what is the best xiu xiu thing

("other" meaning any of the various splits, collabs e.g, Xiu Xiu Larsen or Blue Water White Death or MERZXIU, or the Remixed and Covered comp, etc)

The Air Force

a promise, then knife play. chapel of the chimes is up there, but it's only four (five?) tracks

Impossible to pick, seeing as A Promise, Air Force and Angel Guts are all perfect albums but if I had to walk a plank

A Promise > Angel Guts = The Air Force > Knife Play = Always > Chapel Of The Chimes = Twin Peaks > Women As Lovers = Dear God > Fabulous Muscles = Fag Patrol = Nina > everything else, with La Foret being the only 'big' album I'd say is non-essential

(other) -> the Insound split EP with Jim Yoshii Pile-Up that featured superior versions of four of the five best songs from Fabulous Muscles, which made the album proper somewhat disappointing

If you take anything away from this post let it be that Angel Guts is one of the best-sounding albums I've ever heard and is an incredible compositional feat as it features next-to-no melodic or harmonic material and yet is still immensely catchy and would be #1 except that I hold my nose around some of the lyrical content

revisited both La Foret and The Air Force, a couple months back. La Foret felt stronger, warmer, and more welcoming - song-wise. great array of sounds throughout, too

not trying to be sarcastic but warmer and more welcoming are more or less the opposite of what i want or expect from a Xiu Xiu record

I should revisit La Foret, I guess, yes. I find the production on it and Fabulous Muscles to be extremely boxy and "this was made entirely on an SP-303" compared to the first two records and The Air Force, which was the album that saw me eagerly reboarding the Xiu Xiu Train

re: Noodle Vague - I suppose there's a particular emotional resonance, and I dig the 'intimate comfort zone' created by some of the tracks- it just vibes easier with me. entirely subjective, of course

LF just has stronger tunes, imo

Glad I'm not the only one who rates Always.

I guess I need to hear that Insound release.

The Air Force. They struck a balance with that one. One of my favorite records ever.

MERZXIU

hey, i am going to sue.

i find it hard to get out of the orbit of fabulous muscles, it just struck teen me so much. should really revisit everything

Xiu Xiu always felt like unfulfilled potential. Brilliant elements there that only briefly came together in the right way. Fabulous Muscles seemed like the sweet spot.

Fabulous muscles for me but i'm the corny indie person around here. Has the best balance between emo and experimental, the other albums are too off for me.

The appeal of Fabulous Muscles is impenetrable to me, both songs and production; beyond sporting their most recognizable "pop song" and recognizable ballad, it seems so non-existent.

"Knife Play" always felt like their best-collection of pop hits, "Poe Poe" is such a perfect pop song

I'll always rate "A Promise" highly and perhaps as my favourite album ever because it's such an effective eclectic album, every song feels compositionally and production-wise from a different planet, and the journey from "revisiting a XITSJ" song to descending into noise chaos to feeling-so-keyed-up-that-I-can't-even-sing-my-own-song-so-here's-Tracy-Chapman to band's-finest-moment "Ian Curtis Wishlist" has always been the most breathtaking thing

I just realized I never actually heard Unclouded Sky, gotta get on that. I might do a full-discography relisten for kicks; I have almost no recollection of Women As Lovers or Dear God.

band's-finest-moment "Ian Curtis Wishlist"

I can't begin to imagine what I'd select as best single track, maybe "Sad Redux-O-Grapher"?

Buzz Saw is their best song.

Has JS talked a lot about his lyric writing process at length anywhere?

I think I've finally come to appreciate La Forêt. I was put off for a long time by the odd pacing/sequencing, with "Clover" as the meandering approach that prepares the listener for an even more meandering album, all twisty labyrinthine passageways & dead-end walls of pure sonic intensity... something about it just doesn't seem human -- You might even say it has no personality? which is something I would never dream of saying about any of the other albums. Still, it's got some of my favorite vocals ever from Jamie (YOUR CROOKED BLOOD / SEEPS UP FROM HELL-L-L on "Baby Captain"; the increasingly frantic-unhinged delivery of "Rose of Sharon") and "Bog People" never feels less than cathartic.

oh yeah I am also a total Fag Patrol stan. that record has gotten me through some very bad times, & deserves better than to be written off as "the acoustic one"

... and I still would like to hear Nina, even though I'm not familiar with very many Nina Simone songs (big oversight on my part I know) I have to imagine that any work Jamie puts out can stand or fall on its own merits

horse dick was best xiu xiu thing

I can't begin to imagine what I'd select as best single track, maybe "Sad Redux-O-Grapher"?

