xx

Album #: 168 first impressions: ohy this is a great album. after listening through: every time after i listen to this album i feel fulfilled. its like eating the most satisfying and not overwhelming meal. the music is unique and interesting; sparse yet cinematic; the lyrics are tender but performed aloofly. or maybe it just came out at a pivotal time in my life and i have v fond memories of feeling like an adult for the first time while listneing to this album. post-reading reviews/wiki: i mean i guess i know the musicianship isn't groundbreaking but the production is clean and its just..a relief to hear something so minimalistic and not grating in this genre. to me, its a portent to the quieter, darker, but still dance-able music of the 2010s after a decade of really bombastic pop songs. relisten?: i feel like i'll periodically revisit it for nostalgia purposes but its probably a hard sell for non-milennials tbh

So are they The XX's or The X, X? I don't know them at all. I thought the album was a very easy listen. I like their style and the songs all seem like songs I would like to just listen to again and again. I was kind of surprised! Pleasantly! Singles from xx ---------------------------- Crystalised - (#14 UK Indie, #37 US Alt) Basic Space DNC Islands (#3 UK Indie, #34 UK) VCR (#15 UK Indie, #132 UK) Rating: 3.5

There was a couple of years when I thought the electro-synth-indie-pop genre was going to take over the world. Once the dust settled I realised that a lot of the albums had very little replayability. At one point Alt Js debut was probably my favourite album... haven't bothered listening to it in the last 5 years. Get much of the same vibes from the xx. Good music but not anything that really excites me. First half of the album was definitely stronger. Was a tad bored by the end.

Soothing like a soft blankie

It's not bad, but is sucking the energy out of me to a certain extent. It has some merit, not just dreary, but still only a 3*, I think, and a low one.

What a time

Simplistic clean vibes with whispered vocals, a very interesting album, quite enjoyed most of it, with my only negative being each tracks haunting sameness which got a tad tedious after a while.

Nice chilled out album. A bit dreary in places but overall good.

Rock indie. No está mal, pero un poco aburrido.

It was pretty good, I might revisit these guys.

Liked this more on release, seemed to pass by a bit anonymous, but still strong

Pas mauvais, se laisse écouter, un son intéressant qui vraiment typique de son époque. Mais c'est très monotone et un peu du pareil au même tout le long de l'album. Le genre d'album qu'on oublie qu'il est en train de jouer malheureusement. 5/10

This is an album I've listened to before so already something I had an interest in. With the time that has passed much of the same thoughts remain: it's a decent enough album if lacking any real bite or reason to obsess over. The most interesting track may be the first too, which never helps keep you engaged.

I knew only the Intro. The rest are good.

Minimalistic and quite pleasant to listen to, but it sometimes lacks substance and can be dull.

👍

Ganska bra, lite tråkigt

Good sound. I’d definitely like to kepp listening to this one. 3/5

Another pleasant easy listen. downside is that a lot of the songs are similar sounding but distinctive instrumentals

Enjoyed this. Good, but I wouldn’t call it great. Reminded me of Of Monsters and Men’s ”Fever Dream” at times. That’s an album I like, but was a bit disappointing at the same time. This sound is great as background music. 1 - bad 2 - average 3 - good 4 - great 5 - outstanding

Technology

Liked it! I'd only ever heard Intro by them before, so it was interesting to hear their voices both male and female

It took a few listens but I eventually came to appreciate the production on this one, its super minimalist and clean which brought to mind the kind of garbage indie rock that gets popular nowadays at first (the kind where you can envision exactly which product its going to be used to advertise when you hear it) but this is definitely a step above that. Although I can certainly hear its influence on a lot of music nowadays, I hadn't heard of the album or the artists prior to today but upon listening I instantly heard the origin of sounds used by acts like Lorde, Billie Eilish, James Blunt etc. Although the obvious issue is...yeah I mostly just wished I was listening to other artists I like more. I didn't really connect with the record on an emotional level and its aural pleasures have been done far better by its many predecessors. Overall not even remotely a bad album, and I glad I've experienced it, but definitely not something I ever plan on returning to. Highlights: Intro, Crystalized, Basic Space

The singer of this band has a lovely voice, and anyone who came of age in the late 2000s will remember the hype song "Intro" being everywhere in commercials, movies, etc. I enjoyed the first half of this album, which seems to be a theme of my reviews. I think this is a solid album with a few bangers, and therefore gets a solid 3.

this holds up better than i expected. usually something as mad hyped as this is shit 5 years later but this is fairly pleasant listening, borderline boring but credit to them for pioneering this sound that so many others have gone off and built on.

The hype on this shite in 2009 was unreal.

Didn't mind it. Don't know if it'd ever be something I would choose to turn on, but I wouldn't change it if it came on the radio or something. The songs did all sound the same. I think a full album was maybe a bit much for one listen and I may have enjoyed just one song more, but.. it was ok. 5-6/10

This one was okay. I enjoyed the sound enough and wouldn't mind listening to a song or two here or there, but it felt pretty repetitive and one-dimensional as a full album. If it were a full mix, I don't think I'd be able to tell any of the songs apart from one another, lol. Nothing added to the playlist, but I probably wouldn't turn it off if I caught it on the radio 6/10

Good sex music. Good sad music. Get you a girl that can do both. Spawned an army of imitators, so, like, that's always a big deal. If I were listing 1001 albums everyone should listen to, would this make the cut? No. But do I understand why it's on *this* list? Eh. I guess.

