It's been a long awaited tour, but The
XX finally came out from wherever they were hiding (it turns out they
had in fact been making an incredible second album). Brixton academy
was full to the brim, get any closer than three rows in and you would
be hated by several north London scenesters. The atmosphere was
intense as the crowd anticipated this long awaited tour. As the
guitar and lyrics of Angels could be heard from somewhere, none of
the 'XX's could be seen, just a dark stage and a brewing audience.
Suddenly the curtain drop's and the crowd get blinded by a huge 'X'
and the band dressed in their traditional black clothing, looking as
laid back as ever.
The XX aren't a band you see live to
have a good dance and get drunk, they are to be observed first hand
how they play their incredible music. Regrettably we arrived late, so
didn't have the greatest views but that didn't phase us or anyone
else around us.
Admittedly the first album was better
than the second, but in their defence it was pretty hard to beat. So
the crowd reacted exceptionally well as they exquisitely played some
of the best from the first self-titled album, including Islands and
Heart Skipped A Beat. My personal favourite from their new album is
Chained, and one of the songs I was most looking forward to hearing
live, so when they started to remix it with Artful Dodgers 'Moving
Too Fast', my heart sank a little, however they managed to pull it
off beautifully.
This is a special talent The XX are in
possession of, as they played their own cover of Last Christmas for
Radio 1's live lounge very well and also their cover of Teardrops on
the first album and their remix of You've Got The Love were top
notch!
After ticking The XX off my list of
'Bands to see live before I die', I contemplated weather or not they
should have been on there. I am not saying in any way that they did
not live up to my expectations, they were very good, it is purely for
the fact that weren't exceptionally spectacular.
(Unfortunately I lost my phone that had pictures of the gig on it, so I had to nick some off the web!)
