The xx, England’s up-and-coming indie band, will be touring across the United States this October to promote the release of their second studio length album, Coexist. The group is made up of three members — Romy Madely Croft, Oliver Sim, and Jamie Smith — who have known one another since childhood, and grew up performing music together.
The tour will consist of 16 dates, beginning on the West Coast and heading east. On October 6, the band will be performing at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle, Washington. Along the way, they will be making stops at many venues including The Boulevard Pool at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas on October 10, the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles on October 13, The House of Blues in Boston on October 25, and two performances at the Paradise Theater in the Bronx on October 26 and October 28. The tour will come to an end on October 30 at the Rams Head Live in Baltimore.
For those who do not know the xx, they can be best described as simple. The New York Times reported that on the day their second album became available in stores, the group celebrated by going out for a meal at McDonald’s and later getting their band’s “xx” symbol as a tattoo. Smith and Sim had two small x’s tattooed on their inner wrists, and Croft had a single x tattooed on each outer wrist.
The group has gained followers through social media, and released their self-titled first album in 2009. Their music has been called simple as well, but it has not kept them from growing a loyal fan base.
“The group has built its own idiosyncratic musical grammar, one in which each element stands on its own and commands attention,” the New York Times reports. Further stating the band’s unique sound, “…In gothic electronic soul songs that are sometimes not more than collections of hushes and gasps, brought together at an oozing place…. And yet, what the xx makes is unmistakably pop music, even absent 95 percent of the usual component parts that would usually go into such a venture.”
On their Facebook page, the band mentions that its musical influences vary significantly, from Aaliyah, Chromatics, The Cure, Metronomy, and more. Group member, Jamie Smith has gained popularity on his own with other musical icons, creating beats for Radiohead, Adele, and Florence and the Machine.
Coexist features 11 songs, nine of which are titled with single, but meaningful words. Titles include “Angels,” “Unfold,” “Tides,” “Missing,” and “Reunion.” In their iTunes album information it reads, “…With a palpable tension between then, it’s as if they’re singing on opposite sides of a bedroom wall. Even when their harmonies are closer, the xx further their mastery of pulling beauty from restraint.”
The group is still adjusting to live performances, but has certainly come a long way from their early days in England pubs. Tickets for the tour are already on sale, and are still available for all of the venues.
