“This is the biggest show we’ve ever done in DC” Sam Harris told the sold out crowd gathered at the 9:30 Club Wednesday evening. X Ambassadors, comprised of brothers Sam and Casey Harris, Noah Feldshuh, and Adam Levin put on a powerful 11 song set that had the crowd fully engaged for its entirety. DC marked the first stop on the band’s tour behind its debut LP, VHS and they came out swinging.The band launched into their set with a fired up version of “Loveless” and as soon as the beat dropped it was obvious that the energy in the room would only continue to build. The band powered through its first three songs without stopping to catch a breath and after only twenty minutes, I felt like I had just watched a two hour stadium set.

Frontman Sam Harris’ stage presence was a powerful force to be reckoned with as he worked all angles of the stage, jumping from saxophone to guitar to drums. Meanwhile, keyboardist Casey Harris, who has been blind since birth, completely dominated the keys and provided stunning piano interludes in the moments his brother caught his breath between songs.

An extended piano intro to the band’s fifth song, “Unsteady” was greeted by the voices of the 9:30 Club choir as they sang back the lines to the song’s opening verse. All four members of the band seemed genuinely floored by the crowd in this moment and although I know they had, it was as though they’d never experienced anything like it before.

Okay, now you sing it... ? #unsteadylive #VHSTour

https://instagram.com/p/9JlT-zi3Nv/

A video posted by X AMBASSADORS (@xambassadors) on Oct 22, 2015 at 11:21am PDT

As the set entered its final few songs, Sam told the audience “DC, this one is dedicated to you, you wanna know why? Because you’re all gorgeous.” The delivery of this line was so charming that I felt myself blush as the band began playing “gorgeous.”

My notes:

• The crowd is energetic but no match for the Harris brothers.
• They are so COOL but still seem approachable.
• That. Damn. Saxophone.
• I have never seen this kind of chemistry in a band before.

X Ambassadors have only just begun their headlining tour of North America and have recently announced that they will be opening for Muse at a handful of shows beginning mid-January. To view a full list of tour dates click here.

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