Charli XCX – Brat

[Ivy Leegue™]

Who is "Girl, so confusing" and "sympathy is a knife" about??

[Koochie]

This album is so funny lmao. So many bizarre production choices and her vocal delivery is all over the place.

Example: The chorus of “Sympathy Is a Knife” is like, phenomenal, but the verses make me want to turn it off. “Everything Is Romantic” has incredible production but like what is she saying on any of this. “365” breaking into acid house was a MOMENT but like… I wish it was just an instrumental lmao.

I feel like an asshole but the SOPHIE song made me laugh out loud it’s so melodramatic and I get the production is supposed to be an homage, but it’s so unserious.

[Ivy Leegue™]

Honestly, with some exceptions (hyperpop is honestly not really my thing as it always comes across as noisy, chaotic, and sophomoric), Charli has lost the plot from when she first started out. True Romance is such a perfect album and I would love her to go back to something like that. If I were still in my 20s and chugging Red Bull and Vodkas back to back to back to back and taking Adderall, maybe I would appreciate this style more. As it stands, now I mostly hear Autotune and noise.

[360brat]

How are you guys hearing this already?!

[Ivy Leegue™]

At an astonishing 92 out of 11 reviews on Metacritic.

[schnetzka]

I see everybody online is loving this and... I just think it's okay??? I've never been a big listener of Charli except for a select few songs but this album doesn't do it for me.

[HEADOFTHEPACK]

Relentlessly great imo.

[Koochie]

Jun 5, 2024 13:56:04 GMT -5 Ivy Leegue™ said:

Honestly, with some exceptions (hyperpop is honestly not really my thing as it always comes across as noisy, chaotic, and sophomoric), Charli has lost the plot from when she first started out. True Romance is such a perfect album and I would love her to go back to something like that. If I were still in my 20s and chugging Red Bull and Vodkas back to back to back to back and taking Adderall, maybe I would appreciate this style more. As it stands, now I mostly hear Autotune and noise.

I actually like hyperpop (conditionally), but I wouldn’t even call this album that. It uses a lot of hyperpop sound fonts, but it’s also very disjointed and just… idk? There’s a clear direction here, but she’s trying to marry hyperpop and actual pop and those two genres are antithetical to each other.

[Ling-Ling]

I love most of this. My main quibble though, it's in the same vein as how i'm feeling now, Charli, Pop 2 and Vroom Vroom. She's distilling those hyperpop/PC Music sounds into something more palpable... again. And she can obviously be awesome in that lane, but it feels a little been there done that? I want her to step away from AG Cook for good.

You can burn "So I" with fire, sap isn't a note she's attempted before and now we know why. And I wish something more interesting happened during "i might say something stupid" production-wise but I do like it. Other than that, I feel like every song offers something. You have the more straight-forward pop moments like "360," "Talk Talk," "Rewind," "G, sc," "itaialt," and "Apple" (the true sleeper on the album for me). Bangers like "Von Dutch," "Sympathy is a knife," "Club Classics," and "B2B" (one of those rare repetitive songs I find more hypnotizing than annoying). And then the tracks that delightfully go off the rails in fascinating ways, "Mean Girls" (once that piano kicks in, SOOOOLD), "365" and "Everything is romantic." I also love the lyrics on this? They're messy, ridiculous, insecure, paranoid, confessional. Not what I was expecting based on the pre-release tracks at all. The fact that she directly follows up a song all about contemplating having a baby with a song dedicated to doing blow in the club, lol.

[Ivy Leegue™]

Decided to buy this vinyl from Target because I really like the pink and black splatter and I have supported Charli from Day 1. Even when I complain about her hyper pop style (or whatever people want to call it), I forget that it really does get me moving, albeit in a chaotic way. It just sticks around about as long as a Fruit Stripe gum stick and I forget all about it until her next album. True Romance and Crash are her only albums that I keep returning to. I. do love Backseat and Tears from Pop 2. Those are on par with True Romance for me.

Anyway, here is my ranking:

1. Von Dutch (YESSSSSSSS! This song goes so hard.)
2. Sympathy Is A Knife (WHEWWWWW! What a song. This reminds me of True Romance!)
3. Apple (THEEEEE airport! I don't know why that is so catchy, but I love this song!)
4. 365 (Whewww, what a ride!!)
5. So I (I kinda wish this had a proper beat, but I really like it. It's also really catchy, which is kinda weird?)
6. 360 (A real bop!)
7. B2B (a BANGER, but I wish there were better lyrics.)
8. I Might Say Something Stupid (Wait...this is beautiful and makes me sad.)
9. Mean Girls (Wild song.)
10. Rewind (She has done this before and I think executed better, but it's a major bop still. I kinda wish Britney did it instead though.)
11. Talk Talk (Cute.)
12. Club Classics (This is kinda...intense? I like how it begins though. Also, it feels like a 4 minute song, but it's not even 2 and a half minutes.)
13. Girl, So Confusing (WHO is the subject of this song?? It's a little basic, but not terrible.)
14. Everything Is Romantic (Like...what is this??? Song is ALL over the place. I kinda loved the ending.)
15. I Think About It All The Time (eh, not really into this.)

