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Even as the summer wanes, the essence of Charli XCX’s “brat summer” is more alive than ever. The pop artist’s sensational sixth album “BRAT” continues to cement itself as one of the top albums of the year with the recently released “Talk talk” remix featuring Grammy-nominated artist Troye Sivan.
The track begins with echoes of Charli’s “Talk to me” and Sivan’s lighthearted “Troye, baby,” as Dua Lipa joins the opening with her soft-sung, Spanish vocals, offering a path to a melodic, dream-like state that paves the way for Sivan’s opening verse. He paints a picture of nervousness, intrigue, and uncertainty in meeting someone new with lines like “Are we getting too close?” and a few lyrics later, “Do yo-you ever think about me?.” As the track transitions into the rhythmic, house music pre-chorus, the desire for connection is stressed through louder lines like “Can you stick with me? Maybe just for life.”
In an interview with “People” magazine after “BRAT” was first released, Charli shared that the original version of “Talk talk” was about an encounter with her now-fiancé as they navigated a then-secret romance. The flurry of emotions surrounding consistent, mutual glances in a crowded room as well as spur-of-the-moment decisions in “Talk talk” are only amplified in the remix. The crave for quality time and subtle obsession is highlighted as Charli melodically sings “Talk to me in your own-made up language / Doesn’t matter if I understand it,” alongside a drum beat that progressively gets louder, the human desire for closeness and the intensity it can reach is personalized.
Sivan rejoins the song in the post-chorus where the momentary halt in production allows listeners to digest his airy vocals in their entirety while engaging in the fun, flirtatious nature of lines like “I wanna fly you out to Amsterdam / I got a good hotel to fuck you in.” The entertaining, glitchy lines of speaking in different languages such as “Talk to me in French, French, French, French” and “Talk-talk-talk-talk-talk-talk to me in Spanish, Spanish, Spanish, Spanish” provide a tasteful medley of Charli and Sivan’s voices with an increase in pitch for each, as well as perfectly timed ad-libs. Ultimately, the distorted vocals add to the erratic, human experience of instant attraction and impulse.
In Charli’s second verse, the reduced production allows for an intimate listen about her developing connection with someone, stressed through lines like “You’re thinkin’ about me / No don’t pretend that you aren’t.” With the synth beats that follow, Sivan rejoins to create a catchy post-chorus. The song returns to Dua Lipa singing in French for the outro, yet another love language that adds to the playfulness and desire within “Talk talk.”
While being unapologetically themselves with satisfying vocals, both artists open the space up for both new and old fans to indulge in the pleasures the remix has to offer. If there’s anything to be taken away from this unique collaboration, it’s that a brat autumn is imminent.
Charli XCX will release “Brat and it's completely different but also still brat,” featuring the “Talk talk” remix, on Oct. 11th.