It’s ok, a little spacey and slow for me.

Definitely an album that you have to be in the mood for. Not bad though!

I would give this album a solid 6/10. The album seems almost ethereal. I just feel as thought the beats are all R&B but the lyrics are like an alternative band. I feel like these two different genres kinda clash but in a sort of good way.

Parhaat biisit oli helposti kuunneltavia ja viihdyttäviä, mutta semisti paljon täytettä mahtuu 11 biisiä pitkään levyyn. Nipinnapin kolmonen

Smoothi, tyylikäs ja chilli. Usean kerran kuunneltava

I liked this, however can't remember a single song after it's done. strong 3

Intro sounded really familiar, but if I heard it before I didn’t know who it was. The more I listen, the more I like it. Very chill beach music.

There was some cool stuff going on here, and in large part I liked the album and was thinking it was somewhere above a 3, trying to get to a 4-star rating. But it's the ennui, I-would-be-happier-doing-something-else vocal performances that ultimately suppressed the final rating for me. I get that it's a style, I'm sure there a genre classification for it, but it's a little too affected to be attractive. Seriously, go do something else and let someone who gives a shit sing a few.

Yeah, kind of cool. I think it would take a few listens to suss out everything this album has to offer. Maybe i'll get there one day. Reminded me a bit of Young Marble Giants.

Not bad. Good background music

älskade skivan som tonåring, är lite bored nu? Kanske kommer tillbaka till mig

One of the cooler intro songs, aptly called "Intro", is just a beat maker's dream come to life. It's chill and progressive and beautiful. Three stars go to the album for just that song alone. I remember seeing YouTube videos that were just this song for 10 straight hours, if that's you're thing. I do like other The xx music, but from newer albums. The rest of the album is slow and mellow dramatic, which is the band's style. Decent!

I really REALLY like the music and the beats, but I don't think the vocals are great. But given that I'm an old fucker who doesn't love a lot of modern music, I would actually listen to this album more than once.

This was not as good as I was expecting

Quite pleasant

Good moody jammer

It’s nice enough.Pretty empty.Not super interesting.Crystallised sounded nice but this album lacked energy for me.Sounded a bit like monsters and men but kinda worse.

Fav Song: VCR

It's an easy listen but every song sound like a better song from a older band.

3-4

Couple good songs, but a lot of the rest was really slow and kind of sad

there was a commercial with Apolo Ohno speed skating to Intro that played non-stop during the 2010 winter olympics. strong 3 to weak 4 territory for me

Not quite a 4 for me. I think it’s sitting happy at 3

Slušao, al se ne sjećam 80%. Dobro je popravit tu situaciju. Jedan dobar indie pop album koji razumijem zašto je poznat.

Alright

Solid

Some pretty singing, nice sounds and melodies. Might listen some more to get more acclimated to it.

A nice, well made, mellow album. Nothing that's super exciting for me.

не уверена, слышала ли я их раньше - наверняка - но чё-то вообще не моё

I love the laid back groove of this album. This is also the first album where I've specifically noticed the mix, and that throughout the album which track sounds like it's "on top" varies, which is a cool effect. All that said, there are only a couple tracks on this album that really stand out and that I can foresee myself ever coming back to, so I don't think I can give it a 4 star rating. If I could do 3.5 I would.

The band and its music are new to me, and I like it. Really nice sound and style, and I like their sense of composition. Solid performances and I enjoyed the album. I'll have to dig deeper into their recordings. Good stuff!

It was ok. Kinda low energy

Good. Electrónica medio dark. Buenas atmósferas, aunque a veces las voces se me hacían algo flojas y monótonas.

pretty standard indie pop, chillige beats

Прослушано! Любопытный альбом, есть очень интересные композиции, можно переслушать.

A chilled out album that I thought was decent. "Heart Skipped A Beat", "Islands" and "Crystallised" were the highlights for me.

Minimal sounds, maximum sympathetic

I'm not gonna lie, this album was hard to give a crap about. It's fine, but I didn't find anything interesting about it. I could see why people would like it, but I just kept waiting for it to be over so I could listen to something a bit more stimulating 3/5

Oikein sopivaa kuuneltavaa varsinkin pimeällä esim. Kävelyllä tai autolla ajaessa. Osa biiseistä vähän toisti itseään, mutta selkeesti tosi huonoja biisejä ei mun mielestä ollu. Miellyttävää kuunneltavaa. Paras biisi: Intro on helppo valinta, mut Basic Space oli kans ihan jees Huonoin biisi: Fantasy

This album had such a chokehold on the UK indie music scene in 2009 and the early 2010s, and I get it - the production is fantastic and it just seems effortlessly cool. But the vocals are so lifeless and it really gives off such a vibe of style over substance that it's still difficult for me to find anything other than surface level enjoyment here

Highlight: Stars 3,5/5

Joitain kovia biisejä ja hyviä soundeja, mutta joku latteus tässä aina ottaa vähän vastaan. En fiilaa solisteja kauheasti. Jamien soololevy on parempi ja ehkä myös tän bändin kolmas levy.

