XIU XIU

Xiu Xiu is an experimental rock band that I'd come to discover and grow to love. Their music can range from deeply emotional and somber to incredibly erratic and wild. Generally just a "New" feeling I've never quite felt before in most bands. It's able to capture emotion in the most potent way. I looove it. I first discovered Xiu Xiu around, Well I've known about Xiu Xiu since forever, I think. My first Xiu Xiu songs were Born to Suffer off Always and Luber off Knife Play Through a friend. But I actually started listening to Xiu Xiu around January then Fully Entered "Xiumode" in March whenever their album Ignore Grief released. Ignore Grief probably is the beeest dark industrial album ever... It comptelety sucked me in it's like. Stellar. Kind of like drowning in misery while chained to the bottom of a pool and you can't really leave from it but you're still alive. It's as haunting as it is wonderful.

"Tarsier, Tarsier, Tarsier, Tarsier" Off Ignore Grief was incredibly hard hitting to me. This song is both horrific and beautiful... Something I really enjoy about Jamie's singing voice is the desperation he can capture in it, the fear. It's charming and effective, I freakin love it... The parts where he's just screaming but its real echoey like he's singing from the pits of some deep dark bottomless chamber reaaallly go for me. Fuckkk.... The dreadful music they can create adds to this as well. It's almost frightening. But more like, ringing of the feeling of being afraid or trapped or just being really miserable rather than fear itself. It gooooes.... Like getting into Xiu Xiu I suggest the album but like you have to like emotionally hype yourself up like if you're weak currently I don't, like, suggest it but if you feel ready you should. If not I suggest the albums i'll chat on about below!

Eventually, I veered into other Xiu Xiu albums such as The Air Force and Girl With Basket of Fruit The Air Force is probably one of the most important albums to my soul. It's incredibly beautiful, kind of somber, but not in the way the other albums are. I was introduced to this song through the same friend who showed me Luber, Born to Suffer and Ignore Grief haha but the song that got me into this album was The Fox and The Rabbit, which you can see on the playlist to the right. This song is like crazy. The simple beat works so well with it especially as it leads into its desperate/feverish end.

Hello From Eau Claire was the second song I remember listening from The Air Force album. I love how it's peaceful yet melancholy.. I always viewed this song from the perspective of a pre-op/hrt trans man who'd come out whenever that partner knew him as a woman, hoping that his partner does or will ever view him as a real man despite not 'looking like' one, and tries his hardest to look like a 'real man' in hopes that his partner can love him for who he is. On par with the album cover of Christ, it reminds me of something that could like, be played in an abandoned church somewhere.

Girl With a Basket of Fruit is the third album of Xiu Xiu i listened to in full. It is ERRATIC! it is ODD! It is so fucking weird and I love it. It's strange as fuck lyric wise and instrumental wise which I enjoy. It's less dark sounding and more just.... Odd? It's so unique though. I really like it. I dig it. I love Girl With Basket of Fruit (selftitled) And Scissssssssors (which can be enjoyed on the playlist.) It's so freeakkky I love it. Same with the music videos. I should talk about the music videos. I love all of them. I have a fondness for their early music videos like The Fox & The Rabbit with it's really shitty 06ixy quality that I enjoy. But I also really dig the surralness of the 'newer' music videos like Hi, Pahrump, It Comes Out as a Joke, and Rumpus Room (Can be viewed to the right). Some more of them you can watch which are It Comes Out as a Joke and Pahrump respectively. OH yeah a really awesome one is Mary Turner Mary Turner! Listening to it as I type and I really enjoy when Jamie pitches his voice down in recordings. It's kind of awesome when mixed with his kind of whispery/mourning/yelling singstyle. It adds to the hauntfactor of the whole experience.

They're so good. I love how silly and weird their music videos can be. It rooocks...

