If there was ever something that could shock away the midweek doldrums, it’s the sight of Charli xcx spitting on the floor as she performs the remix of Guess featuring Billie Eilish, only to dive to the ground and lick it up. Hygienic? Perhaps not. But is it Brat? Clearly. This is the opening night of the Brat tour, after all.
Of course, this is a show many have been waiting for. While Charli’s sixth album was only released earlier this summer, the record’s impact – from its lime-green coloured album cover, messy party girl aesthetic and subsequent co-option by political figures – has led to the kind of cultural dominance that most pop stars dream of. For Charli, it was a long time coming: having spent most of her career as pop’s most innovative outsider slowly inching her way into the mainstream, she finally shot into her imperial phase with the best album of her career.
Watching her perform, however, that graft was clearly worth it: tonight’s show is a masterclass in stage presence. She forgoes the bells and whistles associated with an arena show. There are no backing dancers, no elaborate sets, and aside from support act Shygirl, who pops up at the beginning to perform their remix of 365, no special guests. Instead, for 90 minutes Charli is on stage alone. This is her moment of glory.
The setlist is mostly Brat-focused, bulldozing through 360, Von Dutch and Rewind in a hedonistic rush. Even the sombre I Might Say Something Stupid gets dragged into the fray, the song exploding with synths as Charli thrashes on stage. It is often relentless, but exhilaratingly so: when Everything is Romantic, Speed Drive and Sympathy is a Knife come like a shot of adrenaline. Girl, So Confusing and Apple get the biggest response, Charli taking a smoke break on stage during the latter, and there’s a surprisingly moving tribute to the late producer Sophie when she performs the clubby remix of So I for the first time.
The energy turns feral during Guess and gets messier during 365, Charli crawling with sweaty abandon along the catwalk. It’s so wild that you feel like you’ve taken an intoxicated trip to some sleazy after-hours club. That she sells it while putting on one of the best shows of the year is proof of Charli’s powers as a pop star.
• Charli xcx plays O2 Arena, London, 28 November; BP Pulse Live, Birmingham, 29 November; and OVO Hydro, Glasgow, 2 December.