Miellyttävää elektro-rock-poppista, mut joku salamanisku vielä puuttuu et nousis neloseen. 3/5

Can’t quite decide if I’m into this or not. I think so. 3/5

It's nice-sounding but there's not much more to it than that

More chill than I expected

Liked the intro, and shelter

Pretty boring. I had heard this before and wasn't taken with it then and not taken with it now. That being said, I wouldn't turn it off if it were on in the background. 2.75/5

I came in expecting to hate it, but I didn’t? Still not really my scene, but it has a solid groove and I like how the male and female vocalists intercept. Unlike a lot of other indie stuff, I can kind of get the appeal, even if I don’t see me adding it to my collection. C

Jamie XX is a dote. The xx are a bit boring

3.5 Really low-key indie pop music. I could see myself listening to this late at night in fall. Sometimes catchy, sometimes dreamy, I enjoyed this one a lot more than I thought I would.

Moderne britisk indiepop, atmosfærisk, rimelig chill

Not a fan

I've heard the first track before which is fantastic but haven't listened to the rest of the album. This is pretty good. It isn't perfect and it is a little background music-y nothing is super standout aside from the first track. I'd say its a little ahead of its time with this dreamy pop ness which took off more in the 2010s.

I quite enjoyed this album. Some fine songs on here that make good use of the female singer's sultry voice. The mood throughout is dark and emotive with nice washes of synthesizers, simple but effective guitars and a tight rhythm section. Favorite songs on first listen; VCR, Crystalized, Shelter and Night Time. It does bog down a little in the second half and I do find myself hoping for something a little up tempo ...Night Time does somewhat fit that bill and Stars helps things end on a relatively high note. All in all a good album that I can't give a full 4 because of the lull in the middle. 3.5 stars

The front half of this album was more upbeat, and the back half was more somber and melancholic. At times the delivery of the vocals almost felt forced in that the singers were putting no flair on singing at all, almost as if bored. I did, however, enjoy the harmonies of the male and female vocals. The music delivery was uneventful, with simple guitar riffs and drum beats, typical of new age pop music. Favourite songs: Islands, Heart Skipped a Beat, Intro (an upbeat instrumental number), Chrystalised, VCR An interesting note about the song Fantasy: It begins as a relatively slow and boring song, but around the 1:30 mark, the bass kicks in in a big way (it would be a great subwoofer tester at that point) Least favourite songs: Night Time, Stars, Shelter 3/5

Was ok, not amazing, not bad

simple in concept and chill. like it.

Fairly solid

blah blah blah

more my thing but too mellow

The first song I knew. It had me hyped and ready for the album. Overall I liked the sounds and instruments it is the most relistenable album so far. Just kept waiting for the beats to drop and they didn’t

(3.2) i liked the mixed vocals. Nice surprise recognizing the intro song.

I like the economy of resources and the restraint and subdued nature of both music and lyrics. After a while, it starts to feel monotonous but, in general I like it.

Pleasant without being memorable

Maybe if they went for a third X it would have tipped the scales. Not a bad listen, but not headlining festival worthy.

This one passed by my ears like a wispy cloud of echoey guitars and unobtrusive vocals. Nice but not the groundbreaking indie music I had been led to believe

Its ok

Sounds like the sings never get going

Heard before: not in its entirety I couldn’t really get into it (minimalistic, but unremarkable). The sound was nice enough though.

Cool mellow sound, but overall just OK. Would listen to it in the right mood, say while reading, but prefer Sigur Ros.

It kind of drifted past me without creating a great impression, may need another listen?

I found the vocals a little too subdued but enjoyed the music. Infinity was my standout track. 3/5

Interesting instrumentation meets uninspired, brooding songs. 2.5/5

Quite ok. Cozy indie rock with electronic elements

3.5 stars, nice soft female and male vocals, most songs feel like a conversation in between both singers, mixed with nice clean reverb sound on the guitar, simple, but really nice. An enjoyable listen for sure

Hadn't heard of The XX before - though VCR and a couple of the other songs were familiar to me. I thought the album started strong, particularly liked 'Islands', but then fades away. The space I liked initially sees them melt into the background. 'Infinity' is pretty close to 'Wicked Game'. All up, happy to be introduced to The XX

Not much to say. It just was.

No album better captures the post recession, pre-fascism sober feeling of 2010s youth than this one. There’s a simmering anxiety under each song but for this very moment you feel fine. From a pure listenability perspective, this is a very solid album throughout. Especially impressive that it overcomes the Intro, which I easily could’ve been caught in the web of seeming like a gimmicky car commercial.

I really feel the people who make these lists are really out of touch with what is relevant past the mid 00's. Listened to this before and as I remembered it's pleasant but forgettable.

This is a good listen, but definitely fades towards the end. Don't quite understand how they got so popular tbh - it's not super accessible, and it's quite laid back and chilled out. Not my favourite, but a comfortable three heading in the direction of (but not reaching) a four. Probably would have made 4 if it had stayed at the level that the first three tracks set.

