Hello, Hawks! Welcome to my third year of writing opinions almost nobody asked for. If you told me in the spring when I left campus that the first piece I’d write about this year would be about Noah Kahan, I would say, “Yeah, that sounds about right.” But the same can not be said if you replaced Noah Kahan with Charli XCX. Boy did she pop back on the scene! As an avid Noah fan girl (having seen him in the most magical Friday night in Fenway fashion this summer), I’m sure it won’t surprise you which season of music I prefer. But let’s look a little closer.

The term “Brat summer”, inspired by Charli XCX’s album named “BRAT” (which came out in early June of 2024) was defined by Glamour as “an aesthetic and a way of life…evokes quintessential millennial nostalgia…having an existential crisis while trying to numb it all with a feral party, and it’s oh so millennial.” It’s a bit all over the place for sure. All summer, the iconic lime green background and Arial black lettering became ubiquitous. Flooding Instagram and TikTok was the iconic dance to “Apple”, and the term “brat” became part of everyday language for the exponentially growing fanbase. Even celebrities took to the trend. My personal favorite was Nikki Hiltz, who performed the “Apple” dance multiple times throughout their Olympic experience… right up to the walk out onto the track for a race! This week, Charli XCX took to Instagram to say that a revamped version of the album, “Brat and it’s completely different but also still brat” would be released on October 11th.

Stick Season, on the other hand, is all things a crunchy fall New England should be. Noah Kahan gave Northerners the same sense of regional pride the South does with his 2022 album “Stick Season”. Kahan himself said stick season is the period “between the fall and snow”, which New Englanders know means most of fall, as the aesthetic autumnal bliss lasts far shorter than we all hope. Kahan’s lyrics about the cold and darkness of the colder days of fall to relate to his struggles resonates with listeners who connect with the familiar feeling of impending winter and mental health alike. From the mountaineer sound of the folk to the aesthetic of the album, I can truly say I’ve never seen a vibe quite like “Stick Season” that really captures the time period as well. Nothing makes me feel prouder to be from New England than walking outside wearing a flannel shirt and feeling the dry, nippy air with Noah blasting through my ears.

So which is more your vibe? Brat summer or Stick Season? I’m definitely more of a Stick Season kind of person (even though I will complain the second the weather drops below 45 degrees). What about you? Is Brat Summer more for you? Let us know on our socials @thehawksherald on Instagram. Now or later, we’ll all be here forever.