True Romance

**Despite having previously self-released an album (which made it as far as her playground), _True Romance_ is Charli XCX’s (Charlotte Aitchison) first real foray into the music world… and it’s certainly an interesting one.**

The opening track, much like the rest of the album, is an attack on the senses. Although it begins with a sweeping wave of gothic church opera, it bursts into an upbeat-yet-melancholic storm of dilapidated synths and chime bells. ‘Nuclear Seasons’ is certainly a meaty and satisfying introduction to the album, and shines as it is followed by ‘You (Ha Ha Ha)’, a song that can only be described as electrogrimetronica. Boasting a hooky chorus and a vocal delivery so sharp and critical, it’s no wonder that music sites are drooling over it.

As well as having written on all the tracks, Aitchison boasts producer and writer collaborations with the likes of **Ariel Rechtshaid** (**Usher**, **Sky Ferreira**), **Patrik Berger** (**Robyn**, **Icona Pop**) and **Dimitri Tikovoi** (**Nicola Roberts**, **Placebo**) and it is safe to say that she has squeezed the best out of them. Each song is extraordinarily textured with a satisfying plethora of synths, clicks, chimes and drums, which makes for interesting listening, and that’s not to mention the unconventional song structures and unexpected turns and twists in their production.

Vocally, Aitchison is not particularly strong, yet she offers nuances similar to **Marina And The Diamonds** and – strangely enough – she echoes the brashness of **Kate Nash**. Nevertheless, her vocal choices make the best out of what she’s got, and effectively capture her personality in each song, whether she’s breathing hard during ‘Stay Away’ or faux-rapping in ‘How Can I’.

The only downside is that the strongest tracks bookend the weaker ones, so there seems to be a dip in quality halfway through the album. That’s not to say the songs totally rubbish, because they are conceptually interesting: ‘Grins’ is a worthy concoction of African tribal beats and a stripped-back electronic humming. ‘Cloud Aura’, which features lyrics from rapper **Brook Candy**, is perhaps the worst track on offer, edging too far towards a generic sound which seems incongruous with the rest of the album. _True Romance_ closes with the effortlessly powerful ‘Lock You Up’, where Aitchison purrs and sighs over an instrumental reminiscent of both the disco days of the ’70s and the early ’00s electronica efforts of **Ladytron**.

For a debut album, True Romance is an astoundingly attractive effort and it will be interesting to see where **Charli XCX** goes in her musical trajectory. The album seems more like a tight and cohesive body of work, rather than just ‘an album’, packing a steamroller of synths, screeches and wobbles which could teach the current pop divas a thing or two about originality. It is a shame, however, that her music will probably not be appreciated by the commercial market, as it would be gratifying to see it making a mark on the already saturated chart.

Similar To: Marina And The Diamonds, Sky Ferreira

MP3: ‘You (Ha Ha Ha)’, ‘Black Roses’