― a serious and fascinating fartist (Simon H.)

any one of the tracks that comprise the middle (tracks 4-7) of a promise are top tier.. Sad Redux-O-Grapher and Blacks are absolutely stunning, and they work great in succession. 20,000 Deaths... is like, snow falling *gorgeous*. it's a perfect album, Ian Curtis Wishlist knocks it out of the park (it fucking kills). the mix of electro- and acoustic sounds is really pleasant, dry percussion bits give it a homemade/overgrown lot kind of vibe. it's loaded with immediate physicality and texture. lot of breathing room/relief in Walnut House, despite occasionally ridiculous (?) lyrics

Weird timing -- I was just thinking the other day that I should start a "Favorite moments from Xiu Xiu songs" thread; I wonder if there would be enough interest for a ballot poll?

As far as favorite song, I'd have to think it over... it's strange, I don't think of them as either a "songs" band or an "albums" band, so much as a "tension and release" band. The individual songs that stand out in my mind tend to be those that are more in the "release" column ("Clowne Town", "White Nerd", "Apistat Commander", "Bog People", "Ceremony"), but that really only captures one side of the band... then there are other songs that I appreciate while listening for their dynamism, but I have a harder time remembering which ones those are. Right now I'm leaning towards "Baby Captain" for its perfect balance of quiet/loud//pretty/ugly... but that very "balance" (also evident in e.g. "Sad Pony Guerrilla Girl") makes it totally unrepresentative of the band's oeuvre!

Angel Guts is terrifically harrowing. Favorite by a mile.

I really loved it when they felt more like a band and less like Jamie's solo vehicle—Knife Play, parts of Chapel of the Chimes and A Promise. Worthwhile stuff on every one of the proper albums, although I'd agree that La Forêt has the least to recommend itself. Need to give the more recent ones more time—last one I actually bought was Women as Lovers or Dear God, I Hate Myself, I think?

voted the twin peaks release even though i like plenty of his/their albums.

did Ches Smith stick around for the later albums? He plays on The Air Force, yeah? we saw him live w/7 year rabbit cycle - he did a lot of cool stuff w/percussion.

His last credit on a Xiu Xiu album was handling the arrangements on Nina.

Voted The Air Force though I love most of it besides the extremely long ambient stuff.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Buzz Saw is their best song.

― flappy bird

coming around to the Air Force again.. they really nailed it down here, it's magical. it's the last album of theirs that left a strong, favorable impression on me. Xiu Xiu came through Salt Lake several times in the early 00s, the first time it was Jamie solo in a garage. watching him perform "Sad Pony Guerrilla Girl" and writhing/convulsing during the 'breakdown' was the most awkward/impressive moment and best memory I have of them. with each subsequent show in SLC, Jamie Stewart seemed more ornery/put off, and the songs just didn't seem to have the impact of the recorded versions.

I saw them at the Native Friendship Center in Halifax (the only all-ages venue in the city at the time) on the Fabulous Muscles tour when I was in high school. My friends and I loved them so much that we made a covers CD-R to give them but we were too shy :/

I still can't decide if I love or hate his voice. When I'm in the mood it's perfect but most of the time it annoys me.

he does feel overwrought at times, w/sometimes ridiculous lyrics. i don't love it or hate it, but sometimes he hits nicely. the keyed up emotion/energy serves the overall sonic fabric effectively. i'm sure there are people who can't get past the vocals, but it's part of the package. the music is so rich/detailed, and i can't really imagine anything (vocally) that might sound better with it. the "Eau Claire" track on the Air Force is the only one i usually skip.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

the lurkers show up every time

wtf @ the air force being so low

http://www.stereogum.com/1927768/xiu-xiu-albums-from-worst-to-best/franchises/counting-down/

Odd list for sure, not just because The Air Force is too low. The Twin Peaks thing was really good but doesn't feel completely Xiu Xiu to me, it's more like a good side-dish. Personally I wouldn't even be able to put Forget anywhere in the list because it's too fresh to my ears still.

On most days I do agree with the number one though.

nice posts by Owen itt. making me consider take another perennial attempt to get into this band

I think I'd flip-flop La Foret and The Air Force on that list, at the very least.