Photos by Zhi Wei

Last night I had the most incredible experience with my partner in crime Zhi. The xx has been our favorite band for so long and to see them in such an intimate setting was the most surreal experience. As we walked into the Park Avenue Armory we went through these small grungy passage ways through what seemed to be a maze. Then the 50 of us walked for a couple minutes and arrived to a small and intimate room with low walls and the band right there within reach. I could have braided Romy’s hair from where I was standing. Literally. So intimate. The xx performed a new song called “Perform” that had a similar aesthetic to the rest of their songs where Romy sings “I’ll put on a performance, I’ll put on a brave face.” And also: “The show is wasted on you/So I perform for me.” This London band is so talented and unique, the only group I can actually listen to their songs on repeat for years. There is just something so soothing and calming about their music.

After the xx performed a couple songs the ceiling, which was a simply a large white sheet, rose toward the top of the building and all of a sudden we were no longer in a small box. After the ceiling rose the walls fell to the ground and the light show started on the outskirts of the 55,000 square-foot space. Throughout the show they also were projecting ethereal visuals onto the ceiling and walls which left everyone in awe. As stated in the New York Times review of the performance, “the elements that make it into the music are generally the essentials, chief among them an emotionally fraught counterpoint between two singers of slinky magnetism, Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim. Intimacy is a base-line constant for the xx, but it’s also a source of endless tension.”

Then after the show we were allowed to explore the armory and then come back for the after party at 10 pm which everyone who went to any of the shows was invited to. At the after party we got to meet the band, eat, drink and dance. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience and I loved every minute of it. Stay tuned for their new song coming out, you will not be disappointed.

 Song of the day: “Missing” by the xx