Definitely worth more listens. Having to give it a 3 for now.

Good background music, but it's a bit wishy washy

I think this would be perfect to listen for either an early morning, a lazy day off, or even napping on a hill in the shade under a big tree. So calm and lowkey, but it's hard to find particular favourites as it's the mood you remember the most.

It was neat and I could see how it would've been a bigger deal in 2009.

really dig about half of the songs so I can’t give this 5 stars. The other half I’m meh on. Great throwback.

Atmospheric, moody, a hit of nostalgia.

Sparse music for simple background noise. I like a handful of tracks but there were a little too many dull moments to rate this higher. Favorite track: Islands

meh

How can an intro be the best track

Mooi, sfeervol album.

Ik kan me voorstellen dat mensen hier boos van worden. Ik vind het rustgevend maar ook wel erg non-descript. Vooruit, ik rond het af naar boven.

Pretty good, a little boring if I'm being honest though. 3 stars.

Glacial Gen Z whispering. Post-punk vibes abound here and miserable teenagers with funny haircuts. Best Tracks: VCR; Crystalised; Islands

I enjoyed it but it definitely wanted me to keep wanting more, to be honest. The whole thing seemed pretty mellow. 7/10

Minimalistic

Listened to on 5/23/22 3/5 Favorite song: intro Very indie and intimate with lots of random pauses in the songs - the intro is great though

meinlaust

Great chill out album, doesn't grab me but a brilliant album nonetheless.

3.5

Confer toutes les critiques d'albums classés Post Erasmus Indie déjà générés par Robert.

Intro bangs, rest is meh

Very pleasant. Thats all.

As chill as possible, very soft vocals and tight beats, minimal but sharp melodies.

Good songs- wasn’t in the mood for this type of music when it was shown to me though

Decent but iron-deficient. Minimalist to the point of approaching insubstantiality. Like a one-track tape of a Cure recording session. More dozy than dreamy. The biggest problem is that all the best hooks and grooves are cut off prematurely. There’s a likable modesty that avoids twee-ness (thank God) but never gets beyond or resolves the pleasant state of suspension it reaches on track after track. One wonders, for ex, how the undeniably (and inoffensively) groovy opener would sound like if left to fully expand and turn into, you know, a song. Similarly, “VCR” works as an homage to old tech, but the downside of that authenticity is that it risks sounding like an outdated video game (albeit one played by emo-tending lonelyhearts). Another ex: “Islands” raises the heart rate briefly and then, well, ends. The best hooks on the entire record – as on “Night Time” – need (and deserve) more space and time, too. The overall effect is awfully ‘80s – who else wants Bronson Pinchot or Griffin Dunne to star in a movie to which this is the soundtrack? The record merely interests, never impels. 3.1 (but only for pro-genre bias) / 3.

Chill. Nice lyrics.

There were a few songs like Crystalised and Intro that have tempo and are really good. On the other hand the ambient songs are not so interesting and there sure are a lot of them.

Atmospheric indie with an extra dose of melancholy. I like the simple guitar work, which creates a moody vibe and reminds me a bit of the Cure at times. If you're going to pull off an album so sparse, you need good song-writing and exceptional vocals (like Beth Gibbons for example). The song-writing is pretty good and a few of the earlier tracks stand out. I was familiar with a remix of "Crystalized", which I quite liked. The female vocals by Romy Madley Croft are okay, but Oliver Sim's vocals bog the album down.

Intro is the best intro song of all time. There I said it. It's also the best song of the album, pity that its less than 3 mins, but then again it leaves you wanting more. When this debut album from The xx was first released I thought it was Everything But the Girl for the aughts, it captured the zeitgiest of the time perfectly: spare, subdued, melancholic, minimalist and disaffected vocals. 13 years later the world has changed and this unfortunately sounds somewhat dated.

I always assumed the xx was an electro pop band, so I wrote off this album as a relic of an era. Listening now, many years later, I honestly felt underwhelmed. I enjoy the songs themselves, sure, but it doesn’t hit the way current pop does. That is obviously a sign of the evolution of popular music, and how in 2009, this WAS the current and future style. You could call the xx pioneers for this type of pop/electronic music. That is why this record is so highly regarded. Listening in 2022 provides a different perspective.

Ehh it was ok. Lots of good mood that’s overshadowed by a dreary yet polished sound which- in my opinion- overstays it’s welcome

pretty chill

It’s fine.

Pretty good.

Agréable à l’oreille, cette musique linéaire finit par être soporifique.

Minimalist, occasionally not very interesting.

Where do I know the intro from???

Not my style

This is one of those albums that I loved at the time but forget exists. Really enjoyed hearing it again. It’s a very specific mood, but they do it so well. And there are some great songs on here - particularly VCR. Reminds me to check out some of their other tunes / albums. A nice nostalgia trip, and one that still sounds fresh.

ehhh fannst þetta aldrei frábær plata, alveg solid en frekar boring

Pretty good, enjoyed the vocals and the music was interesting.

