Charli XCX - Nuclear Seasons

There are great expectations surrounding 18-year-old singer Charli XCX, and her name has been bandied about as one of 2012’s brightest hopes. It is easy to see why people are getting excited about her. ’Nuclear Seasons’ is a supremely smooth pop song with subtle dark undertones and its smooth and polished sound ticks all the boxes.

The music is blustery electro pop, all shiny synths and dramatic sweeping and crashing electro drums with Charli XCX’s icily pure voice very much to the fore. In contrast to other electro pop artists like La Roux and Little Boots, Charli XCX seems to have a darker edge to her sound and has even described her music as “goth pop”. The artwork to this single, which sees her looking like a slightly more glamorous version of The Cure’s Robert Smith, certainly matches the description.

‘Nuclear Seasons’ is described as being about “A sense of decay,” not sentiments that are usually found in pop singles but ones that mark Charli XCX out as a rather more interesting character to your usual pop starlets. Whilst not quite as good as her debut single, the startlingly melodramatic ‘Stay Away’, it will no doubt help to build the foundations for a singer who should be one of 2012’s more fascinating tips.