli.
But, it isnt Charli XCXs best album.
Its time to make the case instead for 2022s CRASH.
Image via Rolling Stone
The release of CRASH found Charli at a pivotal moment in her career.
The marketing for CRASH was inspired by the 1996David Croenbergfilm of the same name.
She can’t stop, and she won’t stop.
Really, the release of the album mirrors the career of a pre-Brat Charli herself.
Prior to 2024, she managed to remain in a bit of a strange limbo of influence.
She constantly rode the line between underground and mainstream.
In many ways, she simultaneously felt like both the most obvious and best-kept secret in pop music.
Its not dragged out or excessively long for the sake of being so.
CRASH takes the listener on a journey of upbeat dance pop.
Good Ones, the albums leading single, explores themes of self-sabotaging and erratic tendencies.
Beg For You, which features Rina Sawayama, emits Y2K pop banger moods.
Maybe its the way it feels like an appetizer to what we were eventually served with Brat.
Maybe its Charlis wider embrace of a pop sound, paving the way for her mainstream breakthrough.
Listen to CRASH on Spotify
