Dark, emotive, and hypnotic, all words that aptly describe the full range of The XX's style. This four piece band consisting of Romy Madley Croft (vocals, lead guitar), Oliver Sim (vocals, bass guitar), and Jamie Smith, known as Jaime XX(beats, MPC sampler), and Second guitarist and keyboardist Baria Qureshi, hails out of London mixing R&B and classic 80's guitar riffs. Their debut album "XX" won the Barclaycard Mercury Prize, awarded to the best album from the UK and Ireland, in 2010. It also reached #9 on Rolling Stones albums of the year list for the same year.
What caught my attention about this band was their significant use of bass guitar. I'm a fan of any band that can effectively use the bass guitar to link both the beat of the song (Whether it be actual drums or a sampling device) to the lead guitar. Their songs have a quality which makes you sit back and take in each note from each instrument. Vocals are often done in harmony and done quite well. Croft and Sim play off each others voices and bring you a sound equalized in highs and lows.
-Alejandro
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