X Ambassadors – VHS (X)

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In all of (the recently-engaged) Taylor Swift’s wisdom and cultural impact, arguably the biggest shake-up in the music industry was the idea of re-recording music to take back ownership of the songs that an artist has written. Never being strangers to hopping onto a great idea, X Ambassadors are gearing up for the release of VHS (X) this Friday, a faithful re-record of their debut LP that features a plethora of re-imagined versions of their biggest hits. VHS, I thought, was a bit bogged down/packed with too many interludes and voice memos that broke up the overall flow of their debut, but VHS (X) trims the fat, and focuses on what X Ambassadors are capable of creating today. Given the band’s 10+ years experience that have come from touring the world since their original version of VHS graced the world in the summer of 2015, this re-record does much more than just claiming back ownership of the songs that Sam Harris, Casey Harris, and Adam Levin created on their debut, it accentuates X Ambassadors core strengths as a unit moving forward.

”Renegades” kicks off VHS (X) with a pretty straight-forward and faithful version of the band’s original breakthrough single, and it puts emphasis behind the great beat supplied by drummer Adam Levin over Sam Harris’ dynamic vocal performance. Casey Harris has some standout moments on the keyboards as well here, and the steady piano bounce in the chorus is felt far and wide. Arguably the biggest departure from VHS comes on the second single from VHS (X) of “Unsteady” that has a bit of blues guitar from Sam Harris while his vocals cut through the dark spaces like the sun rising after a long night. Levin stays pretty much in the background without adding too many drum fills, while the guitar and vocals from Harris take center stage, and rightfully so.

”Hang On” allows for Casey Harris to cement his status as a key cog of the X Ambassadors wheel, while Sam Harris provides a captivating vocal performance that is semi-gospel in its delivery, while other instruments like the saxophone and introduced to round out the full sound of the track. It’s a great way of re-imagining this key song off of VHS, and further highlights the great band chemistry these three musicians share together. “Naked” follows in the new sequencing with some great falsetto vocals from Sam Harris, while some extra hand claps and saxophone are introduced to allow the band to breathe a brand new shelf life into their debut’s classic deep cut. “Gorgeous” is a now re-imagined as a haunting ballad that largely relies on the brotherly connection between Sam and Casey, as the vocals cut like a knife over the keyboards. As the song picks up momentum, drummer Adam Levin adds in just a few drum clicks and kick drum to bring further weight to Sam’s lyrics.

”Fear” was always a bit of a odd-sounding song off of VHS, with its reverberating refrain, paired with various vocal effects that made it sound a bit like an Imagine Dragons song. But on VHS (X), it becomes a gateway drug to Adam Levin’s stellar performance behind the kit, while the wailing guitar riffs from Sam Harris prevent the re-record from being a true copy and paste job. “Low Life” was the fourth and final single to be released from VHS, and it’s still a haunting mid-tempo soul track that is dripping with blues guitar and another all-time vocal performance from Sam. The band chooses to add in some great backing vocals in the chorus, that reminded me of the power of soul music in general.

”Nervous” features a frenetic beat from Adam Levin, while Sam Harris’ somber vocal delivery in the verses bleed away quickly into an anthemic chorus that is punchy, and filled with backing horns to sound simply massive. “Feather” features some thunderous piano strokes from Casey, while Sam continues to command the vocal booth with veteran ease and you can hear a bit of a confident swagger behind his performance, too. “Superpower” turns the original version completely on its head by becoming a club-ready anthem that is dripping with syrupy synths, and a breakneck beat from drummer Adam Levin. Sam Harris sounds like a confident frontman that highlights his limitless star potential as a vocalist.

The closing duo of the nearly-tribal drum beat found on “Loveless”, paired with a wall-of-sound vocal performance from Sam Harris, that sets up the lead single of VHS, “Jungle”, that is now re-imagined as a raucous guitar-driven romp in the style of Jack White, albeit with a X Ambassadors flair. Sam Harris is more than capable as a guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter in conveying the same raw emotions of the original track, while simultaneously making the re-record feel rejuvenated, fresh, and new to even the most faithful X Ambassadors fan. VHS (X) could’ve easily played it safe by just presenting a faithful re-record of VHS, but X Ambassadors showcase what makes them such a dynamic band on this set that reinvigorates interest in this artist.

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