In the midst of all of her other recent cinematic endeavors, Charli XCX contributed a bunch of songs to the soundtrack of writer/director Emerald Fennell’s new Wuthering Heights adaptation. The movie has Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi as its stars, and Charli’s music has been pretty central to its marketing. Earlier this week, Charli gave us our first taste of the soundtrack: “House,” an ominous track that she recorded with the Velvet Underground legend John Cale. Today, another of Charli’s Wuthering Heights tracks is out in the world.
“Chains Of Love” is not an Erasure cover. That’s not the kind of thing that Charli XCX is making these days. Much like “House,” “Chains Of Love” is a huge step away from what Charli was doing with Brat last year. Instead, it’s a huge, swirling production driven by strings. But unlike “House,” “Chains Of Love” is basically a pop song. It’s a really good one, too.
Charli recorded “Chains Of Love” with longtime collaborator Finn Keane, formerly known as Easyfun, and Justin Raisen also contributed some production. The song is a big, achingly romantic ballad that combines strings with head-warping electronic effects. At the center of everything, though, is Charli’s simple, strong melody. Her vocal communicates a whole lot of human ache even through tons of electronic filters. “Chains Of Love” appears in the new Wuthering Heights trailer, and you can hear the song and see the preview below.
Charli XCX has built an impressive acting resume in just the past year, filming parts in Julia Jackman’s 100 Nights Of Hero, Romain Gavras’ Sacrifice, Pete Ohs’ Erupcja, Daniel Goldhaber’s Faces Of Death, Greg Araki’s I Want Your Sex, Cathy Yan’s The Gallerist, and Aidan Zamiri’s The Moment (based on her idea).
Wuthering Heights opens in theaters 2/13. The soundtrack album comes out the same day on Atlantic.
