A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence.
~ Leopold Stokowski
No other quote sums up The XX’s critically-acclaimed (and deservedly so) debut album. If you don’t have, get it right now. Sometimes, the notes you don’t play are just as important and XX is a great reminder of that.
Here’s an equally great subtle edit from Them Jeans and a genetically modified ambient version of ‘Basic Space’ by Mount Kimbie.
The XX – Shelter (Them Jeans Drum Edit)
The XX – Basic Space (Mount Kimbie remix)
The videos for ‘Crystallised’ and ‘Basic Space’ are below if you need further convincing. They are, of course playing Electric Picnic.
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Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005 . He is the cohost of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Cara Magazine, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, founder of Lumo Club, event curator and producer of gigs, parties & events.