Xiu Xiu
 http://www.xiuxiu.org

styles: experimental rock, industrial pop-noise
others: Throbbing Gristle, Skeletons, Mount Eerie, The Double, Cabaret Voltaire (early)

The Air Force
5RC, 2006
rating: 4/5
reviewer: paul haney

How Jamie Stewart and his Xiu Xiu project have developed into cult favorites for bookish indie youngsters is a bit of a riddle, considering just how bland and lazy most college rock has become; love them or hate them, Xiu Xiu traverse so far off the middle-of-the-road that they ride over the guard rails and into the deepest, dankest bog down below. Going from listening to 95% of today's safe indie rock to listening to Xiu Xiu is like going straight from ingesting caffeine to overdosing on bad acid, and while its surely admirable that the cardigan set is being relatively bold with their musical choices, it's still a bit of a puzzle. Regardless, Xiu Xiu may as well be full-blown indie stars now based on cult-acclaim, and with each year, we're left to try piece together exactly where and how Stewart and his various players will continue to captivate and enthrall an ever-fickle public.

The impossibility of tracing where Xiu Xiu are heading has to do with their disregard for straightforward, stylistic trajectories. Rather, each release is a zig-zag of pop smarts versus industrial-strength freakouts, and if the pop tunes get catchier, the "experimental" jams get that much more alienating. And even taking Jamie's older, more obscure musical works into account (i.e., IBOPA and Ten In The Swear Jar), it's abundantly clear the guy is venturing even further into the bleakest recesses of sound with his latest endeavor. For instance, where Fabulous Muscles might have been the breakthrough, last year's La Foret ventured into testing minimalism, more proof that Xiu Xiu are never ones to take the most obvious solution to heart. Thus, with The Air Force, we find Xiu Xiu neither progressing nor wearing out their stylistic quota, though on first listen it may surely sound a bit too business as usual, or as close an impenetrable band like Xiu Xiu can get to coasting.

"Boy Soprano" is the sort-of FUBAR pop song that's expected on each disc, but its twee-leaning melody isn't much to grumble at after a choir of Stewart's and piercing-abrasion overtakes. Likewise, Caralee McElroy's vocal turn on "Hello From Eau Claire" is a modest treat, Xiu Xiu's most deliberate attempt at a cute indie-pop song, and the record's only obvious point of divergence from any past efforts.

But treating The Air Force as the first teeth-smashing stumble into monotony on Xiu Xiu's career pathway overlooks all the elements that gel after repeated exposure. Opener "Buzz Saw" is a creeping and quasi-gorgeous bit of mope, while "Vulture Piano" increases the intensity ten-fold, but also features one of Stewart's most lovely melodies and vocals. If anything, The Air Force is yet more proof that Stewart is an unexpected master at melody, maybe to the point where he feels a certain self-deprecating shame in possessing such a talent, thus bringing us the abundance of sonic filth that litters his wonderfully-damaged creations.

Elsewhere, on more sparse set-pieces like "PJ In The Streets..." and "The Pineapple Vs The Watermelon," Jamie becomes a guitar-slinging troubadour for the dour no-wave set, creating compelling folkie ditties belied by their bluntly uncomfortable narratives. Speaking of such, it's rather easy to tell with The Air Force that Stewart's restraint only heightens the ennui and hopelessness that make his songs so compelling and paradoxically cathartic. Rather than the panic-attack screams of "I Broke Up," Stewart's new soft mumbles have the evened-out mannerisms of medicated apathy.

Depending on who you ask, The Air Force could be the most well-rounded Xiu Xiu record in a while, and judging by more straightforwardly pleasurable songs like "Save Me Save Me" and "The Fox & The Rabbit," Stewart and company aren't afraid of courting a much larger audience than would have been possible during, say, A Promise. The Air Force may signal that Xiu Xiu isn't as jarring and bewildering as they once were, but there's more than enough fortitude and craft present to ensure that Stewart will always be a good handful of steps ahead of everyone else making "experimental" pop. It's another year, another Xiu Xiu record, and that's still yet to be a cynical statement.

