Overall score: 8.39
High score: 10 (LoveInStereo, Ace Reject, Eternium, EmRiNavy, Subomie, Himeros, BadBoy, August, Superpower, lovesong, MWB, justin464, Kool_Aid_King, Jdella11, castle13, Great Username, Ainsworth, Яeo., iamanearthling, CrazyCat, SylMacPer, Stevie, stereo.love, vinKC, Sparky Polastri, Penk, VJoker, Quicksand, HausofCarlos, LoseMyBreath, Edge of Glory, KLatz, Giselle, KingB®, Green, Dollas n Diamonds)
Low score: 1 (rlj)
Listen to "XO" Released simultaneously with “Drunk In Love,” this lead pop single from
Beyoncé was quickly overshadowed and mostly ignored by American audiences. They missed out on what could have been the year’s signature love song, an uplifting ode to soul mates that swells from a simple drum machine loop into a triumphant chorus that practically demands the listener sing along. (It’s right there in the built-in call-and-response crowd!) ATRL was much kinder to “XO,” though still ultimately gave the edge of to its sister single. The clear message: surfboards are a much better mode of transportation than space shuttles. (Why Beyoncé included that unnecessary audio sample from the Challenger disaster remains the album’s most baffling mystery.)
ATRL says...: "I really love pop Beyoncé and tracks like this make me understand why I do,"
Himeros wrote. "She doesn't oversing at all here. Instead we find unusual laid-down vocals that make the track even more special."
August called it "the second-best thing Ryan Tedder has ever done, right above Beyoncé's own 'Halo' and right under Sky Ferreira's 'Obsession.' Why he refuses to give his own band good songs is beyondcé me."
Stevie felt Beyoncé "effortlessly captures the euphoric feeling that comes with being in a loving relationship. Even though her marriage is very public, no one will ever truly understand how they feel, almost as if her and Jay share a beautiful little secret between them."
JakeKills said, "A song that could have been generic in less capable hands instead finds Bey turning the lights out on her competitions' careers—not that she needs any help overshadowing them when this rate just emphasizes how terrible their most recent offerings are."
bluth found it "too perfect for me to really like it, if that’s a thing."
Best bit: “Baby, love me lights out”—urgent and moving in its plainspoken romanticism
