On Brat and it’s completely different but also still brat, Charli xcx Twists and Subverts the Remix Album Concept

And, of course, there’s the guestlist. The album’s features are a gesture of true BRAT-ness. It’s a flex–and proof of Charli’s industry stature–that she pulled Ariana Grande out of Wicked promo, featured the often-MIA Lorde and even grabbed the first-ever Billie Eilish guest appearance, alongside respected peers like Shygirl, Caroline Polachek and Yung Lean.

But the novelty of star-power alone doesn’t make a good album. After the release of Pop 2, Charli xcx discussed how she approached her collaborations for the project: “This mixtape isn’t necessarily about me—it’s really about giving everybody their moment to own the song.” She turns to friends and frenemies, peers and protégés, role models and pop royalty to share the moment. Some hype her up, some share her sadness. The album makes magic when those collaborators say something interesting back.

On the Party Girl front, Brat and it’s completely different goes for maximalism with a host of fellow club rats. You’d be hard-pressed to find another pop star that understands the BRAT ethos more than Robyn, who kicks off the album on a “360” remix with Yung Lean. Robyn shows up as a bratty-godmother, and she delivers the line “Killin’ this shit since 1994 / Got everybody in the club dancing on their own” with the confidence of someone who’s met her own BRAT moment with aplomb. It’s a sweet relief to finally hear the “365 remix with shygirl” after months of teasing. Easyfun’s bass hits like a sniff of amyl nitrates, and Shygirl knows what it means to be a “365 Party Girl,” contributing a sweaty and sultry verse (“Too hot when I sweat / Just lick me”). But the “Club classics remix with bb trickz” is the true star of the album’s party tracks, as George Daniel’s beat clacks and swerves until it sends you down into the depths of club purgatory. “Who the fuck are you / I’m a brat / When I’m bumping that,” Charli’s pitched down vocals sneer in a steely menace. The message is clear: Clubbing is dead serious.

BRAT is an album about celebrity, but it pulled off a very Swiftian songwriting technique. It made the life of the famous feel relatable. The remix album doesn’t always find the same balance. “Sympathy is a knife featuring ariana grande” and “I might say something stupid featuring the 1975 and john hopkins” dip too much into a “Fame is prison”-type narrative, with complaints about journalists or saying the wrong thing in an interview. Grande surely has more to say about the perils of fame but, instead, she opts for unspecific language and kiss offs (“It’s a knife when you’re so pretty they think it must be fake”). Still, “Sympathy”’s production sells it; the piercing synths and chopped-up vocals give it a necessary anxious edge.

The best moments on Brat and it’s completely different appear when the collaborators act as foils, complicating their originals. On the stunning remix of “Everything is romantic,” Caroline Polachek plays mentor to Charli, giving the chairwoman of Brat Summer advice on finding beauty in the everyday when life looks especially bleak. Always an economical writer, Charli captures how it feels to have everything you want and still be empty: “Living that life is romantic, right?” she asks, a flicker of doubt in her voice. Bladee and Charli are sleepless and agitated on “Rewind.” They stare at the money and obligations piling up like bricks in a wall, locking them in. Bon Iver preserves the quiet sacredness of “I think about it all the time,” splicing Bonnie Raitt’s “Nick of Time” into a distorted whisper throughout the song. It’s tender and delicate.

Charli somehow supplements her already-perfect tribute to SOPHIE by paying her respects through an assemblage of little, human moments. Then, A.G. Cook sends it up to the sky with sawing synths. The fact that the duo added to “So I” without tarnishing it is astounding. And then, of course, there’s “Girl, so confusing featuring lorde.” It’s the beating heart of BRAT. Empathy and vulnerability are terms often thrown around to describe songwriters who dive into their pasts and excavate their histories. But the “Girl, so confusing” remix shakes with the anxiety of being real. Lorde’s verse is masterly: It’s all done in plain, unsubtle, even bratty language. There’s no need for imagery or poetry. She threads her fears and memories with candor. They reach an understanding together, capitulating with the heartfelt, “‘Cause I would ride for you, Charli.” And at the end, it soars with the relief of feeling seen.

A notorious workaholic, Charli xcx assembled the project throughout a hectic summer. You can feel its spontaneity: “Two days later, got the vocal cut,” she brags on “B2b featuring tinashe.” Charli’s best non-BRAT projects–Pop 2 and how i’m feeling now–share that same level of hasty creation. She thrives as a writer when she’s close to the source, reacting to things as they come. In her interview with Zane Lowe, she spoke about seeing those three works–Pop 2, how i’m feeling now and BRAT–as a trilogy of sorts. On “Backseat,” the opener to Pop 2, she confessed: “Run through the city at midnight to feel like a star.” Anything to feel like a star. Six years later, BRAT and it’s completely different but also still brat finds the artist’s hopes for recognition fulfilled. Now, she reckons with its ugliness and uncertainty. To be a Brat, you have to face it all.

Andy Steiner is a writer and musician. When he’s not reviewing albums, you can find him collecting ‘80s Rush merchandise. Follow him on Instagram or Twitter.