1. Buzz Saw
2. Boy Soprano
3. Hello from Eau Claire
4. Vulture Piano
5. PJ in the Streets...
6. Bishop, CA
7. Saint Pedro Glue Stick
8. The Pineapple Vs The Watermelon
9. Save Me Save Me
10. The Fox & the Rabbit
11. Wig Master

Life and Live
Xeng, 2005
rating: 4/5
reviewer: sponge


When I was younger, I often worried about whether the music I enjoyed was created by people sincerely vested in their work. Call me naïve, but I couldn't stand the idea of artistic media being exploited for material gains. As follows, I idolized the stubborn, mad eccentric who seemed to create music because he psychologically depended on that inimitable act of creation.

Although I'm now convinced that this tendency of mine was both somewhat misled and a harbinger of my current neuroses, I still have a certain penchant for music that is made with brutally honest sincerity. Whereas a lot of indie and emo acts tend to exploit this idea of sincerity, often sacrificing any sort of intellectual originality or artistry in order to appear less pretentious, Xiu Xiu successfully fuses together intelligence and sincerity in the creation of their powerful musical tempests.

Xiu Xiu's intricate music is very confrontational though. As demonstrated by last year's Fabulous Muscles, it walks the line between challenging and pleasing, between experimental and pop, leaning in both cases towards the former. Their songs are immediately harsh, graphic, and overwhelming, and their albums generally sound like aural schizophrenia in a 1950s mental hospital sense: maybe the product of too much electroshock therapy. Xiu Xiu's appeal, however, depends on a certain amount of devastation, both in lyrical content and musical effect. Their music is, in short, a potent mixture of intellect and sincerity pushed to the extremes of acceptability.

I saw Xiu Xiu live for the first time in a ballet studio. I loved it. Frontman Jamie Stewart's remarkable voice, which alternates without any sort of warning between loving cooing and frustrated shrieking, was even more mesmerizing in concert than on record; and the powerful performance felt traumatic, challenging, and strangely enjoyable. Cathartic.

The most singular moment of the concert in my mind, however, was when Jamie Stewart, while appearing palpably pissed off, quietly stopped the performance to have a loud-mouthed drunkard in the audience silenced. Although from an outsider's perspective this move might not seem all that momentous, it was huge for me. This guy cared about his music and his audience. He was not going to have his performance disrespected if he could help it, and in fact, as I later found out, the last time Xiu Xiu had stopped in Austin to play at a more traditional venue, they actually had to deal with lit cigarettes being thrown at them during their performance. Thus, the ballet studio.

Life and Live is a compilation of tracks culled from Stewart's solo tours, and the album, much unlike the Xiu Xiu studio albums, consists of minimal instrumentation. Most of the tracks feature merely Stewart singing with his acoustic guitar. Since the band's ruthlessly intimate aesthetic is largely the product of Stewart's multifaceted voice, the simplicity of the album, in fact, may be the album's greatest contribution to the Xiu Xiu canon. The confrontational sincerity and keen brilliance of this music is presented with an authoritative restraint that is rather lacking on Xiu Xiu studio albums. The music's power is still there, but the restraint is so manifest that the music becomes, in a sense, more affecting. Like at the ballet studio in Austin, Stewart's commitment to his music and to its importance becomes tangible, but his restraint, in my opinion, particularly increases the intensity of the music or at least shifts the direction of that blistering intensity to a more intimately jarring dimension.

With the exception of "Thanks Japan!"'s unnecessary chatter and perhaps "Jennifer Lopez"'s oppressive noise, every detail is engaging in this rather brilliant album. To those of you who like Xiu Xiu, the restraint of these live performances will absorb you, and to those of you who don't know Xiu Xiu, the album will serve as a great stepping stone into their realm of experimental pop music. Those who don't like Xiu Xiu will probably continue to dislike Xiu Xiu, but Life and Live might draw you in if only because there is simply so much less to cope with on these acoustic tracks.

