NEW YORK (AP) — This is how Brat Summer ends. It ends with a live stream on Twitch, not a big bang.
On Thursday afternoon, hours after the deluxe remix double-album version of the culture-changing album Brat was leaked, the version was dubbed “Brat and It’s Completely Different, But Still Brat.” — and just hours before its official release, Charli I did. She stood beneath her piece (a macroscale version of a record spread built on her signature brat green), pressed play on her phone, and directed the energized crowd.
The album (not to be confused with her previous re-release, “Brat and It’s the Same but There’s Three More Songs So It’s Not”) features Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande, Lorde, Robyn and tourmate Troy. Sivan. That’s the beauty of dance music anyway. Dance music has the ability to reinvent itself.
Some will be completely overhauled. Others are faithful to the original. It’s up to the listener to find their favorite. Until then: Here are the new truck rankings.
16. “Rewind” feat. BradySwedish rapper and singer Brady lends a carefree flow to “Rewind,” emphasizing the original’s oozing nostalgia.
15. “I Might Say Something Stupid” feat. The 1975 and John Hopkins
The piano ballad of “Brat” loses its very present vocal effects until the song crescendos into a slight electro-emo dirge in the final minute and a half.
14. “Mean Girls” feat. Julian Casablancas
Charli XCX enlists New York City’s original Mean Girls for her remix of “Mean Girls.” The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas is the patron saint of the commercialized “Indie Leeds Revival” cultural marketing movement that has taken parts of the internet by storm. It’s too perfect.
13. “Apple” feat. Japanese House
Who would have thought that “Apple” needed a shimmering, synth-y indie-pop reworking? Apparently it’s Charli XCX and The Japanese House.
12. “Talk Talk” feat. Troye SivanAn uncredited Dua Lipa and her multilingual tongue punctuate this reimagining of “Talk Talk,” a clubby remix with Charli’s “Sweat Tour” buddy Troye Sivan. It’s definitely sexy, but it might get lost in this overstuffed release.
11. “360” feat. Robin and Young Lean
Who would have expected this exciting pairing of Robin and Young Lean? What’s more, Charlie has long considered himself someone like Robin, a pop star with a cult following. , maybe a little too cool for serious mainstream reviews. Of course, “Brat Summer” challenges that notion, but even though it’s fall now, the connection still remains.
10. “B2b” feat. Tinashe
Another improvement from the original: the innate smooth R&B pop of Tinashe’s verse here is a welcome addition.
9. “Von Dutch” AG Cook Remix feat. Addison Rae
Actor and TikTok star Addison Rae, who bears a striking resemblance to Y2K queen Britney Spears, is experiencing a second wind in her young career, thanks in part to Charlie’s efforts to turn her into a pop star. This “Von Dutch” remix is a confident, swaggering, sometimes screeching discussion of celebrity, and Rae’s sweet vocals add tension.
8. “Club Classics” feat. BB Trix
The new “Club Classic” speeds up Charli XCX’s vocals to chipmunk levels. It’s not for everyone, but it will be a favorite for those whose invention it speaks to.
7. “Everything is Romantic” feat.Caroline Polachek
A meeting to share musical thoughts! Although a love song for a platonic relationship expressed in a new way, the song suggests a kind of religiosity found not in a club but in an early morning conversation with close friends.
6. “I’m Always Thinking About It” feat. Bon Iver
Bon Iver has been experimenting with electronic music for a long time, and his standout piece “I think about it all the time,” at the album’s emotional core, finds Charli XCX at a crossroads in her life. can talk about their concerns. He releases them into fantastical space, as if in a lit lantern.
5. “365” feat. Shy Girl
Meet the party girl, the shy girl. The original ‘Brat’ closer reintroduced the club after a moment of introspection. In this “365” version, they never left. It’s 4am in Berlin, my heart is pounding, my palms and everything else is sweaty, and the lights are bright.
4. “Sympathy is a knife” feat. Ariana Grande
In the original “Empathy is a Knife,” Charli XCX gives herself room to be insecure. Is she famous? Is she successful? Why does it seem like more and more commercial artists are disrespecting her? Or is that a projection? In this version, Charlie, a longtime fan of Ariana Grande, brings in one of the most famous pop stars to recast the story in the style of Imogen Heap. What happens when you reach a certain level and every part of your life is interrogated by strangers?
“When you’re so pretty, it’s the knife that makes people think it must be fake,” Grande added. “It’s a knife that dissects a dead body on one side.”
Featuring a bonus track remix with one of the world’s biggest pop stars, Billie Eilish, “Guess” is indulgent, flirtatious electro-trash that suggests that Brat Summer is more than just a moment, it’s a state of mind. It’s the kind of thing that everyone can agree on. Produced by The Dare, this song is a fresh way to hear Irish whispers. This time it’s a boom.
2. “So Me” feat. AG Cook
There is only one collaborator on “So I,” which pays homage to the late great producer Sophie, who is looking to the future. A.G. Cook, a member of the PC Music Collective, and someone who worked closely with the premature innovators. You won’t get a dry eye with this version, which goes far beyond the original. “So I” by “Brat” is a guarded monument. In “So I,” featuring AG Cook, Charlie tells a story about his friend Sophie in the highly idiosyncratic delivery of a great story-songwriter.
1. “Girl, It’s So Hard to Understand” feat. Road
As if there were other options for the number one spot. “Girl, So Confused” Ends a Possibly Long-running and Certainly Personal Rivalry Between Charli XCX and Lorde, two very different artists who were once frequently mistaken for each other It turns out. And for a song about environmental and internalized insecurities that people of a certain gender are all too familiar with, it’s heartening to hear these two powerhouses work it out on a remix.
___
For more AP reviews of recent music releases, visit https://apnews.com/hub/music-reviews.