Charli xcx’s scuzzy, jagged, and gleefully abrasive new single “Rock Music” overturns her Brat era, yet remains loyal to her audacious approach to pop in a brief, fun manner.

Stream: “Rock Music” – Charli xcx

After tremendous success defined as a pop-cultural phenomenon, Charli xcx is leaving Brat behind and kicking off a bold new era.

Her recent single “Rock Music” welcomes electronically heavy production, well-known autotune, and distorted electric guitars that blaze throughout the song. Co-produced by A.G. Cook, there is no element of surprise regarding the high synthetics and abrasive pop beats he has become known for. As for Charli, as an artist who pushed the surge of hyperpop, she demonstrates in this song that she’s still incorporating that 21st Century subgenre into her music.

Me and my friends, we go out
We take pictures and make stuff together
And sometimes we cry
We kiss each other,
real incestuous vibes
(I knew you’d like that)
Yeah, we’re so inspired
Basically all the time
Yeah, we’re on to the next

I think the dance floor is dead
So now we’re making rock music

While the instrumentation differs from Charli’s Brat and CRASH albums, guitars and raw drum hits combine with one of the British singer’s key traits: Her glitchy, heavily synthesized pop. Brat fans could’ve jumped at the idea of a shift into rock, but the signature hyperpop remains, although Charli plays well with elements that belong to rock. As for the lyrics, as much as they scare off the Brat era with the now-notorious line, “I think the dance floor is dead / So now we’re making rock music,” they only play as antagonists to the real instrumentation and production of the track.

Wow
I’m really banging my head
I’m really hurting my neck
The nervе damage is real
But it’s the only way to feel somеthing
Hurt yourself
Yeah, maybe jump off the stage
I hope they catch you today
But if they don’t, it’s okay

I think the dance floor is dead
(It’s so dead)
So now we’re making rock music

The single’s music video is accompanied by a black-and-white aesthetic (with a couple of scenes switching to color), punk nostalgia, and indie visuals. Charli walks through the city, appears between crowds of people, shows mountains of cigarettes, and smashed instruments from a rock band. It is messy, and it is still a hook into teenage partying and behavior that matches rock and roll, but also the British singer’s energy.

All in all, “Rock Music” is a single that may merely be teasing, sparking turmoil among listeners who think this means change, yet it remains nowhere near overturning her musical personality and pop style. Perhaps she may just be looking back at her sophomore smash and pop-punk-loaded SUCKER. Or maybe she’s only had fun with the idea of making rock music, without actually making it happen.

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Stream: “Rock Music” – Charli xcx

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