I really dig my top 8. The only song I didn't really. like at all was I Think About It All The Time.

[Normi]

Spotify UK
31. 360 (+91)
42. Talk Talk (new)
56. Von dutch (re)
57. Sympathy is a knive (new)
95. Club classics (new)
102. Everything is romantic (new)
105. 365 (new)
123. i might say something stupid (new)
142. Rewind (new)
153. Mean Girls (new)
172. Girl, so confusing (new)
183. So I (new)
197. B2b (new)

Global
101. 360 (new)
140. Talk Talk (new)

US
64. 360 (re)
85. Talk Talk (new)
126. Sympathy is a knive (new)
158. Von Dutch (re)
178. Club Classics (new)
196. Everything is romantic (new)

[Ryan]

[Tea-why]

This album is amazing!!! Def one of my favourites from her.

[Juan Carlos]

Deluxe version of Brat titled Brat and it's the same but there's three more songs so it's not out at midnight. The three songs in mention are "Spring breakers", "Guess" and "Hello goodbye".

[Ling-Ling]

Ugh at another quickie deluxe, artists really need to stop this sh*t. Available on her webstore though. "Hello goodbye" is great and lol at "Guess." The lyrics to "Spring Breakers" are hilarious, love her sense of humor.

[avamaxstan]

Charli opening with similar numbers to Dua Lipa... 2024 is wild

[Ling-Ling]

Jun 7, 2024 5:39:10 GMT -5 Ivy Leegue™ said:

At an astonishing 92 out of 11 reviews on Metacritic.

Up to 94 out of 22 reviews! She better submit for that Dance/Electronic album next year, this really is creating a moment for her.

Jun 5, 2024 11:19:32 GMT -5 Ivy Leegue™ said:

Who is "Girl, so confusing" and "sympathy is a knife" about??

The general online consensus is that "Girl, so confusing" is about Lorde (the put your hands up line being a callback to "Team") some say Marina. And there's no way "sympathy is a knife" isn't about Taylor. The backstage/boyfriend/break-up line gives it away.

[Ivy Leegue™]

Jun 11, 2024 12:06:00 GMT -5 Ling-Ling said:

Jun 7, 2024 5:39:10 GMT -5 Ivy Leegue™ said:

At an astonishing 92 out of 11 reviews on Metacritic.

Up to 94 out of 22 reviews! She better submit for that Dance/Electronic album next year, this really is creating a moment for her.

Jun 5, 2024 11:19:32 GMT -5 Ivy Leegue™ said:

Who is "Girl, so confusing" and "sympathy is a knife" about??

The general online consensus is that "Girl, so confusing" is about Lorde (the put your hands up line being a callback to "Team") some say Marina. And there's no way "sympathy is a knife" isn't about Taylor. The backstage/boyfriend/break-up line gives it away.

OMG 95 now with 23 reviews. This is like AOTY-level. Hell, some AOTYs have gotten scores in the 60s and lower, LOL. I will say even the songs I thought were weak have grown on me by sheer force of will ALONE.

After living with these songs, I actually thought both Girl AND Sympathy could be about Taylor. Well, maybe not Girl because of the line about having similar hair, but who knows...could be a composite. Lorde seems so...unproblematic. Why go after her like that? As for Marina, no one really cares about her, LOL.

[Normi]

So after some days to let it sink in I have to say this easily is her best album, good quality through out in my opinion
I also like how all the songs fit the theme of brat, whether it is in her attitude or the deeper tracks showing a different side of why one is a brat

Here's my ranking for now but since it's Charli some songs will grow on me more:

