(6 users)
Your Rating (Click a star below)
Total Rating
(5 users)
923,420
10,919,515
3D Track Thumb
Track Description
Available in:
"Islands" is a song recorded by English indie pop band The xx for their self-titled debut studio album. Written by band-members Jamie Smith, Oliver Sim, Romy Madley Croft and then-member Baria Qureshi, "Islands" is a dark and simple indie pop track. It also contains influences from house music and features instrumentation from guitars and synthesizers. Croft and Sim, who provided vocals in the track, sing about themes related to loyalty and love. "Islands" was released on 26 October 2009 as the third single from the album by Young Turks in 7-inch single and digital download formats. In March 2010, the song was re-released as a 12-inch single.
Upon its release, "Islands" received critical acclaim from music critics, many of whom praised Croft and Sim's vocal delivery. It was ranked at number 28 by music publication NME on their list of "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years". The song became the band's highest peaking single in the United Kingdom after it reached number 34 on the UK Singles Chart. It also peaked at number three on the UK Indie Chart. An accompanying music video for "Islands" was directed by Saam Farahmand, and consists of numerous tracking shots that show six dancers performing a dance routine around the members of the band. Every different shot features a slight change in the expression, gestures, and movement of the dancers and band-members. Critics complimented the concept of the video, and felt it was representative of The xx's musical style. The band performed the song live at the iTunes Festival in 2010 and it was also included on the set list of their 2010 and 2013 tour.
A cover version of "Islands" was recorded by Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira for inclusion in her ninth studio album Sale el Sol (2010). The cover followed a very similar instrumentation to the original version, but featured a faster tempo and more house elements. Shakira performed the cover live at the 2010 Glastonbury Festival in Pilton, Somerset.
"Islands" was written by The xx band-members Jamie Smith, Oliver Sim, Romy Madley Croft and then-member Baria Qureshi, for the English indie pop band's self-titled debut album (2009). According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Universal Music Publishing Group, the song is composed in the key of C# minor and has a metronome of 123 beats per minute. Sim and Croft provide vocals in the track, and their range spans from G#3 to E4. Similar to the band's usual style of production, "Islands" is dark and "nocturnal" in nature and follows a "simple, effective" beat. It features instrumentation from guitars which "twirl like dance floor partners in the background" and synthesisers that "play like a musical shadow". According to BBC Music's Lou Thomas, the song features house rhythms and a melody similar to that of Tom Petty's 1989 song "I Won't Back Down". Lyrically, "Islands" is a "psycho-geographical love song" and contains themes of loyalty, which are heard in lines like "I am yours now, so I don’t ever have to leave". The duo's vocals were described as "girl-boy", with Croft's vocal delivery taking on a "pleasant soft-pop vibe". Sim momentarily interrupts the verses with "four short thumbings". A "typically heartfelt and bed-cuddly" refrain "I am yours now" is repeated throughout the song, and UK-based online publication Muso's Guide regarded it as "the closest thing The xx has produced to a hook".
The song was released as the third single from xx on 26 October 2009 by Young Turks in 7-inch single and digital download formats. A minimalistic and "sexy" track named "Do You Mind?" was included as the B-side to "Islands", and is composed of "untypically brash drums". On 15 March 2010, Young Turks released a 12-inch single version "Islands", which contained various remixes of the song.
The accompanying music video for "Islands" was directed by Saam Farahmand, who had previously worked with artists like Simian Mobile Disco and Klaxons. It premiered on MTV on 21 April 2010. Composed of a series of tracking shots, the video shows Croft, Sim, and Smith "listlessly" sitting on a couch with six dancers performing a choreographed dance routine behind them. The dancers carry out the same routine with every next tracking shot, but a slight change in their expressions, gestures, and movement takes place. Similarly, the band-members repeatedly change their positions and facial expressions "with differing fervour". Near to the end of the video, the pattern begins modifying and "the comfortable habits get broken up/break up" as the dancers and band-members leave one by one. The backdrop, which consists of several small "X" letters, also catches fire.
