X Ambassadors – Minneapolis Music Hall – May 1st 2018

Music Hall MPLS unquestionably brought in a huge crowd for the ‘Joyful Tour’. It almost seemed as if the swarms of people coming in didn’t stop.

The Aces are an all-female band from Provo, Utah. Their music is a mix of indie and electronic. They started out performing at teen events and school assemblies, but as their popularity grew they moved onto playing in music clubs. Paste Magazine included them in their feature “10 Best Utah Bands You Should Know”, after their release of a seven song EP in 2012. In 2016 they signed a deal with Red Bull Records. In which they released a single, “Stuck”, which had hit over two million plays on streaming services. The Aces first EP under Red Bull Records, “I Don’t Like Being Honest”, is now available worldwide, along with their second EP “When My Heart Felt Volcanic”.

Jacob Banks hails from Nigeria. At age 13, Jacob moved to Birmingham in England. He got his start going to open mic nights. In which he gathered crowds with his powerful vocals and stage presence. His music is a wide eclectic mix of synth, a lot of soul, and African inspired grooves. His soulful presence definitely keeps you intrigued. Jacob debuted with his EP, “The Monologue”, sending him on the road to tour with artists such as Emeli Sande, Sam Smith, and Alicia Keys around the U.K. Jacob Banks is now working with Interscope Records. He hopes to reenergize soul music for a new generation, and I believe it’s working, everyone was glued to the stage and dancing along to the songs. He really is a new generation of Soul.

X Ambassadors is an enchanting mix of indie rock and alternative rock. They started out touring with artists such as LIGHTS. In the release of their second LP, “Litost”, included a song titled “Litost”, which was featured on the soundtrack for the movie “The Host”. In June of 2015 they released their debut full-length album, “VHS”. The album has produced four hit singles, “Jungle”, “Renegades”, “Unsteady”, and “Low Life”, in which are some of their most popular and well known songs. Last year their released their second full-length album titled “Joyful”, in which they are touring in the name. X Ambassadors have worked with several popular bands and musicians like, Imagine Dragons, Jamie N Commons, Eminem, Bebe Rexha, and Machine Gun Kelly. Their latest single titled, “Joyful”, was released in January of this year. Lead singer Sam Harris states that Incubus and Red Hot Chili Peppers are some of their biggest influences and you can definitely hear it in their sound. They are one of the most energetic bands I have seen. X Ambassadors puts on an amazing show, if you have not had the privilege of seeing them you are missing out. Their stage set-up included three soulful women singing in the background. This to my knowledge is the first time I have witnessed backup singers that resemble a ‘gospel’ like presence and sound.

Review and photos by Kaila Turck