Charli xcx is stepping into a whole new world with the Wuthering Heights soundtrack, and she’s just dropped a second new single to tease it: “Chains of Love.” The first one, “House,” featuring John Cale, was released a few days ago.
The project grew out of her work on Emerald Fennell’s new adaptation of the classic Emily Brontë novel. Charli said she called Fennell to ask what she wanted from her after reading the script, and Fennell “coyly suggested ‘A song?’” Charli pushed that even further: “I suggested ‘An album?’ because why not?” From there, she dove head-first into a mood she describes as “raw, wild, sexual, gothic, British, tortured.” Basically a whole dramatic universe far from the life she was living at the time. “I was fucking IN,” she wrote.
And while plenty of pop artists are currently racing to bottle the electro-clash spark of Brat, Charli xcx is already off exploring an entirely new landscape, one that dips into darker territory and brushes up against the kind of goth-tinged, noise-leaning intensity you’d hear from Ethel Cain.
She made most of the album with longtime collaborator Finn Keane (formerly Easyfun). The two worked with a guiding phrase they loved from John Cale: everything should feel both “elegant and brutal.” Keane even joined her on tour so they could carve out studio time almost every day.
“Chains of Love” reflects that exact spirit. It’s a big, emotional track built on cinematic strings and warped electronic textures, yet anchored by a simple, heartfelt melody. Charli’s filtered vocals still manage to feel deeply human, giving the whole thing a kind of romantic ache.
Charli xcx‘s new song also appears in the trailer for the Wuthering Heights film, where it sets the tone perfectly for the intense world she’s helping bring to life. February 13 can’t come soon enough.
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