1. Sympathy is a knive (the melody in the chorus is infectious, the emotion on her voice trying to win the fight against the busy beat is touching)
2. Von Dutch (still one of the best 'in your face' songs of the past years, the hypnotic vocals never get old)
3. Girl, so confusing (i like the moral of the song and how it can be applied to humanity in general too, those verses and pre-choruses slap so hard!)
4. B2b (banger, always amazed at their ability to put so much emotion in the instrumental)
5. Rewind (the actual rewind... Genius)
6. 360 (perfect opener, I love how it loops back into 360 at the end of the album)
7. Apple (it's so fun how hooky the verses are and these lyrics could be interpreted in so many ways, another win)
8. Hello goodbye (this just keeps going in a way, already grew on me a lot)
9. Spring Breakers (I mean - that chorus!?)
10. 365 (re-using the 360 beat is brilliant, sadly this is no visions imo but still a great closing track)
11. Everything Is Romantic (another one of those experiences á la 'party 4 u' or 'Track 10', too many iconic moments in this song)
12. I think about it all the time (cute and the production is so Charli, will probably have my moment with this one at some point)
13. So I (when I listened to this for the first time, a friend compared the hook to Tove Lo's 'No One Dies From Love' and now I can't unhear it now, such a beautiful and vulnerable song)
14. Guess (total fun and super random yet irresistible)
15. Club Classics (why does this sound like Sims music to me? I prefer this in the context of the album)
16. Talk Talk (maybe a little too by the books for me, and I'm not sold on the chorus but the outro is one of the parts I really enjoy)
17. Mean Girls (same problem I have with Talk Talk, the breakdown is kind of fun though)
18. I might say something stupid (more of an interlude to me)

I think there is something in all of these songs and it's nice to see Charli embracing different kinds of emotions and vulnerability in various ways, also I'm glad the deluxe songs weren't on the standard especially Guess haha, could fit on Slut Pop

[SHOOTER]

Projected to debut at #4 with 62k SPS (30k sales) - her strongest debut in America yet.

True Romance: #5 on Heatseekers, 1k.

Sucker: #28, 28k.

Number 1 Angel: #175, 4k SPS (1k sales).

Pop 2: DNC (did not chart).

Charli: #42, 13k SPS (5k sales).

how i’m feeling now: #111, 8k SPS (3k sales).

CRASH: #7, 31.5k SPS (19k sales).

[PGriffin]

Jun 11, 2024 19:18:09 GMT -5 SHOOTER said:

Projected to debut at #4 with 62k SPS (30k sales) - her strongest debut in America yet.

True Romance: #5 on Heatseekers, 1k.

Sucker: #28, 28k.

Number 1 Angel: #175, 4k SPS (1k sales).

Pop 2: DNC (did not chart).

Charli: #42, 13k SPS (5k sales).

how i’m feeling now: #111, 8k SPS (3k sales).

CRASH: #7, 31.5k SPS (19k sales).

This is big for her! Hopefully she can squeeze in at #3

[SHOOTER]

Jun 12, 2024 10:46:04 GMT -5 PGriffin said:

Jun 11, 2024 19:18:09 GMT -5 SHOOTER said:

Projected to debut at #4 with 62k SPS (30k sales) - her strongest debut in America yet.

True Romance: #5 on Heatseekers, 1k.

Sucker: #28, 28k.

Number 1 Angel: #175, 4k SPS (1k sales).

Pop 2: DNC (did not chart).

Charli: #42, 13k SPS (5k sales).

how i’m feeling now: #111, 8k SPS (3k sales).

CRASH: #7, 31.5k SPS (19k sales).

This is big for her! Hopefully she can squeeze in at #3

Per HITS: #3 with 74k SPS (35k sales) - almost bigger than all her previous first weeks combined!

[Normi]

Wow, that's amazing for her! This album has been tracking well throughout the week with '360', 'Talk Talk' and 'Sympathy is a knive' having reentered the US Spotify chart, could she actually catch a little moment with this?

[Ivy Leegue™]

Sympathy Is A KNIFE is one of her best songs.

[clsvltn]

Pretty good album. Honestly, I was turned off by Von dutch (?) or whatever that song was. Idk i just thought it was pretty horrible but I gave the rest of it a chance due to the high sales and buzz and it was overall pretty enjoyable. That was by far, the worst song. I liked 360 a lot also

[SHOOTER]

Jun 14, 2024 15:10:27 GMT -5 SHOOTER said:

Jun 12, 2024 10:46:04 GMT -5 PGriffin said:

This is big for her! Hopefully she can squeeze in at #3

Per HITS: #3 with 74k SPS (35k sales) - almost bigger than all her previous first weeks combined!

Final tally is 82k SPS (45k sales). Insane. Ecstatic for her.

[Ryan]

[andrebra]

THIS. IS. PROMO. i am beyond sat

[Ling-Ling]

She knows exactly what she's doing this era, lol. It's great seeing her numbers holding as well.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C8cweAevsA9

[Ivy Leegue™]

LMFAO I love how not only did she confirm that it's about Lorde, she got her on the remix, which is how she confirmed it! Let's work it out on the remix, indeed!

Also, I heard the numbers actually went down, but he is still killing it! The fact that she is sold more this first week than all her other albums combined is just insane!