It was just last year when Charlotte Aitchison was elevated from goth-pop unknown to a featured artist on Icona Pop's world-engrossing "I Love It", a move that might seem like a sell-out to some, but those die hard Charli XCX fans still loved her anyway. Critics did to: her debut album "True Romance" was met with acclaim, though was not a hit among the masses and didn't sell many copies outside Charli's native England. It was no fault of the music, which was assured, varied, and addictive all at once, but perhaps the all-black attire on its cover didn't give consumers the idea that this was the same singer who shouted her lungs out without a care on her debut mainstream hit. So resolved to make a change, Aitchison turns "True Romance" inside out for her second album "Sucker", and trades in the shade and new-wave textures for an aggressive, unabashed punk album. Whereas "True Romance" was cool, serious, and hip, "Sucker" is a raw sugar rush complete with crunchy guitars, stabs of synth, drum kits, and Charli channeling her Icona Pop persona into her own unique brand of pop. Leading into this sound was her surprise summer hit "Boom Clap", which has been remixed slightly to accompany her new punk-pop sound. It was a perfect mix of innocent and mature, with Charli easily gliding on its smooth synthpop texture. It's the most restrained moment on this record, though, and the only song here that connects this album to its predecessor. The rest of "Sucker" is pop with no limits, numerous profanities, no volume control, and most importantly, no drippy ballads that occasionally brought "True Romance" down. From the moment Aitchison screams "Fuck You, Sucker!" on the opening track, to where she sweetly coos "I Need Ur Luv" on the closing track, this is a thrilling ride from start to finish. Just like last time, Charli XCX takes the basic foundation of her sound and expands it outward. She turned goth-rock and witch house into electro-pop and synthpop before, and now she transforms punk into pop, rock-n-roll, electro-rock, even some lite dance-rock to add some different textures. That's perhaps the best part of "Sucker" as a whole, because the songs here are definitely cut from the same cloth, but Charli takes the fabric and creates something wildly different each time so no two songs sound exactly alike. The only true downside to so much variety is that it can be quite daunting to consume all at once, especially upon the first listen, the larger-than-life hooks can seem to blend with the multi-colored tapestry. But upon repeated spins, it becomes very clear that there hasn't been a punk-pop record this engaging and likeable in quite some time, certainly not within the past decade (sorry, Avril). Frankly, it's one of the best records to be released in 2014, period, regardless of genre. Charli XCX may only be 22-years old, but with two wildly different yet stunning records under her belt, the possibilities of where and how she can grow from here are quite astounding.
Recommended Tracks in Bold:
1. Sucker 2. Break The Rules 3. London Queen
4. Breaking
Up 5. Gold Coins 6. Boom Clap
7. Doing It 8. Body of My Own 9.
Famous
10. Hanging
Around 11. Die Tonight 12. Caught in the Middle
13. Need Ur
Luv
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