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Possibly up for the award of longest album title of 2024, Xiu Xiu's '13"Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto With Bison Horn Grips' arrives for fans in less than a week. The album is a nine song long look into existence and darkness, that may prove as difficult to listen to as it could be rewarding.
Right out of the gates, 'Arp Omni' begins as if the prelude to an uneasy album of abrasive noise before sharply pivoting and instantly becoming a heartwrenching ode to a loved one from someone who feels they "have done almost nothing right [their] entire adult life", but spending life with them broke their chains from being "nothing". This immediate gutpunch of a song is but a moment of brutalistic melancholy, though, as 'Maestro One Chord' changes tack wholeheartedly to become a dark, synth/electro based syncopated post-punk soundscape.
Bringing abrasive elements, babyish sounds, and a heavy bass to lyrics that at face value appear bizarre should make for an unlistenable mess, but Xiu Xiu's expertise of the fringes of music keep the song from going off the rails, and instead allow it to be a blend of all that can be good about musical boundary pushing. The lyrics paint a picture of a being in space, curious about existence and yet unable to comprehend it's own. The sonics of the track carry on into 'Common Loon', although the lyrics appear to discuss both sides of a discussion about being loved despite changes, with the first verse being one person's fear of losing someone's love due to change, and the second verse is them being told to not worry about it right now as there's nothing to do now. It's a message that many should hear, delivered over another electronic soundscape that, whilst not being soothing or calm, is upbeat and keeps the song from being mournful.
The fourth track, 'Pale Flower', introduces more abrasive elements - especially after the first chorus. The song starts off electronic, but slowly descends into relative madness via unsettling stabs and noise breaks that creep into the song almost unnoticed at first. They then abate for the next verse and chorus before you can dig into them too much, but before you know it the duo are back and have you on the edge of your seat, gripping your head and wondering who could have possibly created such a deeply unnerving piece of music. The piece that most quickly comes to mind is the poem Gene Wilder recites in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, as a vague comparison.
As the midpoint of the album looms large, we reach track five of nine, 'Veneficium'. Yet again, the duo feel as if they are discussing life and existence, but now from the point of view of an almost Cassandra-like figure, who has been repulsed by society and knows naught to do but carry on in spite of the horrors that life is certain to bring. Musically again this piece is heavily electronic, but with some consistent noise elements that match the tone of the lyrics to perfection. This existentialism is somewhat continued on 'Sleep Blvd', where the concerns of life and the fears of humanity are left behind as the listener descends into "The Discotheque". The music reflects the lyrics and ups the ante on the techno, drawing from influences of house music as well as harsh industrial to capitalise on the lyrical content.
'T.D.F.T.W.' (The Devil Forgiven That's Why) takes the listener on a real journey between a vast industrial techno soundscape and yet more uncomfortable lyrics. They seem to be about the last moments of life, and the last person you think of as you pass, but truly the lyrics are far too dense to tear apart so easily and will benefit from relistens in order to truly uncover what the duo are actually singing about. The penultimate song 'Bobby Bland' is just as lyrically vague, but with lines about meat being "locked in a toolshed", or "rent by the light of [a] candle" it would certainly appear to be a deeply unsettling set of lyrics about dismembering someone. Musically they help this feeling with all sorts of juxtaposed sounds underneath the permanently unsettling electronic music we've heard thus far, which extends into the final song on the album 'Piña, Coconut & Cherry'.
This final song deals with concepts of godly omnibenevolence and the will of a god to act as well as suggesting the decline of religion in the modern world, and also about ownership, happiness, and obsession. The duo's abrasive musicianship comes to a head here with repeated calls of "Fantasy!" coming frantically throughout as if suggesting the whole set of lyrics are untrue, or in a more depraved perspective could be that the subject of the song sees their life as just fantasy, or rather wishes it was - neither of which being particularly good. The LP finishes with both a flourish and a sudden halt, that allow you to take your first full breath since you started listening.
Xiu Xiu's new album is likely to be a difficult listen for those not accustomed to abrasive music, but for anyone willing to give it a go they shall be rewarded tenfold by an album with lyrical depth and themes, a wealth of musical expertise, and an unsettling look at the way life can oh so quickly get away from us. Not only is this an excellent album, it's a brilliantly written and composed look at the human psyche and the darker parts of the mind.
'13"Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto With Bison Horn Grips' is released on September 27th via Polyvinyl Records.
Words: Jake Longhurst
Photos: Xiu Xiu
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