The X Ambassadors are celebrating the 10-year anniversary of their debut album, VHS, with a re-recorded album, released August 29th, and a North American tour. On Tuesday, September 2nd, the X Ambassadors kicked off that tour in Phoenix, AZ, bringing a setlist of their reimagined tracks, along with favorites from the remainder of their catalog. Along for the ride was singer-songwriter Delacey.
Singer-songwriter Delacey got things started with an 8-song set, featuring many songs from her recently released album, Crying Over Beauty. The pop artist opened her set with “My Man,” a track about women supporting women, which was the first song she had ever released (2019). In addition to creating her own music, Delacey is a decorated songwriter who has won multiple awards for “Kiss the Sky,” the track sung by Maren Morris featured in the film "The Wild Robot." Her work with Justin Bieber’s Justice was nominated for a Grammy, and she has songwriting credits for multiple chart-topping hits, including Halsey’s “Without Me” and The Chainsmokers’ “New York City.” Delacey expressed her excitement for the tour and for her first ever time playing in Arizona, and that excitement was contagious. While many may not have been familiar with her work, they danced along to songs like “Trouble.” As she was introducing her last song, a fan in the audience shouted out a request for “Black Coffee,” the title track from her debut album. While she was not prepared to comply with that request, she expressed how much she loved that there were fans of her music in the audience. Delacey finished out her set and skipped off the stage while the music faded out, leaving fans sufficiently warmed up for the evening’s main event.
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While typically reserved for the encore, X Ambassadors changed things up for this tour, kicking off their set with an absolutely wild extended performance of “Jungle,” which had the crowd’s energy through the roof right off the bat (and was quite possibly the most fun I have ever had in a photo pit). The set continued with a full play-through of VHS, changing up the order of the tracks to keep the energy flowing just right. When he wasn’t delivering on bass or saxophone, frontman Sam Harris effortlessly danced across the stage, keeping his powerful vocals flawless. Bodies grooved and voices rang out in unison as the audience sang along to the songs that first made them fall in love with the band. Sam took moments to reminisce on what this record meant to the band, recalling times he would stumble off the tour bus early in the morning, only to bump into fans who would profess how meaningful the songs were to them. He explained that, while it was tough not to be hard on their younger selves when revisiting the songs, the words from fans rang in his head while remaking the record as a powerful reminder of just how special it really was. Before moving into a beautiful performance of “Gorgeous,” Sam discussed how they often record an acoustic version of their songs, which “are cool once,” but that the acoustic version of this track, which they recorded in a cabin somewhere in the middle of upstate New York, was something that had stuck with him as one that he felt should have been originally recorded that way. Because of this, the track was stripped down for the re-recording of the album.
The full play-through of the album meant that the audience was treated to songs that aren’t frequently played live, including the debut performance of “Feather.” This was not the only debut Phoenix would be blessed with, as later in the set, the band would play “Fragile” for the first time ever in front of an audience. The set ended with a performance of “Renegades,” before the band returned for an encore of favorites from the rest of their catalog. They opened the six-song encore with a performance of “BOOM,” which had the crowd’s hands up and bodies moving. They closed out the night with the song that has been in rotation the longest, a track beloved by many: “Unconsolable.” I’ve seen this band live each time they have made their way through Phoenix, and this performance felt different. While they always put on an amazing show, this performance was by far the best I have ever seen.
The tour is just underway with 17 stops remaining as they make their way across North America through the end of September. The VHS (X) tour is one you won’t want to miss! Make sure to grab a ticket while they’re still available!
VHS (X) [Rerecorded] is available on all streaming platforms now. Listen here.
Setlist: Jungle/ Loveless/ Hang On / Low Life/ Fear / Nervous / Feather/ Superpower / Naked / Gorgeous / Unsteady / Renegades / BOOM / Home / Fragile / Love Songs Drug Songs / Unconsolable
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