Атмосферный вайб чилл

Probable ent que marie aimerait ca. Ca ressemble a angus et julia stone et ce genre de musique. 3.5

it's alright. I feel it should be better than it actually is, or rather I should like it more than I do, but at some points it just gets kinda stale. with that being said though, there is some good stuff on here.

Quite enjoyed this. Good background music. 3.5

Ein paar finde ich gut, ein paar nicht ganz so gut. Ich hatte es mir tatsächlich schlimmer vorgestellt.

Pleasantly surprised. Very nice and easy to listen to. Despite being generally chill and relaxing, it doesn't put me to sleep like some other soft pop albums on this list. Not something I expected from the ominous album art. Very strong 3/5.

Ok. I dont know where Ive heard thae first track before but it was very recognizable.

I tried but never got into this band. Sure they sound good and I get little flashes of other bands I really like which instead of warming me to The XX just make me want to go and listen to the others. This album just washed over me and hasn't left that much of an impression. With some other bands I get implored to give them another listen in the hopes that something will grab me, in this case I am just going to move on.

It's an alright album, the instrumentals sound really good most of the time. The vocals though are just plain boring, they almost never try and explore new ranges and mostly keep a same tone 6.5/10 Favourite tracks: VCR, Intro

Jújú, það má alveg hlusta. Ég er þó mun hrifnari af rödd Crofts en Sims. Lágstemmt og ágætt atmó, oft berstrípuð töff production, en lögin grípa mig ekki sérstaklega.

whatever

6.2/10

Decent minimalistic indie, that creates a special atmosphere which makes it perfect for background listening but fails to command more attention

Passable background music.... No need to listen again

Amazing production; generic and forgettable lyricism; poor hooks; boring guitar work; interesting bass lines; feels slightly soulless and meaningless 6/10

Good concentration music

Okay. Some sparse electronic melodies that aren't half bad.

First listen. Never heard of them before. When I first listened to it I thought is simple and a little boring. But, after a few more times, the music really grew on me. I appreciate the mood and feeling of the album. It makes me want to listen to more by this band. 3/5.

It was fine. Didn't really like it, but it didn't really annoy me or anything. Just kind of there. I generally thought the female singer was a lot better than the male one. No strong feelings besides that. Probably could've died without hearing it.

"Intro" is in its own right a very recognizable song. This album overall does fall short of the impact that "Intro" had on the world of music if that is what brings listeners to this album, and this will undoubtedly be a slow drip of disappointment for these people. The real payoff for this album is not allowing that disappointment deter one from giving this an honest listen. Secondly, The xx has a sound that is associated much with club attire, or runway modeling. The xx and their gently pulsating rhythms may invoke feelings of retail shopping at department stores drawing from that club energy to drive customers to purchase chic outfits, etc. However, once those things are settled and objectivity reluctantly takes over, the xx is a fine band, their vocals are mellow and they do well for this type of soul. One wants them to be good, and the truth is they are --- once one is able to get their song "Intro" out of the equation and let The xx be who they are, it is a very nice listen and may in fact leave the listener in a state of pleasant, yet unexcited surprise.

A very beautiful sound. It may not be my taste, but it was a very nice album.

Solo escuché la primera canción

Intro slaps obvs but I liked their newest album better. Good vibes tho

Good album but it’s the type of album you fall asleep to

Just ok. Way too chill for me, and all the songs sound the same.

intro connue chill melancholic. easy girl and boy voices ok, indie minimal guitare, un peu répétitif a partir de la 8

3 stars. Nothing spectacular

Chill album, nice background music

It’s a good album, it’s different to most stuff of the time. But it kinda sets itself an almost impossible task with the opening track, which is a killer and a half, before becoming distinctly domesticated. It is what it is, I suppose.

This still holds up as a solid overall LP, but on relistening it's clear how much this album suffers from static song structures. Most tracks tend to ride solely on a repeated 8-bar verse, and while they tend to end before things get grating a few tracks stay well past their welcome.

6/10 Esquecivel, legal

Decent indie tracks - Intro a good song. Maybe a little slow

Quante volte avrò ascoltato "Intro" senza sapere chi fossero gli XX! Mi sono piaciuti un sacco, ma sento come di non avere più l'età per queste cose e mi viene la depressione perché mi sarebbe piaciuto conoscerli prima, tipo nel 2009. Sarebbe un 3.75 ma la mia vecchiaia impone il 3.

Questo è il classico disco che sforna canzoni da season finale delle serie TV. Fa parte del periodo da cui uscitanno gruppi come i Daughter o gli Oh Wonder. Questo genere lo percepisco un po' come musica fatta da graphic designer (tipo Tycho), quel minimalismo piacevole ma più che altro di arredamento. Nonostante sia un precursore in qualche modo del genere secondo me gli manca la profondità dei Daughter o la vena più pop degli Oh Wonder. È un 2.5 pieno che premierò a 3 solo perché questi The XX hanno inventato degli stilemi che poi verranno usati in modo più sensato. Vorrei votare 2 solo perché uno dei membri del gruppo si fa chiamare Jamie xx.

