Tom: Starting a track with distorted feedback is a brave choice in a world where people skip very, very quickly.
Tim: My first thought, immediate when I pressed play, was “oof, blimey”; that changed briefly to “oh, hmm” before going right back to blimey when that autotune kicked in properly. You’re not wrong.
Tom: In fact, I’d classify nearly all the synth pads in here as brave, particularly in the verse: the percussion that’s just a noise sample, the bass that sounds like it came from a really cheap 80s synthesiser. And the glitch samples on final chorus is… I mean, all I can think of is ‘brutal’.
Tim: Yeah – much as I’ve been a fan of Charli XCX previously, I’m struggling to find anything I like about this. The melody in the middle eight, perhaps?
Tom: But — and this is really strange for me to say — I don’t find it unpleasant at all.
Tim: Huh, okay.
Tom: It’s not like the producers are just dipping their toe into the water and giving one thing that could grate. The whole track is experimental enough (by pop music standards, at least) that I… I think I see what they were going for?
Tim: I guess, yeah, and I can agree with that – an experimental track doesn’t necessarily make a pleasant listen, though.
Tom: And if all else fails, there’s still a conventional pop vocal in there to hold on to as a lifebuoy.
Tim: Autotuned to hell and back.
Tom: It’s not going on my playlist any time soon, but I think I can see what they were going for. And I think I like it.
Tim: Nope, sorry – I’m out.