Charli XCX @ bp pulse LIVE, 29th November 2024
It is impossible to think of a more zeitgeist-capturing concert in 2024 than Charli XCX’s tour. Her most recent album, “BRAT”, is an era-defining masterpiece which took over popular culture when released earlier this year. From remixes with your favourite popstars, every brand apparently having a ‘brat summer’, Kamala Harris’ use of the album title in her presidential election campaign and Collins Dictionary declaring ‘brat’ the word of the year; the record and its neon green artwork have been inescapable.
The accompanying arena tour has four stops in the UK and tonight in Birmingham is the penultimate show. When tickets first went on sale, an arena tour seemed ambitious. Now, the resale waiting list is enormous and it’s a must-see concert.
There is palpable excitement en route to the arena as a sea of neon green surges towards it far earlier than people usually tend to arrive at concerts. People are dancing to a DJ in the foyer (with a setlist including songs from Six The Musical) and queueing to have their photo taken in front of an “I’m so Julia” sign. There is a real sense that this is more than just another concert in the calendar.
In the bowl, the PA system plays tracks from Charli XCX’s discography before the show begins. This is a wonderful acknowledgment of the wealth of material she has produced over the years. Much of it more critically acclaimed than commercially successful, Charli’s ‘moment’ has been long overdue.
South London’s Shygirl opens tonight and achieves the rare feat of getting those in seats on their feet for the support act. There’s a false start due to technical difficulties but as soon as the ravey intro of “THICC” kicks in, it’s Friday night and the party has started. Sonically, it’s the perfect opener and the singer undoubtedly picked up hundreds of new fans tonight.
At 9pm, the lights suddenly drop and there is a Mexican wave of screaming; it’s the sort of energy you only tend get at big pop concerts where a lot of the audience are younger and it may be one of their first shows. Charli doesn’t appear immediately and, instead SOPHIE’s “Immaterial” is played in full. It’s a beautiful moment to see the late artist’s music enjoyed in the sort of venue that she undoubtedly would have gone on to play herself and it’s a fitting tribute from Charli to her friend and collaborator.
16 of the 22 tracks tonight are from ‘BRAT’ and its deluxe editions, the remixed versions often weaving their way in and out of the setlist. It’s not a career-spanning set or a greatest hits concert, it’s about the here and now. The album is chaotic and hedonistic and the show expertly encapsulates that.
More stripped back than many arena concerts, it’s just Charli on stage – no band, no dancers, no DJ – which is quite different to the ‘main pop girl’ spectacle of her ‘Crash’ shows in 2022. Despite the minimal setup, it still manages to feel enormous. That’s partly because of Charli’s relentless energy and sheer star quality, partly the enormity of these dance pop anthems and aided by an ‘up for it’ crowd all ready to go from the second she steps onto the stage for ‘365’.
There are some big production moments – she is hooked to a rising platform for ‘Talk Talk’, struts through an under walkway cage in the golden circle for ‘Spring Breakers’ and dances under an impressive rain shower for ‘Track 10’.
Even album tracks are welcomed like hit singles. The combination of the gigantic lighting rigs (used to particularly good effect during the Barbie Movie track ‘Speed Drive’) and 15,000 enthusiastic dancers make BP Pulse Live feel like a sweaty nightclub. Somehow, Charli managed to make this show simultaneously massive and intimate.
Interestingly, the encore is made up of 4 non-BRAT tracks and not necessarily the mega hits you would expect. Hit singles like ‘1999’, ‘Boom Clap’ or ‘Beg For You’ are skipped and, instead, we get ‘party 4 u’ from Charli’s best, but second-least successful, LP ‘How I’m Feeling Now’ and the title track from her ‘Vroom Vroom’ EP. These songs may have not been big hitters at the time but undoubtedly paved the way for BRAT. Charli XCX’s success is not sudden or overnight, she’s been releasing exhilarating pop music of this quality for more than a decade and it was great to have an acknowledgment of some of these earlier tracks. Those of us who have followed Charli for some time often found it infuriating when songs like these were not getting the attention they deserved at the time. It makes this moment, hearing these songs in a sold out arena, all the more special. It’s been a long time coming and no pop star deserves this more right now.
She may be having a ‘moment’ right now but this is no flash-in-the pan success. This is an artist who has tirelessly and consistently challenged the ideas of what pop music should sound like. Tonight, she says to the crowd “we did this on our own terms” and she really did. BRAT summer may be over but Charli XCX is here for life.
Review: Ryan Simmonds
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