The xx - Coexist Review
Sleepless, broken, hollow and aching but warmed, comforted, embraced and enveloped in love.
rating:4
Standard album review protocol dictates that I begin proceedings with a bit of band history, or back story if you will, to ease you in and give you a little about where the band are coming from to set up an appropriate context for the album to be reviewed in, or just so you know who the fuck Im talking about really. I mention this because with this review I dont really have to. I mean technically I still should, and I still will (a little), but youd be hard pressed to find a more renowned two letters than The xx. Except perhaps E.T. of course. Coming to attention, and almost immediate fruition, in 2009 with buzz inducing debut single Crystalised, soon followed by their critically acclaimed debut album xx, The xx made a fairly meteoric rise to the top of not just end of year lists but also award wins. Not bad for a group of friends who werent all that long out of school at the time really, having formed in school together a few years previously. A member lost to personal differences didnt slow the momentum though; platinum record sales and world tours followed. Not to mention art installations and the far reaching exposure achieved by Jamie Smith under his stage name Jamie xx; production jobs, widely acclaimed remixes, a critically lauded, self directed remix album of Gil Scott-Heron and production duties on Drakes song Take Care featuring Rihanna. Three years later, the three are reunited, threeunited if you will. Cough. Smith has been a busy boy, but so too have founding members Oliver Sim and Romy Madley Croft. Though perhaps not as headline grabbing and star studded as Smiths its clearly all three have been honing their contributions since the debut. Sim and Crofts vocal duties being a clear example of this throughout.
After a meteoric rise, especially at a young age, its quite common to go off the boil by album number two, disappear into obscurity or get so wrapped up in the hype and reverence surrounding you that you inadvertently climb right up your own arse. The xx did so well the first time around, that even though theyve been laying pretty low Coexist is going to be met with high levels of anticipation and expectation. Is that how I met the album? No. Though I loved the first album. How did I meet the album? I met the album with a serious hangover amidst accusations of a drink problem, and this bowl of porridge was just right. Of course Ive listened to it a number of times through since then, but at the time it seemed just right for me right then. As with the first album this album offers up the early hours of the morning; coming down or simply wide awake and alone with insomnia. Nocturnal. Reflective. Melancholic. Stylish. Introspective. I could go on with the descriptive words normally bandied around in relation to The xx, and particularly in relation to their debut. This isnt likely to change in relation to Coexist. Its what The xx do, its how The xx sound and its the way The xx have come to album number two - with that same palette. However, this isnt simply a retreading but more so a reimagining; an evolution and expansion in their sound whilst maintaining that core aesthetic. You could say theyve added a few more tones to the palette. These tones may not be immediately obvious at first as a number of them work within the subtleties of the songs, what is immediately obvious though is the overall progression in songwriting. Whilst xx was cool, calm and collected it could fall a little foul of feeling detached or cold, even its warmest most tender moments. Coexist though has managed to maintain the debuts cool brood but also really display a heart xx was the cold life of night, Coexist is the love stories of night. http://youtu.be/_nW5AF0m9Zw Angels is immediately tender, like a wistful lullaby turned love song as Romy so gently and emotively sings about how if the world saw the subject of her song as she did they would be in love as much as she is. Its the opening track and its the sign that whilst the atmosphere and the overall style may be the same, the content has developed substantially. There are the subtle differences as mentioned like Trys wiry synth that sounds almost G Funk when combined with the bass rumble underneath, or the steel inflected rhythms of Reunion that bring a Caribbean tinge to the proceedings but not in a way that sounds contrived or cartoony, instead adding to the hazy and the dream of the track. The subtle increase of tempo too in tracks like Sunset driven by Smith, notably on Sunset that shows a definite influence of club music and his solo output while Romy and Olivers vocals interplay around two sides of the same story a history, a past and a love reduced to passing glances, ignorance and heartache with the best outcome being casual acquaintances. Its moments like these that really highlight the trios development. The lyrics matured and more heartfelt, the vocals more tender, more emotive, more effective and the instrumentation simultaneously sparse yet detailed. A lot of credit will be given to Jamie for this, what with his work in between and the expansion in production and sound since the debut whilst maintaining its minimalism. However, the vocal performances of Romy and Oliver should not be overlooked. http://youtu.be/DD7IwXWfDW4 On xx they sounded cool even sexy but deadpan and cold. The minimal delivery required. With Coexist though, the maturing of their songwriting included, they are emotive and believable. When they sing together or when they sing alone, you can feel the sentiment behind the words. It may feel like a lot of heartache and longing, but theres love too. Just love. Comforting. Tender. Love. Love can be intoxicating too though, and Swept Away represents that perfectly as it blurs the line between love and addiction. It could just as easily be about heroin as it could infatuation. So too could the album as a whole, or more so as a whole it represents the intoxication of love. Sleepless, broken, hollow and aching but warmed, comforted, embraced and enveloped in love. The evolution is perhaps best summed up in Olivers lyric during the brilliantly understated Missing My heart is beating in a different way. A heart may metaphorically beat in a different way but its core impulse and purpose will remain the same, so too does the heart of Coexist beat in a different way to xx. website facebook full stream