Not one to lose control of her creamy smooth pop icon goddess (yes, that’s a Madonna reference) status, Charli XCX has followed the release of Crash quite quickly with a deluxe edition of the album. And, as we’ve seen of late, the deluxe edition can firmly reinvigorate an already fire album (hear also: Ariana Grande’s positions [deluxe], Tove Lo’s Sunshine Kitty: Paw Prints Edition, MARINA’s Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land [Deluxe], Allie X’s Cape God [Deluxe] and Britney Spears’ Glory [Deluxe]). Not that Charli needed to remind us so soon… but such is the nature of an accelerated pop star driving in the fast lane of the twenty-first century.
Picking up where “Twice” left off, XCX decides to scrap the end of the world theme as her closer for Crash in favor of a new segue that actually still applies to that motif: selfishness. The very cause of what will ultimately lead to an irreparable climate change aftermath. In fact, one could just as easily imagine this song playing during Don’t Look Up’s tag scene of Jason (Jonah Hill) saying into his smartphone camera for a livestream to no one, “What’s up? I’m the last man on Earth.”
Co-produced by Lotus IV, George Daniel (of The 1975) and Deaton Chris Anthony, the playfulness of Charli’s tone as she sings, “Put your hands up if you’re selfish” is perfectly complemented by a 90s-inspired house rhythm. And, if we’re being honest, “I’m a selfish girl/I gotta put myself first” is becoming more than just a “millennial” mantra, but rather, the mantra that all women seem to be realizing works best after years wasted on a man who inevitably disappoints. Or just breaks up with you because you haven’t “grown” (which even Charli can be accused of).
And, speaking of millennial mantras, the next track offers one in spades: “How Can I Not Know What I Need Right Now.” Produced solely by George Daniel (the bloke Charli is supposedly dating), the upbeat, “cocksure” tone is in direct contrast to sentiments like, “I broke down in Paris/Tried to hide my emotions/All flew out my body/But then I cried hard in the hotel/Did that show in London/And I passed out at the party/It doesn’t make me happy/How can I not know what I need right now?” There’s something decidedly La Dolce Vita about it, and one could just as easily picture Marcello (Marcello Mastroianni) dancing to it during another insipid party. Additionally, it’s a song that comes across like it could have been sung by Tove Lo as well—though it would have a more “Habits (Stay High)” vibe, sonically.
Always moving too fast (even during the pandemic with her work on how i’m feeling now), Charli suggests she has little time to consider much when it comes to what she truly wants, or how she’s actually feeling, hence the lyrics, “I used to think I knew what I wanted/I’m high enough from all the high pressure/I just wanna make myself better on—Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday.” It’s the days of the week that all run together (and serve as the chorus) in making her question everything. Even something as allegedly “fulfilling” as pop stardom.
Being that the original title of the album was going to be Sorry If I Hurt You, it makes sense to have a song of the same name on it, even if “only” in a deluxe format. And since it appears as though Charli’s long-term relationship with Huck Kwong is over (for real this time), the logical assumption would be that “Sorry If I Hurt You” is a nod to him. Granted, she claimed of the title, “I liked [it] because that’s a sentence that you can say in the past, present and future, and it still means the same thing.” Awash in 80s sonic sensibilities, the production here is the work of Lotus IV and Deaton Chris Anthony. It’s opening notes almost remind one of Real McCoy’s “Run Away” before leading into Charli musing, “I talked to you the way I talk to myself/I started taking you for granted and that’s not right/Stopped saying ‘thank you’ when I needed your help/But still I’m taking you for granted and that’s not right.”
As the slow revelations trickle in too late, Charli also has the pre-chorus epiphany, “I never really listen/But when you’re gone a part of me is missing/I know it’s complicated, we both feel the distance/I really hope that you’ll forgive me one day.” The intimation of a long-distance relationship (also alluded to in the lyrics of “Beg For You” with that “catch a flight” line) would explain some of the hurt involved, to boot. And finally, Charli leads into the gut-wrenching chorus, “I’m sorry if I hurt you/I’m sorry if I hurt you/I’m sorry if I hurt you/I only make it worse.”
An admission that’s somewhat anomalous to hear from women, as it’s pretty much always men fucking shit up. And if women are the “responsible” party for the demise, it’s usually because of something a man did to make her throw in the towel. That is, before using it to wipe the blood off her face from the car crash of a relationship in question.
As for the new last track on Crash, per Charli’s own admission, “What You Think About Me” was something she’d been sitting on since she was seventeen… at least in a more germinal form. And it does bear that inimitable confidence of someone who is seventeen, while actually working even better than “Twice” as a finale for Crash. Mainly because Charli’s entire career can be summed up by the declaration, “I don’t give a fuck what you think about me.” Teaming with her go-to favorite, A. G. Cook, on production, the light-hearted backbeat effortlessly complements the decidedly Lady Sovereign-inspired vocals (it sounds like a near-replica of “Love Me or Hate Me,” especially when Charli shouts, “Yeah, fuck you!”).
The song then concludes with those “Janet-esque stabs” Charli mentioned Crash’s sound is all about embodying. The addition of these four tracks serve to emphasize that sonic thesis statement, so to speak, and round out what is sure to remain one of the best records of the year (apart from, obviously, Motomami—incidentally, released the same day as Crash).
