Listen to Jamie xx’s Notting Hill Carnival-inspired single ‘Kill Dem’
“I was looking forward to the day when I could get back to what I love”
Jamie xx has released his new Notting Hill Carnival-inspired single ‘Kill Dem’ – listen to the track below.
The DJ and producer performed at the iconic London festival for the first time last month, which returned after two years of cancellations due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Teasing the track on social media earlier this week, he wrote: “Here’s a lil bit of my new tune Kill Dem. U may have heard me playing it out over the summer.”
Shortly after releasing the song late yesterday (20 September), Jamie xx wrote on Instagram: “Been feeling all of the things when testing this track out at festivals this summer, trying to make it the best it could be. Many many memorable moments. I’m super happy to release it into the world today! Thank u for dancing.”
Listen to ‘Kill Dem’ below.
Speaking about the track in a statement, Jamie xx said: “I started making it at a time when we weren’t sure when we were going to be able to do stuff. I was looking forward to the day when I could get back to what I love. It was one of those ones that happens quite instantly and that’s kind of rare for me these days. It happened within almost a day.”
A press release added that the track was made with Notting Hill Carnival in mind, “inspired by the energy of the parties and soundsystems Jamie experienced there since first attending as a teenager”.
‘Kill Dem’ follows the DJs April single ‘Let’s Do It Again’. It marked the multi-instrumentalist’s first release since 2020’s ‘Idontknow’.
Last month, Jamie xx shared his mix of The xx bandmate Oliver Sim’s ‘GMT’ from the singer’s debut solo album Hideous Bastard.
Earlier this year, Sim and Jamie xx collaborated on a string of solo singles including March’s ‘Romance With A Heart’ – Sim’s first solo single – and ‘Fruit’, with Jamie xx producing both.
“Terrifyingly, this is the first song I’ve ever released under my own name, I really hope you all enjoy it. Produced by my dear older brother Jamie xx,” Sim said of his debut solo track.
“P.S still very much in a loving and happy relationship/band with Romy and Jamie,” he added.
Sim was the last of The xx’s three-piece to release solo material, after guitarist and vocalist Romy released her debut single ‘Lifetime’ in 2020; she followed that up in January with ‘Lights Out’, a collaboration with Fred Again and HAAi.
In October 2020, Romy confirmed that there would be new music from The xx.
“I got some messages and stuff from people saying: ‘What’s happened to The xx?’” she said in an interview with Apple Music’s Matt Wilkinson. “And I just wanted to be clear with that and just say we love each other and we’re making more music together for sure.”