1. 20, 000 Deaths for Eidelyn Gonzales, 20, 000 Deaths for Jamie Peterson
2. Sad Redux-O-Grapher
3. King Earth, King Earth
4. I Broke Up
5. Thanks Japan!
6. Sad Pony Guerilla Girl
7. Asleep
8. Jennifer Lopez
9. 20, 000 Deaths for Eidelyn Gonzales, 20, 000 Deaths for Jamie Peterson
10. Helsabot
11. Dr. Troll
12. Brooklyn Dodgers
13. Nieces Pieces
14. Clover
15. I Broke Up

La Foret
 5 Rue Christine, 2005
rating: 4/5
reviewer: willcoma


Listening to Xiu Xiu is a completely unique experience. It's bleak and unapologetically dejected in spirit. But rather than simplistic, turgid malaise, the air of every Xiu Xiu release is more suited for poignant, obscured, and rapturous meditations on ingrained, compounded anguish. A spirited dispiriting, if you will. A moment's bland depression listening to canned Shania Twain at the abortion clinic made climactic and clawing-at-ones-heartspace-just-to-feel-alive cinematic. Everyone knows how transporting flexing into a personal drama can be. How irrational and beautiful it is to let go of our many drives of self-preservation, even when they seem most necessary.

Xiu Xiu has been quite prolific since their debut, and I'm happy to report that each one of their four albums are uncommonly moving listening experiences. If you're adventurous, and perhaps patient, you will find much to love about this music. If The Faint had music half as intriguing as their album covers, maybe they'd be something in this league. Radiohead fans that have liked the band's direction rather than constantly throwing on The Bends or "Creep" would be close to appreciating this kind of sound. It also doesn't hurt if you've enjoyed Swans, Pornography-era Cure, Joy Division, or Thighpaulsandra at one time or another. Without exception, this is dreary, occasionally demanding, soulcrush. That is, unless, you consider the lyric "there will always be a healthy heart to disrespect" amidst the comparatively wistful (yet definitely disorienting) music of "Bog People" something approaching a moodswing.

But how's the new Xiu Xiu, you ask? Well, not much has changed. The biggest shift in the group's sound seemed to occur between A Promise and Fabulous Muscles, where the band started using more traditional instrumentation (i.e., guitars that sound like guitars). Their nihilistic drum machine flourishes, dryly confrontational lyrics, and violent synth stabs might be the group's signature, but Stewart's songwriting prowess and backwards hook science has become what keeps the listener coming back (and, hopefully, winning new ones). In other words, it's business as usual, but there is not a damn thing wrong with that when it comes to this group. Perhaps future releases could use some longer songs. Maybe some instrumentals. A conceptual double-album? It doesn't really matter, since rather than trying to out-do themselves, Xiu Xiu are perfecting their own aesthetic, and perfecting it well. But, yeah, short answer: La Foret is an incredible album. Ah'm luvin it! Dyn-o-mite! #1 Dad! Show me the money! Shock the monkey!

With "Clover," La Foret opens with one of the band's more reserved, sparsely orchestrated pieces, setting the stage in a foreboding fashion with its chilling instrumental vibes-led sections. These songs are essential to a given Xiu Xiu release, as they provide a nicely meditative compliment to the ecstatic cacophony of their more driving songs. I'd be doing you a disservice if I didn't acknowledge "Muppet Face," "Pox," "Baby Captain," "Saturn" and "Bog People," the numbers that are the most immediately satisfying. The rest are more of that "Tonite and Today" variety of Xiu Xiu song that you can get lost in, but aren't likely to always have the patience for. "Yellow Raspberry" and "Baby Captain" actually fall somewhere in between. Having the percussion and the distortion come in between more clipped, delicate soft-singing and minor melody, the tracks work as a bridge between the band's dual modes.

Gone, for the most part, are the metal scrapes and pangs of their debut, yet there remains a strong industrial underpinning to the sound. But that's only a "file-under" recommendation. This music is much deeper than all that. It's sitting and staring in your dark space, trilling fingers in the wound and rows of hissing pistons for walls. This is Nine Inch Nails, feed-the-cancer-catharsis, in fearless mode. Dismay made rapturous, abstract and gloriously unnerving. Unnerved becomes something of a Zen state while listening to this music. A poignant reminder that, at our most wretched, we can be utterly fearless. Not afraid to crawl, not afraid to stop dead. And when fear sneaks in ("Saturn"), let your eyes widen and swallow hard. It's as close to alleviation as you're likely to achieve in locales this breathtakingly livid with emotional torment.