I saw the word "atmospheric" as the first word to describe xx, and I immediately wanted to hate this album with the white hot intensity of a thousand suns. The opening track (annoyingly enough titled "Intro") is an instrumental that sounds like wants to be the soundtrack for a Google Nest commercial, and I mean that as a complement. The second song, "VCR" was already a turn off for the song title alone (I wouldn't have minded "8-Track" or "Betamax" but "DVD" would have been even worse). And as I listened to "VCR", this fucking thing grew on me. A pleasant surprise. I couldn't even be disappointed that it shattered my earlier expectation of having "The xx" destined to be branded with a 1 rating. And as much as I seemed to enjoy listening, I really can't think of a time when I'll want to seek it out again. But that probably says more about me than it says about the album. I guess I'm just curious as to everything else that's out there. That's probably why all my friends call me Whiskers.

I liked this pretty well. The call and response aspect of the duet vocals was an unusual touch for alternative rock and well executed.

Chilled, low key electro that starts well with some catchy, charismatic tunes but loses its distinctiveness as the album continues.

I liked it for what it is. Still able to invoke emotion despite being light and generally simple. I did like how the vocals seemed to be singing to each other like a dialog, but after awhile it was just a lot of the same.

3. it's pretty good, very pleasant. That said on Monday I don't remember it...

I really like the xx, and I'm learning as I go through this project that I like this genre more than most. This album is too minimalist. It's such a product of its place and time, where indie bands were basically persecuted if they dared to show too much emotion through their music, so they put it all in the words and left the music as an afterthought. That's too harsh an assessment for this particular album, but it's clear they suffered from these influences. Best track: Crystalised

Slow and almost haunting lyrics. Not anything I latched on to, but nothing that was bad either

Emoji Monday: 😑 Great album for those times you want to feel semi-comatose . Good simple melodic guitar riffing. I like the singer’s whisper vocals. 3.5 stars, but rounding down, because I don’t often want to feel semi-comatose.

Better than expected fun indie pop! Was going to give a four, but the end mellowed out TOO much and blended.

Solid start but didn't really progress.

xx is the debut album by English indie pop band the xx. Although the xx had been strongly influenced by R&B acts, the album also drew comparisons from critics to alternative rock, electronica and post-punk sounds. The melancholic songs on xx feature minimalist arrangements and are built around Smith's beats, Oliver Sim's basslines and sparse guitar figures played by Baria Qureshi and Romy Madley Croft, who employed reverb in her lead guitar parts.

Do like a few of their songs - this album was alright

Really promising opening sounds in terms of establishing a sound and a mood that I felt I could soak up for the duration of an album. Unfortunately, it plateaued after that, and sank into a wallowing sadness that I found less interesting.

Maybe the ones who popularlized the tight-production, low-key-moody indie-vocals that still is a popular genre in itself. I like most of the songs, but I can't say they blow me away. Very indie-radio friendly, I still hear The xx played on our local hip radio. There is not a lot of difference between songs, to be honest. Very one-dimensional on this album.

Nice and chill. Not a listen to all of the time kind of album, but nice for a relax.

Recognise many of the songs. It’s very bleh. Not so bad for a 2 so will give it a middle of the road 3. Vocals are very annoying in part. I think they have a few vocalists which is throwing me. Jamie XX has some good electronic music on his solo stuff. AIB advert has “Loud Noises” which many people will recognise.

This album is pornographic! Though not as obscene as the woeful TRIPLE X, this album is twice as profane as X. X started in Los Angeles in 1977, then 28 years later in 2005, XX was formed. By the same progression XXX will make its debut in 2033. Chalk it up to decaying moral standards, but the reality is that XX wasn't as lewd as you might think. As a reviewer it is my job to tell you that most, if not all songs are super-mellow and there's no fucking. The album is relatively short, weighing in at 38 mins. and an easy listen. I suppose this album represents somewhat of a turning point in music in the late 2000's. It's a delicate fuse of real and electronic instrumentation that exists effortlessly. Intro is the simple, dark beauty used to sell AT&T and Hugo Boss that you've heard many times before. It's the recognizable instrumental and an easy listen that subtly builds amongst single-note plucking. The balance of the album includes more complex songs but maintain the overall feel of the first. There's an effortless fun vibe about this album as such if it had existed before 2009, it would be might be called The Moldy Peaches. Also, it's worth noting that the dude singing sometimes sounds like Kurt Vile, it's subtle and distant, but once you hear it you can't unhear him. So, if you don't care for Kurt, I probably just killed this album for you. Finally, for the freaks out there looking for music to get the joyknob turning, this album isn't for you. I would suggest checking into Big Black's famous album from 1987.

Good

Understated and smooth

I can see that it's a good album, but it just never does that much for me. Maybe I've never been in the right mood for it.

Easy, chill background music.

Fanstastic opener, kinda underwhelming and sleepy after. Pretty though.

-"Crystalised" was nice -Overall chill and fine, but nothing of note really

An ok album. Nothing that really stood out, but inoffensive to listen to.

beginning is good, after 5th song, album becomes a bit boring and repetitive, 7/10

Good for background music though sometimes the female voice will take you out of it (discordant with the music.)

