Long a favorite, this split single wasn’t released until after Bunkbed‘s Keith Krate had passed away. The 7-inch features two songs, one which finds Xiu Xiu covering Bunkbed, and vice versa. “Fallen Angel II” is a Xiu Xiu original re-crafted by Bunkbed; it is one of the most moving and touching melodies one can have the honor of hearing. (more…)

What a decade it’s been. 2004 was my first year in the so-called Real World; jobs, car payments, instability everywhere. Things weren’t all happy and seemingly upbeat like the mid 90s. After eight months in Seattle, I found myself unemployed and decided it was time for more education. I moved to the greater Portland area and began prep to enter a Masters in Business Administration program, taking night classes at WSU Vancouver and making a frequent trip out to Pullman, where I’d soon attend graduate school. The overall instability and open-your-eyes wake-up calls of 2004 seemed to extend beyond me. Two of the most honest and disturbing albums I’ve ever heard were released this year – another strong one in music overall. (more…)

Written by Jeremy Ryan.

When thinking about challenging bands like Xiu Xiu (MySpace), the words “stable” or “consistent” do not spring to mind. They are not supposed to release a gaggle of jaw-dropping, eerie records as frequently and reliably as they do (four records since 2004). After hearing 2004′s borderline masterpiece Fabulous Muscles, I gave it about a six-week limit until primary songwriter, Jamie Stewart, flipped out, renounced music, and fled to Asia for some good old overindulgent artist soul searching. Either that or he’d ended up trying to wriggle his way out of a straight jacket in a padded room. (more…)

Xiu Xiu‘s Jamie Stewart has done a few 7-inch splits where he covers the other artist and vice versa. There’s one with Devendra Banhart and another where Xiu Xiu and Paper Chase do covers of Nick Cave. Here, Xiu Xiu covers “Fake Soul” by Bunkbed. On the other side, Bunkbed covers “Fallen Angel II” by Xiu Xiu. Both tracks are down-tempo and quietly beautiful. (more…)

Holy Fucking Shit! This Album Is Amazing!!! That was my expression of XXL upon listening to the first track, “Sunday / Paw Paw Paw Paw Paw Paw Paw.” I was amazed at the power behind XXL, a collaboration between Jamie Stewart’s Xiu Xiu (MySpace) and Italian post rockers Larsen (MySpace) for the Important Records release ¡Ciaütistico! (more…)