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Monday 6 February 2023

Monday's Long Song

XAM Duo are from Yorkshire, part of the Leeds DIY scene that has also produced Hookworms and Yard Act. They sound nothing like either of those bands. XAM Duo are a duo, Matthew Benn and Christopher Duffin, who use modular synths, Moogs, Korgs and Rolands, drum machines, Fender Rhodes piano and some saxophone to make dreamy blissed out drones, long pieces of meandering, melodic electronic music. Their self- titled debut album came out in 2016, six tracks long with three of them well over ten minutes- Pine Barrens is a sprightly, engaging, bleepy thirteen minutes and album closer René clocks in at eighteen and a half minutes of fizzing buzzy synths. At twenty three minutes long I Extend My Arms Pt I & II towers over them both, sax and synths building slowly and eventually rippling toplines bouncing around, managed chaos. At thirteen minutes the drum machine kicks in and for the final six or seven minutes we're well into krauty/ cosmische territory. 

Over at Bandcamp where you can buy the album and last year's follow up XAM Duo II a follower has left the following comment- 'If you want to get lost in electronic wonder whilst on a long train journey to go and fuck your ex- this is the one'. 

I Extend My Arms Pt I & II

1 comment:

Rickyotter said...

Really liking this Adam, thank you. And that is one of the greatest one line reviews ever