Audio File: A Bratty, Yet Charming Summer

Written by Anna Porter, Graphic by Anna Porter

BRAT and Charm summer is truly a season that competes with the Barbenheimer phenomenon of 2023. Juxtaposition during the summer months just really seems to connect with the masses these days. The release of Charli XCX’s sixth studio album, “BRAT,” came at the beginning of the summer, with Clario’s third album, “Charm,” following a month later. After what seems like a few dry years, it’s safe to say that pop music is officially back and better than ever. The beauty is that these albums are sonically opposite, but both find a way to be equally vulnerable, expressing things that both Charli and Clairo are thinking about. Now that you’ve been briefed about the importance of BRAT and Charm Summer, I’d like to review both albums a bit.

It seems that Charli XCX has always been around, but I feel that the release of BRAT was perfectly timed because people like me who grew up listening to “Boom, Clap” on the radio are now old enough to appreciate her. The style that “BRAT” is shaped around even feels nostalgic to her older classics, even by a lyric as simple as “I wanna dance to me” in the song “Club Classics.” 

Additionally, many of the lyrics on this record include some vulnerability that Gen-Z can begin to connect to. In the song “I think about it all the time,” Charli opens up about her thought process behind aging and the inner debate of whether she wants to have a child. The lyric “She’s a radiant mother, and he’s a beautiful father // And now they both know these things that I don’t” is thought-provoking. The fear of missing out on something like this is almost bigger than the desire to actually have a child, and it’s a very interesting feeling that I had never thought about. 

“Girl, so confusing” at first listen can seem like more of a lighthearted track, but it offers a deep meaning delivered in a way that feels like Charli is revealing everything that goes through her head as it comes up. The song feels like a part two to Lorde’s “Secrets From A Girl Who’s Seen It All,” which is perfect that Charli brought Lorde on for the remix. 

I have a feeling that “BRAT” is going to go down as one of my favorite albums of all time, partly because of the vulnerability that I can relate to, but also just because of how fun all of the songs are– I feel like I’ve been listening to all of the tracks so much, yet they never get old. Some of my personal favorites are “Everything is romantic,” “Apple” and “Talk talk” because of the vocal delivery and fun production style.

Now, taking it down a notch to the mellow, vibey, and, well, a charming album by Clairo. I was a big fan of Clairo’s new sonic style, which she revealed in her last album, “Sling.” I loved that it felt summery yet mellow, and the melodies reallystruck me as unique. “Charm” feels like a second installment of this style. If I ever got a record player, this would be one of the first vinyls I’d purchase. I want to just sit with it and think. While “BRAT” is something I want to feel, “Charm” is something I want to savor. 

Clairo opened strong with the first single, “Sexy to Someone,” which is a song that expresses the feeling of wanting to be desired. This feeling is a topic that comes up in basically any love song, but the sentiment of wanting to be “sexy to someone” is a new delivery that I haven’t heard before. Clairo states, “I want to be sexy to someone; is that too much to ask?” She clearly says what is going through her head, which is why I feel like a lot of people can relate to this song. 

Something that makes Clairo stand out in the current world of pop is her production style. “Charm” is self-produced, with co-production by Leon Michels, and the album references music from the late 60’s and early 70’s. Some of these references can be found in Clairo’s curated Spotify “Mixtape,” such as Margo Guryan, a musician of the late 1960s who has similarly mellow music with beautiful lyrics. The track “Echo” especially feels like a reference to this era of music. It’s groovy and smoky, with some drawing synths that are even a bit spooky. It’s a song I’d love to listen to late at night with an ambient glow of a warm light. My favorite part is at the end when she sings, “Our love is meant to be shared,” while the drums pause a beat and then kick back in with the line “while our love goes nowhere.” 

The poetic style of Clairo’s lyrics blends well with the sound. While some lyrics are easy to interpret, some are left a mystery, like in the song “Glory of The Snow.” The song seems to tell a story of getting over a past lover, yet the lyrics are vague enough to be interpreted in multiple ways. Listeners seem to have really connected with the song “Juna,” which is an innocent and pure love song. Clairo sings, “You make me wanna go dancing //You make me wanna try on feminine,” and simply, “You know me.” There’s nothing to declare but the pure connection she feels with her muse.

While some people are picking sides and stating whether they fall into the category of “BRAT Summer” or “Charm Summer,” I find that there’s a place for both of these albums, even within the same day. For example, after I finish writing this article, I plan to blast “BRAT” on my way to and from the beach, and then cozy up on the couch after a nice post-beach shower and listen to “Charm” while drinking a cup of tea.