American experimental rock outfit Xiu Xiu are back with their new album; 13” Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips. An album whose overall sound is even more dense than its title.

Release Date:  27^th September 2024

Label: Polyvinyl Records

Formats: CD / Vinyl / Digital

CONTINUOUS INNOVATION

Xiu Xiu are a group led by singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart, whose output since the 2000’s has continuously innovated and pushed boundaries. 13” Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips is nothing different with the album being one of the groups most grandiose and extravagant whilst keeping the challenging intensity of past releases. Purely on a production note the album stands out in the band’s extensive discography as possibly their most lush and grand to date.

Our first taste from the album was the first single Common Loon, a song that stopped me in my tracks upon first listen. It’s a track that yearns to be consumed through headphones to be able to really take in the various different sounds and textures that all come together to create one of the most powerful and unique songs I’ve heard all year. Jamie’s performance on the song is surprisingly restrained which compliments the driving instrumental, making his voice work more as an accompanying instrument, rather than the main element of the track. It was a perfect teaser to what the album had in store as sets the tone but doesn’t give away any of the surprises hidden deeper in the record.

ARP OMNI

The album opens with Arp Omni, a beautiful track with desolate, swelling chords that provide as a backdrop for Jamie’s familiar, vulnerable voice. Lyrically the song is one of my favourites on the entire album with its utterly poetic chorus: “I have done almost nothing right my entire adult life, but having dared to touch the fire with you, breaks the chains of my being nothing too.” The song closes with a magnificent build that swings between feeling comfortable to overwhelming. It’s an uncompromising way to open the album but works perfectly for Xiu Xiu.

Following the opener, we reach Maestro One Chord which unleashes into an almost hip-hop groove with head knocking drums and fuzzed out, grooving bass. In my opinion it wouldn’t sound out of place served as an instrumental on a Run The Jewels or Clipping album. The song as a whole sounds like an industrial club banger from another planet through its tight arpeggiated synth noises that ramp up the atmosphere alongside the claustrophobic, unsettling noise sounds that follow the chorus. It is truly original and truly Xiu Xiu. The track hits even harder following Arp Omni, the much more delicate opener to the album.

Pale Flower comes after single Common Loon. It serves as a well needed breather until around the two-minute mark where we get hit with booming bass hits which change the mood entirely. Following is some of the most perplexing and uncomfortable lyrics we’ve seen yet on the album. The track closes with a spoken word outro from Jamie over the bonkers instrumental that only further adds to the almost scary atmosphere. The song is a welcomed, yet challenging change of pace for the album, perhaps hinting of where it will go further down the track list.

VENEFICIUM

The single Veneficium follows bringing back the feel and sound seen earlier in the record. It’s another absolute banger and possibly my favourite song on the album. The track harnesses a relentless, pulsating bassline that paired with the fantastic vocal performance from Jamie as well as the blistering drums, truly hypnotises and sucks the listener into the warped world that the song inhabits. Veneficium is an incredibly striking song that much like Common Loon and the album as a whole, feels incredibly original. I’m not sure if there’s anything I could confidently say it sounds like which feels like the biggest praise I could give.

Sleep Blvd. is next with more industrial sounds and instrumentation. The song reminds me of some of the bands earlier work from albums like Fabulous Muscles but transported into the universe of this album. It’s another more vulnerable performance from Jamie that is explored greatly through the highs and lows of the instrumental. The song is soft at points and harsh at others. The juxtaposition of the guitars paired with the various electronic synth parts works really well to build momentum towards the end of the track and feels like a greater representation of the songs structure as a whole.

AN ALBUM LIKE NO OTHER

The album closes with Pina, Coconut and Cherry that opens with a glorious synth soundscape that backs the track however the song sounds and feels almost intimidating. The repeated refrain of “fantasy” from Jamie sounds like pure insanity and serves as a reminder of where the album started to where it is now: restrained and delicate to completely mad. The wailing vocals that are panned to the left add to the claustrophobic atmosphere. As the song comes toward its end, the crazed reassurance of “you must love me, this is mine, you are mine” continues to ramp up the terror until the song and album comes to a close. It’s an incredible closer that stands out as one of the most effective I’ve heard all year.

13” Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips is another wild ride from Xiu Xiu however manages to stand out in their discography through the amazing production and song writing. You will not hear another album like this in 2024.

Heres Veneficium:

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