Alex Thompson looks at the latest album from Charli XCX, a glitchy and experimental lockdown project which may be her best work to date
Quarantine is a strange time. People are feeling isolation, stranded, anxious and claustrophobic. There’s a tension between the freedom of being alone and the captivity of one’s own home, angst stress and uncertainty being the mood of the nation. Throughout the lockdown periods, artists have tried to capture this sensation, with varying degrees of success.
None have managed this as perfectly as Charli XCX.
On her new album how i’m feeling now, the pop veteran delivers her most experimental, chaotic and bold album to date. Fusing glossy pop hooks with fuzzy, glitchy electronic elements, 100 gecs-esque punchy refrains and gorgeously raw and rough production, Charli plays with genre and structure in a way that is both incredibly bold and incredibly enjoyable. This is not a subtle album. It’s an absolute sucker-punch of a pop project, brash, brilliantly chaotic and unashamedly experimental.
808s kick and crash with trashy snares, buzzing synthesizers and glitching, pitch-addled vocals across the album, a noisy flurry of pop, electronic, hip hop, trap and (dare I say) dubstep influences. This creates genre-defying tracks like the opening cut ‘pink diamond’, that weirdly sounds like a beat from Vince Staples’ Big Fish Theory before diving into more mellow that escalate back into buzzing, synth-y armageddon. The lyrics capture that claustrophobic angst, vocals packing a vicious and surprisingly aggressive punch. Other moments like ‘c.20’ bring in those chipmunked vocals and arpeggiated piano lines that seem like they’ve been pulled straight from a 100 gecs single. The production bite and gritty instrumentals on these tracks contrast perfectly with Charli’s ethereal vocals.
The fuzzy, scuzzy and noisy production gives the whole thing a very raw feel, a rough and gritty tone that couldn’t be more perfect for lockdown. The roaring walls of sound that define many of the album’s early tracks give them a very claustrophobic feel, something I’m sure we can all relate to at the moment. Songs dive between loneliness, frustration, love and angst in a way that seems to perfectly encapsulate the lockdown mood. Take for instance ‘forever’, with its soaring refrains of “I love you forever, even when we’re not together” that hits hard for someone isolating without their partner.
Fear not, this album isn’t simply some inaccessible edgy, noisy, Fantano wet dream. There are a lot of proper pop tracks on this album, combining the edge and grit of the album’s aesthetics with some glossy and glitzy hooks and choruses. Tracks like ‘Claws’ and ‘7 years’ show how i’m feeling now at its most accessible. There’s still the relentless cacophony of drums, synths and auto-tuned but it’s mixed with a radio friendly charm that keeps it rooted firmly in pop territory.
There are also quieter, more subdued moments to this album. Take ‘detonate’, for example. The kicking of the drums and cascading synths are still there, but toned down and mellowed to make space for some heady and ethereal vocals. ‘enemy’ follows a similar tone, blending those abrasive and experimental elements into a more stripped down, melancholy pop track. It’s a vulnerable, quieter side to the album that offers a brilliant contrast to the noisy, chaos of the opening few tracks.
how i’m feeling now might be Charli XCX’s best work to date. It’s certainly my favourite. There is the occasional naff lyric about partying and the occasional lacklustre vocal but, for the most part, this album is excellent. The brilliantly noisy production and instrumentals, beautiful vocals and angsty lyrics all come together to create an album that manages to combine brash and aggressive highs with more subtle, nuanced and contemplative moments. Glitchy, fuzzy and raw at times, stripped back and vulnerable at others, how i’m feeling now is a perfect quarantine album - one which captures the mood of lockdown and shows that not even Covid-19 can stop Charli XCX.
8/10
Alex Thompson
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