Thanks to both canny use in a pivotal scene of the HBO show Girls and a memorable cover by Sesame Street's Cookie Monster, Icona Pop reached mega-fame months before even releasing their debut album. Their scorching dancefloor stomper "I Love It," penned by dark pop songstress Charli XCX, has been practically inescapable since its first appearance on the internet last May. The duo's meteoric rise is all the more impressive given that Caroline Hjelt and… more »
"We fear rejection, prize attention, crave affection/ Dream, dream, dream of perfection!" That's the refrain of "Salty Sweet," a song MS MR wrote about signing to a major label — but on their stellar debut, Secondhand Rapture, it would seem that the duo's fears didn't materialize. Not only do Lizzy Plapinger and Max Hershenow deliver an array of haunting, period-skipping pop gems: They strike a rare balance between maintaining their DIY background and opening up… more »
Charli XCX's dancefloor-ready songs of lost love and new crushes may seem world-weary coming from a 19-year-old, but the rising starlet is already a performance veteran. Since beginning her singing career at warehouse parties in London at the age of 14, the art-school dropout has spent the last five years carefully constructing her persona.
As her clever Twitter bio declares, Charli champions a new era of empowered female pop stars, counting Grimes, Skylar Grey and Little… more »
