Audio By Carbonatix
The xx, Warpaint, Zola Jesus
Granada Theater
October 8, 2010
Better than: the build-up to the lightning-hot London trio’s show.
The xx making their Dallas debut came with much anticipation: After being sold-out since late summer, the attitude at the Granada Friday night was electric, with swooning the xx followers whipping the place into a frenzy.
And despite never having been here, curious fans who follow their media coverage or those who made the jaunt this spring to catch them at SXSW will know that the airy nature of their music has the potential to come off a bit dull in the live setting.
But Friday night was defiantly not a repeat of the timid stage presence they have sometimes been dogged by.
The fresh-faced trio (the band’s members recently eclipsed the age of
21) has turned the last two years of almost non-stop touring around the
world into an opportunity to learn and grow–an xx performance now shows
the confidence of polish.
And despite their appearance on the Saturday
bill at this year’s Austin City Limits fest, the Friday show was a
different thing altogether–it was clear that the xx were treating the
Granada show like it was their last gig, being the final date of their
tour with Warpaint and Zola Jesus. All three members played this last
performance with a kind of grit that signified their importance to close
this tour on a high note.
The xx were here to impress.
To prime the audience, Zola Jesus slowly brought the crowd to life,
beginning the set obscured by black fabric. She eventually took on the
persona of a caged lion, pacing the stage and exploding into a shock of
flailing blond hair as she undulated her body like a whip.
The L.A.-based quartet in Warpaint also held a fantastically captive audience, drawn
in by the sweet intoxication of the three female vocalists and muscled
along by the powerful punctuation provided by their exceptional drummer
Stella Mozgawa. The band’s hit “Undertow” drew raucous approval from the
crowd whose anticipation was spilling over as the xx took the stage to
launch into a stirring rendtion of “Intro.”
There’s not much to the production–the xx has one guitar, one bass
guitar, and a drum machine/keyboard setup and keep their compositions
about as spare as they can get. But as each element is given white space
to expand into, it becomes huge and beautiful. Romy Madley Croft’s
clear and moody guitar and sensuous vocals provide enough emotion to
warrant her mostly stoic stage persona, standing still with face held
high. Oliver Sim’s performance saw him quite a bit more at ease at the
end of this tour, all rubbery and angular in his movement and vocally a
perfect foil to Croft’s chilling lyrics. And Jamie Smith, deftly
operating the drum machine and providing the sonic bed of wobbling bass
that created the best environment for the delicate sexiness of the back
and forth of Sim and Croft.
Croft’s only glimmer of real emotion came near the end of the set
during “Islands.” After a set that was buoyed by a throaty and
light-headed audience who were more than happy to provide sing-alongs
and dancing (yes, the xx had the Granada dancing), Croft took a step
back from the mic and let the crowd take over: “… I am yours now.”
A
faint glimmer of enjoyment almost cracked her face just before she
launched into her verse to raucous fanfare.
During their last song, “Infinity,” Sim took to his wildest behavior of
the evening, fully attacking a lone cymbal stage center along with
members of Warpaint and Zola Jesus. The closing was anything but what
would be expected from the normally sedate xx, this was fireworks at the
end of a party.
After no more than 90 seconds away from the stage, the xx came back
to encore with “Stars,” proudly capping one of the most hectic two years
of touring imaginable for a group of artists straddling their teens and
twenties. Having polished their live act considerably in that time,
they have more than earned a break from the work. And this gives us a
chance to miss them, knowing that their next performance will most
likely be something to remember.
Critics’ Notebook
Personal Bias: Being a huge fan of this band, I had a pretty good
idea what to expect, evn if this was my first time seeing them live. Still, I was blown away. The xx really know how to command a
room.
Random Note: Apparently this show was too good to be true for a lot
of people. Overheard were many exclamations of “Oh my God,” screams that
could have been mistaken for those heard at The Beatles’ Shea Stadium
show in ’65. One person proclaimed to nobody in
particular, “Yeah, they’re that fucking good.”
By the Way: Warpaint really did put on a fantastic show, and I was
thoroughly impressed by their drummer. Count this as a recommendation to
check them next time you have a chance.
Set List:
1) Intro
2) Crystalised
3) Heart Skipped A Beat
4) Basic Space
5) Fantasy
6) Shelter
7) Show Me Love (Robin S cover)
8) Teardrops (Womack & Womack cover)
9) VCR
10) Islands
11) Night Time
12) Infinity
***Encore***
13) Stars
