"Chained" is a song by English

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

group

The xx The xx are an English indie rock band from Wandsworth, London, formed in 2005. The band consists of Romy Madley Croft (guitar, vocals), Oliver Sim (bass guitar, vocals), Jamie Smith, also known as Jamie xx (beats, MPC, record production), ...

, released on 7 August 2012 by

Young Turks The Young Turks (, also ''Genç Türkler'') formed as a constitutionalist broad opposition-movement in the late Ottoman Empire against the absolutist régime of Sultan Abdul Hamid II (). The most powerful organization of the movement, ...

. It was the second single from their 2012 album '' Coexist''. The song was produced by percussionist

Jamie xx James Thomas Smith (born 28 October 1988), known professionally as Jamie xx, is an English musician, DJ, record producer, and remixer. He is known for both his solo work and as a member of the indie pop band the xx. He has been described as a " ...

and written by guitarist

Romy Madley Croft Romy Madley Croft (born 18 August 1989) who releases solo music as Romy, is an English musician. She is the guitarist and co-vocalist of the xx, and she released a solo album, '' Mid Air'', in 2023, which peaked at No. 15 on the UK Albums Ch ...

and bassist Oliver Sim. "Chained" charted at number 19 in Belgium and received positive reviews from music critics, who complimented Jamie xx's minimalist production and the vocal interplay between Croft and Sim.

Writing and recording

"Chained" was one of the first songs written for '' Coexist''.

and Oliver Sim wrote the song together in a room with her playing keyboards and him playing bass. After they finished writing it,

incorporated his beat to the song, which Croft said "took the song on a complete different turn". They recorded the song at their studio in London.

Music and lyrics

The song is a lament of a couple's distance from each other: "Did I hold you too tight? / Did I not let enough light in? ... We used to be closer than this / Is it something you miss?" Croft and Sim finish each other's lines through their interplay on the song. Hari Ashurst of

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered Alternative rock, alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres includin ...

views their vocal interplay as "duelling" and writes, "The two vocalists swoop and duck around each other's verses, almost as if they're avoiding each other. Sometimes, they hit the same slipstream, but more often roftand Oliver are singing over each other, trailing off alone, or simply trading wistful lines." He cites the chorus line as the sole moment of

release Release may refer to: * Art release, the public distribution of an artistic production, such as a film, album, or song * Legal release, a legal instrument * News release, a communication directed at the news media * Release (ISUP), a code to i ...

on the song. Its music features subtle flourishes, cooing sounds, a brief guitar solo, and muffled 2-step beats. Jamie xx's

minimalist In visual arts, music, and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in the post-war era in western art. The movement is often interpreted as a reaction to abstract expressionism and modernism; it anticipated contemporary post-mi ...

production incorporates shimmering

cymbal A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sou ...

s and

syncopated In music, syncopation is a variety of rhythms played together to make a piece of music, making part or all of a tune or piece of music off-beat (music), off-beat. More simply, syncopation is "a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of ...

rimshot A rimshot is a percussion technique used to produce an Accent (music), accented snare drum backbeat. The sound is produced by simultaneously hitting the Drum hardware#Rim, rim and Drumhead, head of the drum with a drum stick. The sound and var ...

s. "Chained" experiments with musical buildup, including climactic guitar and rising beats. The song's only

crescendo In music, the dynamics of a piece are the variation in loudness between notes or phrases. Dynamics are indicated by specific musical notation, often in some detail. However, dynamics markings require interpretation by the performer depending ...

is by a solitary guitar line, and the stuttering, off-beat

kick drum The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter usually greater than its depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. The hea ...

that beings the song develops into a more standard rhythm. Paula Mejia of Prefix writes that the song "carefully structures itself on the formulaic build of beats, rising like the pace of a palpitating heartbeat and bursting into a shimmer of oscillating sounds". The song also contains a sample of The Crusaders' 1974 song "Lilies of the Nile".

Critical reception

's Hari Ashurst called the song "an intense pinprick of drama" and complimented Croft and Sim's "intense" vocal interplay, writing that "the thrill is emotional and brave". Heather Phares of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

cited it as a highlight on ''Coexist'' and commented that "they share an intimacy that makes listeners feel like they're eavesdropping." Will Hermes of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' gave the song four out of five stars and praised Jamie xx's "sleight-of-hand minimalism", writing that "at present he may be the most elegant beatmaker in pop."

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from '' Coexist'' liner notes. *

– composer, guitar, keyboards, vocals * Rodaidh McDonald – mixing * Oliver Sim – bass, composer, vocals *

Mandy Parnell Mandy Parnell is a British mastering engineer and founder of Black Saloon Studios in London, England, where she serves as the senior mastering engineer. Parnell has worked on projects with a wide variety of artists, including Aphex Twin, Bjork, ...

– mastering * Jamie Smith – beats, engineer, mixing, MPC, producer

Charts

Release history

References

External links

* {{authority control 2012 songs The xx songs Songs written by Jamie xx Songs written by Oliver Sim Songs written by Romy Madley Croft Young (record label) singles