Romy Madley Croft
| The xx | |
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The xx performing at Ilosaarirock Festival in Joensuu, Finland, in 2012. Left to right: Romy Madley Croft, Jamie Smith, Oliver Sim.
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Wandsworth, London |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | thexx |
| Members |
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| Past members | Baria Qureshi |
The xx are an English indie band formed in 2005 in Wandsworth, London, and currently consists of Romy Madley Croft (guitar, vocals), Oliver Sim (bass, vocals) and Jamie Smith (beats, MPC, production), also known as Jamie xx. They are best known for their distinct and unique minimalistic sound that blends the likes of indie pop, indie electronic, dream pop and electronic rock and the dual vocalist setup of both Croft and Sim.
The band was formed when Croft and Sim met during their time at Elliott School, with Baria Qureshi joining the same year and Smith a year after. After posting demos on their Myspace page, they drew the attention of the Beggars Group-owned label Young Turks. Working with producer Rodaidh McDonald, the band released their debut album, xx, in August 2009. The album was a commercial and critical success, ranking first for The Guardian's and second for NME's best of the year lists among others, and won the Mercury Prize in 2010. After their debut, Qureshi was released from the group and their second album, Coexist, was released on 5 September 2012 to positive reviews, peaking at No. 5 on the Billboard 200. After a four-year lapse between releases, including Smith's solo debut in 2015, In Colour, the band released their third album, I See You, on 13 January 2017, which debuted to critical acclaim and peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200.
The band members met while studying at Elliott School, the same school that produced Hot Chip, Burial, Four Tet, actor Pierce Brosnan and singer Matt Monro. The group has however downplayed the influence of the school on its career: "A teacher from Elliott who had never even taught us said how great we were. It's a bit annoying. We were left alone, more than anything – although I'm sure that helped us in its own way." Oliver Sim and Romy Madley Croft started the band as a duo when they were 15. Guitarist Baria Qureshi joined once it began performing in 2005, with Jamie Smith, also known as Jamie xx, joining a year after.
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