Charli XCX was thrusted from the underground hyperpop scene into the mainstream with her critically acclaimed sixth record “brat” which was released on June 7, 2024. The record brought Charli’s signature club style to a wider audience. The simple peridot green cover with blurry arial font is instantly recognizable for anyone who was chronically online this summer.
The girl from Essex boldly claimed it was a brat summer. So, once it was over, what were all the new brats supposed to do? As the leaves changed color and a slight chill ran through the air, brat was beckoning a change. Enter “Brat and it’s completely different but also still brat.”
The British DJ had periodically released a few remixes throughout the summer, most notably “Girl, so confusing feat. Lorde” and “Guess feat. Billie Eillish.” After Brat’s commercial success, complete with sold-out stadium shows, the full remix album served as a victory lap for Charli, and employed names like Ariana Grande, Kesha and Julian Casablancas to remix her instant classic.
Rather than run through the whole album again, The Point decided to review a few of our favorite tracks from the remix album.
Club classics feat. bb trickz
By Steve Anderson
“brat” deserved to be a family affair. So Charli called on her fiance, and The 1975 Drummer George Daniel, to produce the remix of “Club Classics.” Who knew he could turn up the energy on this track? That’s exactly what the power couple did. They also employed the help of Spanish rapper bb trickz who effortlessly floats over the house beat, eventually leading to the drop with overwhelming party synths. The “365” lyrics scattered throughout also add a nice touch, because if you’re not “bumpin’ that” yet then what’re you doing? While his track feels like it should be exclusively for the club, why not bump it in your house or car? It’s that good.
Sympathy is a Knife feat. Ariana Grande
By Tony Le Calvez
Charli flexes her claws once again, teaming up with Ariana Grande to swing at the haters. Despite the monumental success of “brat,” Charli is clairvoyant in predicting that her rise to the top comes with a switchback of people behind her ready to tear her down. While the original “Sympathy is a Knife” dealt with how to handle people on top punching down on her, this new one is about shielding herself from those punching up. Grande’s involvement is appropriately relevant because of all the negative press she’s received in the last two years for her divorce and subsequent relationship with SpongeBob, otherwise known as Actor, Ethan Slater. Grande’s lyrics do double-duty, engaging with the criticism she’s received personally, as well as tackling the general dehumanization of female artists when they reach superstar status. Her cutting words attack the notion that fame strips women of their rights to their body and image. Pointed and sharp, this new rendition reminds music journalists that they only exist because of artists, and not the other way around.
I might say something stupid feat. the 1975 & jon hopkins
By Steve Anderson
It’s no surprise Matty Healy, lead singer of The 1975, took one of the moodier tracks on “brat” and ran with it. The first half of the song could be considered an ambient track, with its prolonged silence in between a brief piano melody and Healy’s melancholic singing. He is able to match the vulnerability Charli threw out on the original track, singing about being famous but … not quite. She jumps in with Healy on the back half of the track, picking up the tempo and throwing some booming synths and strings to make it a “brat” song.
Everything is romantic feat. Caroline Polachek
By Tessa Balc
Where Charli painted a picture of early nights, lace curtains and Capri as romantic, Caroline Polachek’s version tells of late nights, black curtains and East London. The remix of “Everything is romantic” completely shifts the sentiment of the original track to a slow and faded pace, personifying a deeper romantic infatuation with the world – one that exists in the midst of the rain. It takes the internet clique of “romanticizing your life” to another level with the lyrics “free-bleeding in the autumn rain, fall in love again and again,” casually repeated as if menstruation has been neither taboo nor unadmirable. Polachek’s breathy-low voice drives the overcast tone of the track while it maintains a lightness that encapsulates a fondness and fear of the mundane.
So I feat. A. G. cook
By Tony Le Calvez
Dealing with grief is difficult. When you lose someone who would want you to dance and party and celebrate, the desire to be happy is strong, but accompanied by feelings of guilt and shame. How am I allowed to be happy when this person I love is gone? While the original version of “So I” tackles elements of regret and giving yourself permission to cry, this new rendition sees Charli in a different state of grief: one where she is pulled between two realities of past and present, and connected by joy and longing. On this remix, Charli shares with her listeners how SOPHIE, the experimental DJ that helped her reinvent her sound, enriched her life before tragically passing away. A.G. Cook embodies her spirit in the production, squeezing in SOPHIE’s trademark squishy sounds. Her inconclusive lyrics, “No I wanna–” reminds us that while grief subsides, it never really ends.
B2b feat. Tinashe
By Tessa Balc
A decade after her debut single on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, she’s back and still, leaving listeners with lines they can’t let go of. This statement could be true for both Charli and Tinashe, as “bumpin that” and “is somebody gonna match my freak” have become vernacular staples of anyone whose attention span has been hijacked by tik tok. While in the world of pop they might be “back,” their rendition of “B2b,” outfitted with a bubbly, up-tempo take on the original production, reminds the listener they’ve been here all along, we just haven’t been listening.
Mean girls feat. julian casablancas
By Steve Anderson
I mean who’s more “brat” than Julian Casablancas? Rising into fame as the frontman for The Strokes during the early 2000s indie sleaze movement, he is New York City’s darling. Casablancas is no stranger to vocal effects making him an instant local on the album’s sonic landscape. Casablancas has treated his music as a therapy session with the listener, maybe oversharing at times. No exception on the remix, he literally made a party song where he takes the blame for his divorce. Everyone deserves the chance to work it out on the remix. The introspective lyrics on top of a party beat is something that Charli is no stranger to, truly a match made in music heaven.
365 feat. shygirl
By Tessa Balc
The remix of brat’s “365” takes the already adrenaline-fueled frenzy to another level. Completely shifting the production of the track to interpolate a 90s rave mix by the British electronic group, Altern 8, it evokes a feeling that can only be expressed through movement, from a casual head nod to writhing on the ground. The initial drop leads into the entrancing incantation of “365 PARTYGIRL,” beckoning the listener to bump along with the bass. As the pace escalates, it only feels right to raise your arms. Shygirl’s entrance may bring a bend to your knees as you find yourself swaying in the flashing lights, blurred by the sweat caught in your eye, culminating into a track that is bound to be a club classic.
Spring Breakers feat Kesha
By Tony Le Calvez
In 2019, Kesha hosted, “Kesha’s Weird & Wonderful Rainbow Ride,” a 4-day cruise featuring pilates, drag show brunches and 24/7 partying with Kesha; if you’re getting fomo, me too girl. The cruise was a critical success and was scheduled for a second voyage until it was indefinitely shut down by the Covid-19 pandemic. There doesn’t seem to be any plans in the works to bring it back, so “Spring Breakers” is the closest thing I have to experiencing that magic. The boom-bastic kick drum, Kesha’s omnipresent voice bouncing in and out of the mix and the lightning-like snare drums give the song a larger-than-life presence, embodied by Kesha when she says, “me and Charli, we the party girl gods.” If the flood waters ever return, please Lord, let Kesha’s ark save me and rain this song from the heavens.