Listen, it’s a good album. Is it great? No. It’s ok. And that’s it! Perfectly pleasant chilled out sort of trip hop stuff. But fuck me, it gets samey. By track 4 you know you’ve heard the lot. Still, it’s ok.

The hits are hits! And then there are other songs...

Reminded me of a romcom movie soundtrack but music was decent

I’ve tried to get into this. Just missing something

I wouldn't call it anything special. Not sure why it's on this list tbh, never heard of this group before

Not inspiring. Uninteresting.

Really like the XX - better live than on record tho

Just nice background music.

3/5 nice album, but ultimately not for me

Don't think I've ever heard of these guys, but first song is recognizable and I like it, so this could be fun! It was okay, but nothing special. 3/5.

Memories, Flow festival

Quiet and easy music. Kinda rides the same wave for the whole album, making it devoid of interesting dynamics. Hard to stay engaged when it does so little to engage. Really it's only until the end that I find it picks up a bit and does more. For what it's worth though, the reverb-filled dream pop is a nice listen. I just wish it did more.

Not my usual taste but I enjoyed listening to this. The first track was worth 4* easily, loved it but overall a good 3***

Bit meh.

I always said 'I like the xx' but I suspected that maybe this was because it was trendy, really I didn't really listen to them much. Now I realize that I actually do like the xx! I really do!

Was gab es eigentlich an ikonischer Musik nach diesem Album? Aus irgendwelchen WM-Songs fällt mir gerade nichts ein. Auf Albumlänge ist mir das aber schon damals nicht tragfähig erschienen, und meine Traurigkeit hat sich zu diesem Zeitpunkt nicht mehr so artikuliert, wie die es hier tun.

the first song is a vibe - "intro." it's kind of music i would just prefer to have on in the background, but it is fun.

Solid album, these guys were gonna be huge and then dipped off. 3.75

Better than I expected. Good for a rainy day

Good album. Minimal beats and vocals that are really clean.

had some highlights little boring

3

Unsure, seems a bit like it passed me by.

Intro: mood music. Good for video Guitar Centric / Breathy MaleFemale duo 80s / Looper positive - reminds me of John Hughs vibe Everything kinda sounds similar the longer you listen...

not bad. i liked intro. funny how i like the first songs off the albums.

Need to be in the mood for The xx but they are damn lovely group.

It's just not my taste of music. There is very nice vocals and I rather enjoy the tubular guitar sounds. The whole album is a little slow and sad feeling which doesn't necessarily appeal to me but I'm sure there are people who enjoy this album a great deal.

This album has grown on me over time.

Dreamy. All the songs kind of sound the same.

Voices!

tava no clima certo pra ouvir isso hj

Good album. A bit repetitive. Band has good sound.

Yeah, pretty good if not a bit samey.

I never got all the hype about this, thought it might make sense this time. Nope, still boring, they even sound bored of their own songs

Great vibe, really liked it, was ready for it to end tho

The woman sounds better than the man. Quite chilled background songs

3,5

Decent effort. Would make a great backdrop to a social gathering. Will definitely require a few more listens

I liked it more than I expected to.

liked it enough to bookmark it and will check out more of their work. sent to a friend and he is already a big fan.

It was fine - several good songs on the record, but it is so slow and minimal, which just isn't my jam. Nothing inherently wrong, just didn't stick with me much.

Interesting album with strong atmosphere, but its fairly repetitive and dosent really have any diversity in the types of songs.

Boring out of context of 2009.

summer eletrohits 4/10

It was an album

Never listened. Expectations: Low - Verdict: Alright - Obviously I am familiar with the intro as it has been used in countless videos and TV segments over the years. It sounds good but it very much just an intro. I find VCR quite boring. Crystalised is marginally better but not by a lot. The dual lead vocals definitely give the album something a bit different but it can’t save it from blandness for me. Fantasy is a bit more interesting and Basic Space sounds far less generic, at least until the chorus. Overall there is nothing particularly wrong with this other than the fact that I don’t fee any affinity with it.

Can't deny The xx is unique. Their debut is full of sad, soft songs with a lot of emotion. Leaves the listener with a relatively empty feeling. I only know the band from the song "On Hold" shared on a sibs Spotify list way back. I do like that song but this album was a tad bit slow and lacking. The duo ushered in the whispery singing style that I don't care for and has blown up since with Billie the Eyelash. I give them some credit but not making my playlist with much of their stuff...1.59 stars.

2.3 Theres some catchy stuff in there but very minimalistic and repetitive to the point that I was getting frustrated at the end.

Meh.

I still don't like their voices together

A little low key

Inoffensive dross. I'm sure there's some merit to this stuff but I really don't have the time to dig it out.

Perfectly fine but kinda background music. The two sound like they're on qualuudes or whatever. It reminds me of when I checked out CHVRCHES because everyone liked them.

meh

Charming-ish pop

wasnt for me back in 2009, isnt for me now. downtempo apple adverts. some instrumentals sound alright (Fantasy, etc.), but they lose me again once they start singing

On paper I should really like this album. It did absolutely nothing for me. The intro was decent, but it only lead to disappointment

Begynner bra, men den intime minimalismen fungerer ikke utover på plata. Søvndyssende kjedelig. Dårlige tekster også.

er ingen ting

Was this the dawn of chill indie?? The oversaturation of the genre might be to blame, but to my 2026 ears this sounds like a whole buncha nothin' Standouts: Crystalised • Heart Skipped a Beat • Basic Space

One good Song eveybody knows - apart from that pretty boring.

