Charli XCX’s ear for heady electronic cloudscapes should be beyond reproach. On her excellent debut album True Romance, the British singer thrillingly reclaims Gold Panda’s “You” as a brutal dirt-off-your-shoulder dismissal, but that’s just the start. She also recently transformed Norwegian space-disco maestro Lindstrøm’s “F??r-i-k??l” into apocalyptically romantic pop with her unmistakable brash sensibility (on display in poppier form on her Supergirls Superlove and I Like Boys Who Cry mixes). Now, Idolator points to the “I Love It” co-songwriter’s latest collaboration with Boston produced J£ZUS MILLION, who previously oversaw True Romance tracks “What I Like” and “Cloud Aura.”
Set to appear on U.K. record label Double Denim’s upcoming Double Denim Vol. 1 compilation, due in September, “Illusions Of” swathes Charli XCX in some her most warped, cracked-mirror shadows yet. It’s woozy, fractured, bass-heavy electronic-pop, and Charli XCX’s contribution is no less disjointed, veering from the Glen Campbell-channeling image “rhinestone roses for a rhinestone cowgirl” to more generic talk about being “ready to fall in love.” For a long period, the lead vocals cut out completely. It wouldn’t have been a standout on the album, but when Charli XCX unites with J£ZUS MILLION, even their lesser tracks can be darkly compelling.
