Charli XCX just announced her new album Music, Fashion, Film drops July 24. The cover alone is sending the internet into overdrive.
The album artwork features filmmaker Martin Scorsese, designer Marc Jacobs, and the Velvet Underground's John Cale—who collaborated with Charli on the track "House." Photographer Aidan Zamiri, who also shot her "Rock Music" video, captured the image.
Back in May, Charli posted on Instagram: "I never said I was making a rock album," right before dropping her single "Rock Music." On that track, she sings: "I think the dancefloor is dead, so now we're making rock music."
The pop star clarified her intentions on Instagram, writing that fans shouldn't take the lyric literally. "I'm not gonna explain where I was coming from with 'Rock Music,' but all i know is that things can be funny, earnest, sincere, and joyful all at the same time and that's what i feel about a lot of the things i make."
The album's title comes from another track, "SS26," which features wry lyricism. "When the world is gonna end, no hope for any of it," she sings, before hitting listeners with: "Yeah, we're walking on a runway that goes straight to hell / Nothing's gonna save us, not music, fashion, or film."
Both "Rock Music" and "SS26" appear on the record, and both feature prominent guitar—a sonic departure fans have been theorizing about all spring. A full tracklist hasn't dropped yet, but the album promises to be unmissably ambitious.
