Wednesday 15 May 2019

New Music: Charli XCX - Blame It On Your Love (featuring Lizzo)


Over the last day or so Charli XCX and Lizzo have been teasing a track that they’ve recorded together. 'BOUT 2 SAVE POP MUSIC,' the sign in the picture proclaimed (see above).

At first Blame It On Your Love could seem like a disappointment; it’s a remix / rework of Track 10 - my favourite tune from Charli’s Pop 2 record. Why remix a great tune? It seems silly – it's like taking a Michelin starred restaurant meal and throwing some Nando's perri perri lemon & herb sauce over it - it might still taste OK, but the chances of improving things are very limited. But then music, like food, is all about taste.

And yes, this version isn't as spectacular as the original. However, the Stargate reggaeton / tropical house pop production on the track probably makes it a little more accessible to the masses. If there’s a non-sweary edit it could even get some radio play. After all the super-synthetic, apocalyptic, bonkers, build-to-ecstasy version on Pop 2 with it’s weird Aphex Twin style intro, harp, Charli’s processed vocals and PC Music production was pretty out there. 

However, Blame It On Your Love reminds us (as if we needed reminding) that Charli XCX knows how to write a hook, so be prepared to get fully pulled in by this one. As a bonus we also get Lizzo, although her appearance on the track is fleetingly short and seems a little bit phoned in: “Blame it on the juice, looking at my booty like you don’t know what to do,” she raps.

If I hadn’t heard Track 10 before this I’d have been claiming that it was time to grab a cocktail and jump into your neon coloured swimwear as this could be one of the party pop songs of the summer, instead I’ll say it could still be, but to turn up the heat even higher put on Track 10 and get well and truly burnt.

Other fun facts about Lizzo and Charli XCX: In the last couple of years they’ve both recorded songs called Boys. Both are very good although bizarrely Lizzo didn’t put hers on her album, although it can be found on the Deluxe edition, so play that instead.

Charli XCX - Blame It On Your Love (featuring Lizzo)

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