One of the most rewarding aspects of being a Xiu Xiu fanatic is their enduring devotion to covers, which have included an album-length tribute to Twin Peaks, as well as versions of songs ranging from Rihanna to the Pussycat Dolls to Nina Simone to “Frosty the Snowman”. A Promise contains a truly harrowing cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car”. Chapman’s original is quietly devastating. In Xiu Xiu‘s hands, it is downright desolate, slowing the signature hook down to a crawl and centering lead singer Jamie Stewart’s vocals, which sound like the last words he might say. “At that time, my life was a disaster. I was living that song at the time,” notes Stewart. Eat your heart out, Luke Combs.
The band’s latest release, Xiu Mutha Fuckin’ Xiu Vol. 1, is curated from a project that is most visible to the true heads–a collection of covers curated from their Bandcamp subscription-based offering that shares the album title. The tracks were chosen from around five years of songs released monthly to subscribers.
“Xiu Mutha Fuckin’ Xiu is an extension of our official Bandcamp, which includes covers, experimental songs, and our drunk album commentary series,” shares Stewart. “The songs on this release are a collection of songs that were included in that subscription. It’s the 71st release of that series, so many songs didn’t make the cut for the record. If the subscription continues, we will probably produce Volume 2 in a few years,” laughs Stewart.
True to the eclectic nature of their taste, this collection features covers of Robyn, Daniel Johnston, Roy Orbison, Throbbing Gristle, the Runaways, and Talking Heads, among others. Xiu Xiu’s originals range from unbridled noise to haunting beauty, and they explore the full range of their palette on these covers, too.
Xiu Xiu’s ability to shed light on the despair lurking in pop songs rivals that of another master of cover selection, Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs. The cover of Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own” is a powerful example of how Xiu Xiu transformed the song’s core idea. Here, they strip it of its anthemic sadness. When the quiet, drum-machine beat does come in, it’s not cathartic; it’s heartbreaking. It’s also one of the most powerful Xiu Xiu covers, in league with “Fast Car”.
Other highlights fall into place in more expected, but no less rewarding, ways. “Psycho Killer” seems like a perfect match for Xiu Xiu, and it is all tension and nervous energy. They bring out the fragility in the Daniel Johnston classic “Some Things Last a Long Time”. “I Put a Spell on You” makes me wish they had been able to play the end of one of the episodes of Twin Peaks: The Return.
While the covers have mostly been for hardcore Xiu Xiu fans until now, Stewart acknowledges that even the task of doing a cover of a song they love can be nerve-wracking. “It’s daunting enough to explore the song. Wondering what the original artist thinks of our version is additionally hand-wringing. So far, only one artist has acknowledged our cover,” they share.
Additionally, delivering a new cover song every month is a challenge, so Xiu Xiu can’t be too precious about their choices, but there are some general ideas about song selection.
“Since it is for a subscription, we need to crank these out quicker than a record, but as with every song or album, the fundamental motivation is to say thank you to the song. It can be a song that strikes me as new or one I have loved. It has to be a song that’s possible for us to learn, play, and record in a month. We consider factors like our singing voices, as well as some semi-logical connection to Xiu Xiu. Then there is whether or not people who like us would be interested in this song in its original form,” they explain.
Still, some artists, even though they love them, are off the table. “There’s no way I could do a Prince song, as massive an influence as he has been to us. I couldn’t ever enter his vocal universe,” they said.
In addition to this cover record, Xiu Xiu have been playing shows in Europe, performing music during screenings of the David Lynch classic Eraserhead. An accompanying recording will be released this summer, and the band are planning to bring this event to a handful of venues in the United States, too. “In order to work, the Eraserhead performance needs to be in a specific type of venue. It needs to have a PA and projection system of a certain quality, so that makes booking a little more challenging,” they share.
Both Stewart and his partner in Xiu Xiu, Angela Seo, also work on their own projects. Seo has been playing solo shows and is working on an album. Stewart works on his own noise projects and wrote a book, Anything That Moves, but don’t expect a follow-up.
“Writing the book was a surprising experience for me emotionally, but there are so many unread books in the world already. As much as I enjoy writing, I don’t want to add to that pile. I’m not sure I have another one in me, but I wish I did,” they explain.
Xiu Xiu are also working on material for the next record and aiming for an early 2027 release. “I have no idea how this next one will be perceived. I am at the point where I am terrified by how it’s turning out. Angela pointed out that I do this every time and reminded me that I can freak out and work or just work and it’ll turn out either way,” they laugh. “We don’t consciously try to alternate between abrasive and accessible, but the last decade or so, the records have alternated between accessible and abrasive. Our A&R person pointed out this tendency, so we are trying to think outside of that pattern for the new one.”
To be a Xiu Xiu fan is to commit fully. There is no casual relationship with this band. The cover of their record Always features a fan’s tribute tattoo, and it is one of many that exist. One of their shirts (the one I own) declares, “Xiu Xiu for Life”. The noise, the uneasy beauty, the emotional extremity, the gallows humor — it all functions as a kind of communion for people who rarely see their interior lives reflected so plainly.
That’s why the covers matter. Whether they’re dismantling Robyn or hollowing out Tracy Chapman, they’re not just reinterpreting songs; they’re revealing the sorrow already embedded inside them. In Xiu Xiu’s hands, pop becomes a confession. There isn’t always redemption in a Xiu Xiu song. Sometimes there isn’t even relief. But there is recognition, and for the devoted, that recognition can make a tremendous impact.