Move over Kate Bush! The new voice of “Wuthering Heights” is Charli xcx, whose haunting soundtrack to Emerald Fennell’s new big screen reimagining of Emily Brontë’s gothic tale of love, heartbreak and haunting is poised to darken and deepen our aural landscape.
The recording artist has form with era-defining albums – 2024’s epochal Brat was a summer phenomenon that found its way into that year’s US presidential election. But inspired by Fennell’s take on Brontë’s masterpiece, the mood has turned murky and melancholy. “I think I’m going to die in this house,” intones the deep-voiced refrain on House, the pop singer’s collaboration with the legendary John Cale, which was the first track to be released from the new album. “I’d rather watch my skin bleed/ In the eye of your storm,” she sings on Chains of Love, a moody synth-pop ballad that heightened the sense of gothic romance in the trailer ahead of the film’s 13 February release for Galentine’s Day and Valentine’s Day.
