Xiu Xiu-Knife Play (2002)
Artist: Xiu Xiu
Catalog Number: GER 016
Year of Release: 2002
Country and Year of Edition: US 2002
Sell Price: $17.14
Sell Date: 8/31/24
Condition: VG+/VG+
Discogs Last Sold 8/17/24 VG+/VG+ $11.10
Low: $3.60
Median: $6.99
Average: $8.96
High: $21.89
Current low price: $7.58
Current Number on Sale at Discogs: 4
Have/Want: 466/198
Where Sold: Los Angeles, CA
Time It Took To Sell: 6 months
Where and When Bought: facebook $3 CD lot
Gwiz-gau Letter Grade: C+
Sad To See It Go: No
I've had a mental note to check out Xiu Xiu for something like 15 years. My friend Will told me around that time, about 10 years after this particular release, that he liked them. I was scanning a lot of indie CD's about half a year ago and saw this in the pile. Since I had still not heard a note, I felt this title would be as good a place as any to check them out. I still like to hear a full album on a medium vs streaming or downloading a file or something. I don't really care so much about vinyl fetishism or love of physical things, even though I love to have a pile of music laying about wherever I'm at. What I've decided is that I can have a complete discography on my hard drive and I won't listen to a minute of it because there is no limitation. So the limitation of a title at hand and a low end price are now my preference to check into something outside of a live setting.
This particular CD sold fairly fast at $17 and change. Apparently this pressing is gone in the US and the handful of copies that are up on Discogs are in Europe which made my price a bargain for the buyer. Sometimes that happens in the other direction.
Anyway, I remember Will liked a record of I think Japanese music on Nonesuch that the opening track reminded me of. Whether the music was Chinese (the film the title came from was) or the instruments of influence were shared, I can not be certain but I suspect to be likely. The second track reminded me of Peter Gabriel with some dramatic shrieking dialogue, perhaps sampled, perhaps not. There are some elements of industrial (non-dance) and his later work with an overlord like Merzbow or figurehead like Eugene S. Robinson cannot be ignored. The voice of Xiu Xiu ultimately reminds me of a cross between the aforementioned Gabriel and Antony of Antony and the Johnsons.
After a few listens, I find this record to be a little too glitchy to want to listen to it any more. I still consider Xiu Xiu's extensive catalog something for further review, probably in a live setting. This debut came only a year after the groups formation and now there is a catalog over two dozen deep with plenty of collaborations and detritus to parse. As for Knife Play, I feel it strives for a higher level of art that requires a harsher criticism. I considered a B- grade and even changed the grade, thought about it a little more and decided to downgrad upon further listening. "Today and Tonight (What 'Chu Talkin' 'Bout)" was plunking away, with a Cat Stevens sounding ponderance. With this as my guide I decided conclusively that there should be no grade higher than C+ for this album.
Layered atmosphere and talent do not always equal listenability.
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