The xx

The xx are an English band formed in South London in 2005, achieving widespread acclaim with their self-titled 2009 debut album xx. The group is built around the interplay of vocalists and guitarist/bassist Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim, whose hushed, intimate vocal trade-offs became the band's signature, alongside producer Jamie xx, who shapes the group's minimalist, dance-informed production.

The band's sound is defined by restraint: sparse guitar lines, deep bass, and skeletal drum machine beats leave room for whispered, emotionally direct lyrics about love, desire, and vulnerability. This approach set them apart from the more maximalist indie and pop landscape of the late 2000s and influenced a generation of artists working in quiet, atmospheric pop and R&B-adjacent electronic music.

Following xx, the band released Coexist in 2012 and I See You in 2017, refining their sound while Jamie xx also built a celebrated solo career, notably with the album In Colour. Songs like «Angels», «Crystalised», and «Say Something Loving» remain among their best known, cementing The xx as one of the defining British acts of their era.