File Hashes
HASH1: 789F93C1818911B2
HASH2: 869FCEF66752B985 (FLAC)
HASH1: 0319F838E6AA510D HASH2: AE16B482A8020AEE (MP3)
HASH1: 8055CD2FB0A3593F HASH2: 5C0E2D78B6CAB4C2 (MP3)
Available in:
"Islands" is a song recorded by English indie pop band The xx for their self-titled debut studio album. Written by band-members Jamie Smith, Oliver Sim, Romy Madley Croft and then-member Baria Qureshi, "Islands" is a dark and simple indie pop track. It also contains influences from house music and features instrumentation from guitars and synthesizers. Croft and Sim, who provided vocals in the track, sing about themes related to loyalty and love. "Islands" was released on 26 October 2009 as the third single from the album by Young Turks in 7-inch single and digital download formats. In March 2010, the song was re-released as a 12-inch single.
Upon its release, "Islands" received critical acclaim from music critics, many of whom praised Croft and Sim's vocal delivery. It was ranked at number 28 by music publication NME on their list of "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years". The song became the band's highest peaking single in the United Kingdom after it reached number 34 on the UK Singles Chart. It also peaked at number three on the UK Indie Chart. An accompanying music video for "Islands" was directed by Saam Farahmand, and consists of numerous tracking shots that show six dancers performing a dance routine around the members of the band. Every different shot features a slight change in the expression, gestures, and movement of the dancers and band-members. Critics complimented the concept of the video, and felt it was representative of The xx's musical style. The band performed the song live at the iTunes Festival in 2010 and it was also included on the set list of their 2010 and 2013 tour.
A cover version of "Islands" was recorded by Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira for inclusion in her ninth studio album Sale el Sol (2010). The cover followed a very similar instrumentation to the original version, but featured a faster tempo and more house elements. Shakira performed the cover live at the 2010 Glastonbury Festival in Pilton, Somerset.
"Islands" was written by The xx band-members Jamie Smith, Oliver Sim, Romy Madley Croft and then-member Baria Qureshi, for the English indie pop band's self-titled debut album (2009). According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Universal Music Publishing Group, the song is composed in the key of C# minor and has a metronome of 123 beats per minute. Sim and Croft provide vocals in the track, and their range spans from G#3 to E4. Similar to the band's usual style of production, "Islands" is dark and "nocturnal" in nature and follows a "simple, effective" beat. It features instrumentation from guitars which "twirl like dance floor partners in the background" and synthesisers that "play like a musical shadow". According to BBC Music's Lou Thomas, the song features house rhythms and a melody similar to that of Tom Petty's 1989 song "I Won't Back Down". Lyrically, "Islands" is a "psycho-geographical love song" and contains themes of loyalty, which are heard in lines like "I am yours now, so I don’t ever have to leave". The duo's vocals were described as "girl-boy", with Croft's vocal delivery taking on a "pleasant soft-pop vibe". Sim momentarily interrupts the verses with "four short thumbings". A "typically heartfelt and bed-cuddly" refrain "I am yours now" is repeated throughout the song, and UK-based online publication Muso's Guide regarded it as "the closest thing The xx has produced to a hook".
The song was released as the third single from xx on 26 October 2009 by Young Turks in 7-inch single and digital download formats. A minimalistic and "sexy" track named "Do You Mind?" was included as the B-side to "Islands", and is composed of "untypically brash drums". On 15 March 2010, Young Turks released a 12-inch single version "Islands", which contained various remixes of the song.
The accompanying music video for "Islands" was directed by Saam Farahmand, who had previously worked with artists like Simian Mobile Disco and Klaxons. It premiered on MTV on 21 April 2010. Composed of a series of tracking shots, the video shows Croft, Sim, and Smith "listlessly" sitting on a couch with six dancers performing a choreographed dance routine behind them. The dancers carry out the same routine with every next tracking shot, but a slight change in their expressions, gestures, and movement takes place. Similarly, the band-members repeatedly change their positions and facial expressions "with differing fervour". Near to the end of the video, the pattern begins modifying and "the comfortable habits get broken up/break up" as the dancers and band-members leave one by one. The backdrop, which consists of several small "X" letters, also catches fire.
File Hashes
HASH1: 789F93C1818911B2 HASH2: 869FCEF66752B985 (FLAC) HASH1: 0319F838E6AA510D HASH2: AE16B482A8020AEE (MP3) HASH1: 8055CD2FB0A3593F HASH2: 5C0E2D78B6CAB4C2 (MP3) 
Pop 
Relaxed 
Rock/Pop 
124,168 
2,744 (2%)
None 
Status
UnlockedData Complete
90%External Links