ANGEL GUTS: RED CLASSROOM is a xiu xiu album i listened to TODAAAAAAAAAAY!!!! and GOD is the album good. It's almost unnerving. Disturbing. i love it. It's so fucking goood. Kind of probably the best Xiu Xiu album. Like fuuuuuck there's not a single track that sucks *grips my head.* Stupid in the Dark Is objectively my favorite song off this album. It's a bit poppier than the other songs off the album but I really enjoy the singing and backbeat. It's like a headache, a sharp pulse. I love it. Also the MV is sick. Watch it

Another favorite is Lawrence Liquors. I love the weird synths in this one, it's kind of like insect buzzing? It rocks. Also the weird way the voice is on right! a mockery! Listen to it

Update of almost-August! I've listened to a bunch more albums, so that means many more rambles. A few weeks ago I listened to Women as Lovers, and I really enjoyed it! spmething rare about this one, I've had 0 exposure to any of the tracks on this album. I hadn't listened to any of the songs via the music videos, or by track skimming. This album has a more woody feel than all the others- It reminds me of autumn months. All of it's songs are very varied- While many of the other albums are more flowy, this one is more varied while still being cohesive. There's also a duet track between Jamie and Caralee which is nice to see! That song ( You Are Pregnant, You Are Dead ) is my favorite on the album. Take a listen,

This is the first XIU XIU / "extra" Xiu Xiu albums I've ever listened to and it is phenomenal. It is called Tired of you world... Peru This is one of the most real sounding albums to me. The 'singing' is all chatter from people in the background, overlapping speech, laughing, drowned out shouting, announcement, and the likes- Like it was recorded while on a tour or walking down the street during the day (And i'm sure it was!). This adds to it's effectiveness, as it feels as if you are in the situation they are in, but as a memory or dream. Echoing phrases and muddled conversation, like you were eavesdropping. It is unlike Xiu Xiu in the way that it implements traditional Peruvian music. Entire or most of tracks will be the sound of bells and the screech of wheels as you ride a train. I am on their trip in Peru. All tracks are titled "tired of your world" with the number of the track at the end - however, they are titled to 29 when there are really only 28 tracks. This is the ony album I have listened to that can perfectly encapsulate remembering, especially for one's home or a place you have visited, or a video recorded on your phone of an event you have gone to. My favorite track is tired of your world... 29. It is eleven minutes long and over twice the length of any other song on the album. The ending is immaculate. The tracks inbetween 1 and 29 , such as tired of your world... 18 are also very beautiful. 18 itself reminds me of a funeral or event of mourn, but the chatter and laughter makes me think otherwise. I can only visualize what could be happening. I wonder if each song comes one after another, seeing how evenly they all flow, like from 18 to 19. On mobile, I remember seeing pictures as the lyrics to each of the songs on Bandcamp. This is a great album and I suggest experiencing it for yourself. From my knowledge it isn't the most listened - I don't even see a reupload on other sites.

Enter the experience

Along with Lawrence Liquors, New Life Immigration is such an insanely beautiful song. I don't really know how to properly word it. It's just beautiful. It's solem. Its lyrics speak to me... They're just really nice. Kind of peaceful. Let me share.

The lyrics in Xiu Xiu are important to me. Some are very intricate and emotion in pure form. Others are odd and striking. These aren't mutually exclusive though L.O.l it could be something really,like strange, like Jamie talking about turning into a frog then being crushed by hammers and screaming OH! OH! And it's like deeply emotionally touching. Examples of this being Girl With Basket of Fruit & EL Naco. (Lyrics of El Naco and GWBoF)

Iknow they are odd but you must understand my beautiful soul, OK? I just really like how the members of Xiu Xiu write. These are some poems about cats by Xiu Xiu members I'm pretty sure. of course I'm sure it says Xiu xiu on the title. They're kind of peaceful. Kind of like thoughts or sketches. I enjoy them.

Another part of Xiu Xiu i've come to enjoy are the drunk commentaries by Jamie. Started watching 'em late at night. I like learning about the meaning, or what was happening when the songs were made or just Jamie talking about stuff ahaha, they're like. Somegthing I listen to before the albums. They both have like, something special side by side. Though the interviews by Jamie are more concise and obviously not, drunk, haha, they're still plenty informative and entertaining. I tend to watch Drunk Commentaries on youtube, and read interviews with Jamie on like, the internet archive or through those little footnotes on Wikipedia. Neat little playlist I found with all (?) of the drunk commentaries annnd My favorite drunk commentary. This is the first one I listened to, 'n it got me into the album La Forent, though i've yet to complete it. I'll scratch my review of it somewhere here. Warning though for alcohol mentions for obvious reasons + mentions of rape. It's just, like, cool to listen to artists talk on about their work. Favorite interviews probably the two done when Ignore Grief and Girl With Basket of Fruit dropped, and the ones about A Promise and Angel Guts: Red Classroom. I'll dig those up later. Click the images to go to the interviews.

Hope you enjoyed my little fanpage. Until next time. XIU ON!