1. Clover
2. Muppet Face
3. Mousey Toy
4. Pox
5. Baby Captain
6. Saturn
7. Rose of Sharon (Grey Ghost Version)
8. Ale
9. Bog People
10. DangerousYou Shouldn't Be Here
11. Yellow Raspberry

Fabulous Muscles
5RC, 2004
rating: 4/5
reviewer: amneziak


It's very hard to write about Xiu Xiu's music, but that's mainly due to the fact that it's so damn hard to listen to. Nevertheless, one of the most important elements of being an artist is to remain completely true to yourself and your craft. Jamie Stewart, the only constant member of Xiu Xiu, could probably not agree more. He certainly doesn't lack the ability to express what's on his mind and in his heart. He is the master of being able to get to the absolute core of his feelings with every successive album he releases, regardless of how many listeners he leaves behind in the process. Stewart is someone who appears to not get enough out of life, or maybe he's just someone who's seen so much in his time that nothing affects him anymore. I'd imagine that in addition to being the most uncomfortable singer to listen to, he's probably the most jaded human being in existence. If Xiu Xiu's music isn't a testament to this, well... I'm not sure what else is.

Fabulous Muscles, his newest album, begins slightly unpredictable with a soft and simple Casio-sounding keyboard on "Crank Heart." This instrumentation is most likely a result of his time working with labelmate Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, who Stewart will be spending a bit of time with on the road this year. It insinuates that this album will be less abrasive than Xiu Xiu's previous work. It also stands as one of the more user-friendly songs of their catalogue, with its somewhat basic pop arrangement. "I Luv the Valley Oh" also starts fairly subdued and eventually unfolds into one of the finer tracks on the album. In a lot of ways, it's on par with his work on "Suha."

"Little Panda McElroy" doesn't do much to push the envelope, but is a song that really starts to promote the idea that this is a truly fantastic collection of work that Stewart has (once again) come up with. Things tend to get a little darker throughout the remainder of the album. Avid Xiu Xiu fans will appreciate this half of the album the most. The dialogue-only "Support Our Troops (Black Angels Oh)" is a collection of abstract electronic and feedback noises that provide a very unsettling mood upon its listener. One of the other tracks worth mentioning is the title track, "Fabulous Muscles," which appeared on last year's split-release with the Jim Yoshi Pile-Up. It's a different version than before, but it remains signature Jamie Stewart with its incredibly perverted and decadent lyrics, of which I won't share here.

Xiu Xiu isn't a gray band, in the sense that it's unfeasible to hear anyone declare them as being "okay." You're either on board because you somehow relate to what you get out of their music, or you're one of the others who are running as quickly as possible to get away from its painfully harsh reality. Although I won't say it's the best album of their ever-growing catalogue, Fabulous Muscles contains some of the band's best songs since Knife Play. As with all other Xiu Xiu albums, one thing is for certain: Stewart doesn't hold back on discussing excruciating topics. So, when I say it's important to remain true to your art, look no further than Stewart to deliver the goods. He's continually offering some of the most artistically challenging music around, yet he somehow manages to maintain a good enough balance to reach some of the more mainstream-type listeners. There are hardly any other musicians alive that can leave as huge of an impact as this, and I believe that's what keeps us coming back.

1. Crank Heart
2. I Luv the Valley Oh
3. Bunny Gamer
4. Little Panda McElroy
5. Support Our Troops (Black Angels Oh)
6. Fabulous Muscles (Mama Black Widow)
7. Brian the Vampire
8. Nieces Pieces (Boat Knife Version)
9. Clowne Towne
10. Mike

