Skivrecension Albumåret starts good, Christel Valsinger gives the highest score. – Norrköpings Tidningar

Score: 5. The XX: I see you

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The initial fanfaren. At first I thought it was some kind of marking from the record company to show that it was a promoexemplar I received. The XX is as well not fanfarernas band. Rather viskningarnas. But with “See You” they take a step out of the shadows. The song is more forward in the soundstage and the beats are less broken. The shy Londontrion seems to have gained in confidence and it was noticeable already with the single “On Hold” which was released in november. It has the most dance-like setting so far for a The XX song. So, yes the where fanfaren’ll be there.

But in any dansgolvseufori, it is not. The XX still makes klubbpop for introverts. No unnecessary weighing down the sound. All the building blocks are as well small. Drum machine chugging along without fill-ins and the guitar sounds desolate, sad. The break is still one of the instruments. But all the sound carries longer now. Everything has fallen into place.

Perhaps it is the joy of making music together again that is heard. The band members are friends since childhood. Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim played together already as a 3-year-olds and met with Jamie Smith when they were 11. During the school year, they made all the music in secret, but during school last year, started the the XX.

less than a 20-year-old debuted the album “xx”. The sparse instrumentation will apparently from that they could not play better than this, and they didn’t want to make music that was not possible to perform live. However, the album was a huge success and gave them the prestigious british Mercury Prize. The stars flocked to fanskaran. Rihanna and Shakira made The XX covers.

critically Acclaimed uppföljaralbumet “Coexist” came in 2012 and after a bit of touring, the band has been working on different directions. Jamie Smith, who produces the band’s music, gave out his solo album “Into Colour” in 2015 (under the name Jamie xx). Romy Madley Croft has participated in the låtskrivarläger in Los Angeles and one of them she worked with OneRepublics Ryan Tedder, who among other things is behind Beyoncés “Halo”. So it is a little different band which recorded “I See You”, compared with the insecure teenagers who barely dared to show their lyrics to each other ten years ago.

With his new album, open The XX for a wider audience, but without losing the lovable vulnerability that excellent them from the beginning.

“Here comes my insecurities,” sings the Romie.

“Am I too needy, am I too eager,” sings Oliver.

the Languishing soul, indie and dubstep blends. In the “Say Something “Loving” is the most musically accomplished. From the clipped rhythms to the flirten with Said “the Sweetest Taboo”.

Albumåret starts fine.