Charli XCX — CRASH — Album Review
Electronic | Pop
Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music
note: this review is for the standard edition of the album, and won’t take into account the bonus tracks found on the deluxe version.
I have to give credit to Charli XCX for changing the course of what we can expect from the pop genre in the modern day. But admittedly, I really started getting fully into her music later on.
To be specific, I only really started taking the time that Charli deserved towards a proper listen at the end of 2020; the same year that she released her fourth studio album, how i’m feeling now, which was arguably one of the most well-made and promoted lockdown albums. But it wasn’t only this that led me eventually write (if only a short) review of that album. It also had a lot to do with the success of her prior album, released in 2019, titled Charli.
But here we are now in the year of 2022, and I don’t aim to have another album from Charli XCX fly over my head the same way again. luckily for me, this year sees the release of her highly anticipated fifth album, which she has donned CRASH.
While I was aware of some of the teaser tracks that led up to this album, including “Good Ones” and “Beg For You”, I wanted the album in its entirety to feel like a fresh experience. Besides which, the radio filled in that role of allowing to to memorize the aforementioned teasers.
In light of many artists upping the ante when it comes to pushing a retro electro-pop aesthetic (one that Charli XCX definitely played a hand in popularising), CRASH expectedly feels abundant in said vibe. This album is brimming with colourful, club-ready tunes (many of which I was able to enjoy at a local club night post the album’s release).
Furthermore, the best thing that CRASH has to offer is indeed the fun energy that has been packed into the album. It is very much that kind of album that will have you as a listener excited for the bustling summer days that lie ahead.
But with all of the vibrant uniqueness that the albums best cuts have, there are a few that present a weirdly uninspired production.
I, for one, am not the biggest fan of tracks that blatantly rob another instrumental (beyond effective sampling). Unfortunately, not even an album like CRASH could distract me from those slight flaws. The tracks in question include the previously mentioned teaser “Beg For You”, as well as the album’s eleventh track “Used To Know Me”. Both of these tracks use beats from two dance classics, both of which are pretty overused anyway. But pairing this with Charli XCX, an artists that has shown her uniqueness and creativity time and time again, this felt like an especially odd match-up.
With that said, I don’t think CRASH feels like as much of a unique album, in comparison to projects like Charli or how i’m feeling now (and it’s not exactly like she needed to be more accessible in any way). Nevertheless, the fun is still there and plentiful with this listen, and will likely go down as one of the more popular summer albums of 2022.
Favourite Tracks: Crash | New Shapes | Baby
Least Favourite Track: Yuck
Asylum Records | Warner Music
