Co-Op Live, Manchester
The star brings hedonistic energy to this arena show, reviving the rush of her 2024-dominating sixth album with sweaty, stage-licking abandon

If there was ever something that could shock away the midweek doldrums, it’s the sight of Charli xcx spitting on the floor as she performs the remix of Guess featuring Billie Eilish, only to dive to the ground and lick it up. Hygienic? Perhaps not. But is it Brat? Clearly. This is the opening night of the Brat tour, after all.

Of course, this is a show many have been waiting for. While Charli’s sixth album was only released earlier this summer, the record’s impact – from its lime-green coloured album cover, messy party girl aesthetic and subsequent co-option by political figures – has led to the kind of cultural dominance that most pop stars dream of. For Charli, it was a long time coming: having spent most of her career as pop’s most innovative outsider slowly inching her way into the mainstream, she finally shot into her imperial phase with the best album of her career.