XPN Welcomes The XX
-Courtesy of XPN’s Website..
XPN Welcomes The XX
Presented by Merriam Theater at Merriam Theater
October 4, 2010
The XX are a quartet of 19-year-olds from London, featuring the dual lead vocals of Romy Madley-Croft and Oliver Sim (who also play lead and bass guitar respectively), Baria Quereshi (keyboards and guitar), and Jamie Smith (beats, MPC sampler). These childhood friends came together while attending southwest London’s Elliot School—whose alumni also include such acclaimed boundary-pushers as Burial, Four Tet, and Hot Chip. Bonding over a shared love of stripped-down anti-folk and mid-90s R&B, The XX’s unique sound embraces a wide range of influences —everything from Aaliyaah to Cocorosie, Rhianna to The Cure, Missy Elliot to the Chromatics, The Kills to Ginuwine, Pixies to Mariah Carey, and Justin Timberlake to Tracey & The Plastics. These influences combine via beautiful, hushed vocal duets and a brilliantly inventive use of samplers and low-end frequencies to produce a unique brand of starkly sweet melancholic pop. The band’s hauntingly soulful sound truly takes shape on their debut release, XX.