Occasionally captivating, sometimes bad, but primarily boring. Their later output is far more dynamic and gripping. That said, this is a decent study in minimalism and stretching one specific guitar sound as far as it’ll possibly go.

VCR Crystalised

Low-key ass je catch pas le hype

I don't really like the guy's vocals on this album and the songs border on boring. 4/10

it was bad.

i've tried to get through this record i think three times before? and never actually been able to sit through it completely without getting bored out of my mind by like the 4th track. now tbf this was a long time ago and my taste has changed a lot since them, but this definitely gave me pretty low expectations going into this. and honestly? i guess it wasn't as awful as i thought it would be (i didn't outright hate it or fall asleep listening, though i came close), but it definitely wasn't memorable; the only parts of it that stood out to me and stuck with me at all were the iconic "intro" and the bassline in "fantasy", while the rest all just blended together. it pretty quickly got both boring and a little annoying, though i guess it can make pretty good background noise if i have nothing better to put on. instead of taking time to talk about why i don't think this should be on the list, i'll just say a few names of albums that try to do similar things to this but much more successfully: turn on the bright lights, hurry up we're dreaming, carrie & lowell, in colour (which is by a side project by a member of this band! it even has a song, "loud places", which is just like the songs on this album if they were interesting!), overgrown, untrue. (also, why is this the first indie record i get? couldn't i have gotten something actually good instead?) in short: 2/5 album, very boring, has no right to be here over other stuff that does the same thing much better

Can’t for the life of me understand why these jokers have more than one album on this list. There are some fun groves, but the vocals sound like they’re asleep at the mic. Like they didn’t even want to be singing their own lyrics, which I get because their lyrics are fucking dull. This shit sucks.

This was a bit more interesting than the one from the other day. Still doesn't really get my juices flowing.

The album overall has this kind of uniqueness and simplicity in the instrumental but sometimes the vocals tend to lack a bit on certain songs. Overall it lacks of risks and feels a bit dull

Альбом слишком попсовый, но Intro я где-то слышал!

it's ok, but not something i would want to listen to again

fine

*Sigh* More bland 2000s indie rock? Are we serious? As expected, there is absolutely nothing even remotely interesting about this album. It's just basic modern pop with whispery vocals and basic beats. The lyrics are as basic as everything else on this album. So, yeah, this shit is not good. It's not anywhere near worthy of being on the list, so why is it here? I've asked this far too many times, and I'll ask it far too many more if this damn list keeps throwing random boring bullshit at me! Just give me good albums! This album is ranked #2 of 8 albums for 2009. Other 2009 albums rated by me: It's Blitz!(1/8)-4 Veckatimest(3/8)-2

xx keeps teasing you with it's stellar atmosphere, lovely production and clearly solid performances, but that's never enough to hide the fact this band can't write an actual hook into these tracks, most of which are at least 3 minutes long and yet still feel like they get cut off before they can actually develop into something. The only geniunely catchy moment in this is in the goddamn intro track, and even that one ends before you can get attached to it. It's honestly just sad, like watching a kid with talent deciding to give up too early into something.

kinda felt like 'that's it?' after it was over.

It was ok. Kinda slow

It’s minimalist but I was expecting some mood changes. Didn’t really grab me at any point and repetitive.

This came out in my early teenage years so I feel that I am disposed to like this one. I wanted more energy, the primary emotion from this album is malaise. I expected to love it but felt like it was pretty middle of the road. I really liked Intro and Fantasy

boring

is oké.. gwn echt heel saai maar niet per se slecht

Ok

Hilarious meme song

Quite dull. There's a moment near the back end where there's some oomph but it's quickly replaced with the quiet sound from the rest of the album. I didn't hear much emotion in their voices either. For emotional, ambient music, I prefer someone like Blanco White.

This is some hipster BS...

This shit was so boring

A quiet and moody album that was one of the pioneers for the tumblr days of taking pictures of colorful oils spills on the asphalt and black converse. Besides the intro, I couldnt find myself getting into it.

How boring was this? The shy vocal style is interesting I guess but not something I liked. I had high hopes the first two songs but they were quickly dashed. I see how it’s influential, sounds like all the twee/stomp clap pop that was on the radio when I was in middle school.

Opens with an 'oh this is them?!' classic - the catchy guitar line and idm drum machine creating a spacey ambiguous atmosphere, instantly recognizable but doomed to play on loop behind annoying short form videos forever. The rest adds a pair of singers trading whispered lines to the sparse reverby synth+guitars indie dance pop arrangement, dark and moody, light tension/release dynamics, easy listening - pleasant enough but pretty dull. The guitar leads are a huge Modest Mouse rip off: sad slow melodic messing with major 3rds/4ths and reverb. It's the epitome of post-hipster millenial retail music.