Fag Patrol
Free Porcupine Society, 2003
rating: 3.5/5
reviewer: amneziak


The other day I read an interview with Jamie Stewart discussing the inception of Xiu Xiu’s cover art for A Promise. After finding it to be a very strange story, I found myself pondering one question: Is Xiu Xiu for real? This is a question a lot of people ask when listening to the music of this California-based unit. Stewart, Xiu Xiu’s head honcho (no pun intended), is probably one of the most painful sounding lyricists to hit the scene in quite some time. Listening to him spill his insides out on tape has the bizarre ability to make me sick to my stomach. On some odd level, whether intended or not, we can probably all relate to the depressive emotions that are laid before us on any of Xiu Xiu’s albums. Maybe that’s part of the intrigue. The one thing that remains constant here is that Fag Patrol touches on aspects of both beauty and depression. It never really strolls too far from the basic ideas of their previous albums; however, this album in particular is a solo acoustic performance by Stewart. There’s an occasional interruption by the producer to either have Stewart start the recording over or slow down the pace of the song. Absent are the meandering noises that usually make their songs wreak havoc on one’s ears. It’s this abrasiveness that tends to bring their fans back for another ride. Contrary to this notion, though, the lo-fi quality of Fag Patrol makes it a good place to start for someone who might be considering getting into Xiu Xiu’s catalog. This is not their best work, and even though the lineup for the band is constantly changing, Fag Patrol lends itself well to the core of what the band is truly about: Jamie Stewart’s life experiences.

1. Helsabot
2. King Earth King Earth
3. 20,000 Deaths for Eidelyn Gonzalez, 20,000 Deaths for Jamie Peterson
4. Dr. Troll
5. Jennifer Lopez
6. Brooklyn Dodgers
7. Asleep
8. I Broke Up
9. Nieces Pieces

A Promise
5RC, 2003
rating: 4/5
reviewer: tamec


The opening track of A Promise "Sad Pony Guerilla Girl" is the creepiest song since Ween's "Spinal Meningitis Got Me Down," a pretty mess of strummed and fingerpicked acoustic guitars that dives into unsettling electronic percussion with a slapping sound that makes everything all the more uncomfortable. Xiu Xiu seems to have found that if they can make their music palatable, singer Jamie Stewart's words can be even more frightening. "I like my neighborhood, and I like my gun - driving  my little car, I am your girl and I will protect you." God. Listen to it and see what your dreams are like. "Apistat Commander" is a driving and compelling piece of synthesizers, keyboards, and, like much of the album, unusual percussion - in this case, metallic clangs. "20,000 Deaths for Eidelyn Gonzales..." is another one of my favorites, haunting and atmospheric on beds of synths. It's followed by the robotic "Pink City", whose thumping percussion is somehow nonexistent, and feels like a malfunctioning robot love song. Many of the tracks found here rely on almost no background music, allowing for Stewart to scream or speak-sing in the most disconcerting way he can, all by himself until a whirr or strings come in several painful seconds later. With the exception of "Apistat Commander," A Promise is dead set against gelled performances, hedging its bets on spikes of every kind of sound, poking from any possible angle. Is this slightly melodic noise, or is it just damaged pop? It has a song called "Ian Curtis Wishlist," and it will make you feel bad. Mission accomplished, boys.

1. Sad Pony Guerrilla Girl
2. Apistat Commander
3. Walnut House
4. 20, 000 Deaths for Eidelyn Gonzales
5. Pink City
6. Sad Redux-O-Grapher
7. Blacks
8. Brooklyn Dodgers
9. Fast Car
10. Ian Curtis Wishlist

Knife Play
 5 Rue Christine, 2002
rating: 4/5
reviewer: andrewhy

Released in February, Xiu Xiu's debut LP Knife Play has already been recognized as one of the more interesting albums of 2002. The band's moniker is derived from the Chinese film Xiu Xiu The Sent-Down Girl, a bleak yet visually stunning work.  Lyrically, Xiu Xiu explores the darker side of human social interaction-- bleak expressions of melancholy and dissatisfaction abound. Musically, Knife Play is a sparse palette of ominous synths, accompanied by frenetic percussion and traditional instruments such as bells, gongs, horns and harmonium. Vocalist Jamie Stewarts voice is anguished, emotional, almost overwrought. To accentuate the emotional catharsis, the melancholy atmosphere is frequently broken by blasts of jarring electronic noise. Xiu Xiu's music seems to be engineered to provoke an strong emotional reaction from the listener. One is inclined to either be fascinated by the raw emotion of the music, or to be repelled by its bleak, melancholy outlook. Despite it's excessive ruefulness, Knife Play is a beautiful, spacious work, even if it's not the sort of aesthetic most listeners can easily appreciate.

 1. Don Diasco
2. I Broke Up
3. Luber
4. Hives Hives
5. Dr. Troll
6. Over Over
7. Anne Dong
8. Suha
9. Poe Poe
10. Homonculus
11. Tonite and Today (What chu talkin bout)