The XX

The XX are a three-piece from South London who have managed to gain recognition with a sound which is not commonplace in todays market. It is abstract, dreamy and bassy with beautiful soft vocals. A fusion of styles to create an urban, idyllic noise.

Looks

Amazing design. The cover has a cut out X on both sides, which is filled in by the inner white vinyl holder. It is simple and sleek, and stands out - mirroring the band’s image. The LP itself matches the look of the casing and has an interesting windmill-esque ‘spin effect’ on side A, whilst side B displays the track listings. It also comes with a large, square poster, one side has the band’s logo, the other displays the lyrics for each song with a range of soft focus, abstract, disco-light inspired images.

Sound

Compared to the digital formats the sound is warmer and for me the dreaminess seems to shine through more. After listening to high-bitrate, digital line out and the LP, the main difference I find comes from the tonality of the voices and the bass blending ever so slightly better.

The music itself is just stunning and it’s easy to hear how they managed to amass such a large amount of love and praise from fans and critics alike.

My favourite tracks are VCR, Fantasy, Shelter, Basic Space and I also have to opt for the Intro. Incredibly relaxing and introspective. I recall reading an interview in the NME where the singers mentioned that the lyrics are rather ambiguous and as a result the listener can dream up their own images and thoughts. I couldn’t agree more and I can honestly say that I have my own short mental stories for each song.

Accompany

I find The XX to be a great aid for loosening the mind. Burn some incense, drop your shoulders and reflect. For me it’s quite powerful music so I find it hard to have going on in the background.

I’m going to add that you could probably whip this bad-boy out with a new girl/boy when they come back to yours and it will almost definitely go down well and significantly aid your quest in to their pants.