Music Review: Icona Pop & Charli XCX "I Love It"

Icona Pop & Charli XCX

I Love It

Album: Icona Pop

Year: 2012

        An impulsive thought leads to destruction in the modish “I Love It.”

         A growling synth opens the single, setting a careless tone. Caroline Hjelt (for brevity) is sitting outside on the lawn chair, smoking a cigarette, while watching the occasional breeze move the trees in the backyard back and forth. She stamps the butt of her cigarette out on the ashtray and then begins to pace. She can’t be here anymore. She has to leave. Now. She starts picking up her boyfriend’s things: the magazines he reads lying on the table and takes the clothes in the dryer and stuffs them all in a garbage bag. With her foot, she kicks it downstairs. Then, she takes the keys and starts driving. She weaves in and out of traffic, horns blasting one after another, as she heads to the bridge. Once it’s in her sight, she steps on the gas and drives towards it. Everything is silent for a moment as she watches the smoke come from her car.  She tries to cover her mouth as she coughs but someone is tugging at her arm, dragging her out of the car.  Less than a minute later, she sees the car explode. (“I got this feeling on the summer day when you were gone/I crashed my car into the bridge. I watched, I let it burn./I threw your shit into a bag and pushed it down the stairs/I crashed my car into the bridge.”)

         None of it matters to her. It was from her old life and she’s thrilled to see the ashes of it. It no longer exists.  (“I don't care, I love it/I don't care.”)

            The first verse and chorus are sung again.

             In the bridge, Charli XCX says her boyfriend would rather stay home in their apartment, eating television dinners, watching history from a screen. She’d rather drive on the freeway, choosing a destination by chance and experience what’s there. He tells her it’s unrealistic to live the way she wants. Planning needs to be involved. After the decision is made, she goes outside and smokes. He stands next to her, asking her why she isn’t doing anything. His only concern is the enviroment and being the only one in the house with a full-time job. She, however, sees working as necessary and has to think about her financial future. Jobs aren’t always available. She can’t let him think for her. (“You're on a different road, I'm in the Milky Way/You want me down on earth, but I am up in space/You're so damn hard to please, we gotta kill this switch/You're from the 70's, but I'm a 90's bitch/I love it!/I love it!”)

              The first verse is sung again.

             The chorus is sung twice.

 
             The bridge is sung again.

              The chorus is sung three times to end the single.

Icona Pop’s sardonic, riled vocals are a straight line, forming little expression around the chaos. It may have been a dramatic choice but it freed her from her confining relationship. Charli XCX fits in well with Icona Pop, maintaining the same level of haughtiness they display.  

    The 90s reference is to the early to mid years of the era.  It shares the cynicism and disenchantment that were prevalent. There’s also the presence of irony, giving it a post-grunge feel.

      The nonchalant “I Love It” takes pleasure in its misery, opting for the most dangerous way out.