Charli XCX breaks the rules at Reading 2015

Pop stars don’t have the best history of playing Reading. Generally, they’ll end up copping a few pint glasses of warm yellow fluid, maybe even a wheel chair. It’s usually not the best idea.

But then Charli XCX isn’t your usual pop star, and while this may be her first Reading since she became a Genuine Mainstream Star, she’s done this before. She knows what it’s about. There’ll be no prim and proper super stage managed ‘performance’ - that’s not her style anyway - tonight, we’re going to have some fun.

Because, unlike her peers, Charli belongs here. There’s as much punk in her snotty, bratty recent material as can be found in any number of main stage bands. In your face, unrelenting; this makes far more sense for her than a V Festival ever would.

And, from the sounds of it, it’s not a road she’s going to leave soon. Sure, Charli has pulled dates to be creative, and talked about changing styles as her instincts demand, but amongst ‘Sucker’ tracks ‘Gold Coins’ and ‘London Queen’ sits a new track - ‘Mow That Lawn’. Played on the road over the past few months, it’s darker, snottier and more fun than ever. The rules don’t apply to Charli XCX.