December 21, 2014

Xiu Xiu's Very Own Clown Town

Xiu Xiu perform at Glasslands on October 18. Corresponding photos by Zach Bernal.
Over a few weeks during September and October the echoed remnants of clangorous noise could be heard in various locations in New York City. It was quiet at first -- like a faucet turning on in another room -- but grew to catapulting heights of distortion and destruction.
   Los Angeles-based post-punk agitators Xiu Xiu took over the city for two art installations with Vietnamese-born artist Danh Vo -- “Kling Klang” and “Metal" -- and capped it with a proper set in support of their most recent album, Angel Guts: Red Classroom, at Glasslands. The bells are still sounding off in my skull.

Detail of "Kling Klang" on September 28. Corresponding photos by Eli Jace.
KLING KLANG
   On September 28, at noon, on the edge of Brooklyn Bridge Park, Xiu Xiu’s main head Jamie Stewart, with Ches Smith and others, started the construction of “Kling Klang.” The concept was simple enough: attach hundreds of pink plastic vibrating eggs with neon duct tape to a section of Danh Vo’s We The People installation and listen.
   The piece by Vo is a dismantling of the Statue of Liberty into 250 copper pieces littering parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn. The piece they chose was a section of the Lady’s gown on the Pier 3 Greenway Terrace. Onlookers roamed, scratching their heads and smiled. Some lent their hands, mostly unaware of what they were taking part in.
   As Stewart and other helpers taped the eggs to the structure the onrushing sound of static water rose. It grew bigger with each activated egg until eventually they would die out with their battery life, creating a slow fade.

METAL
Close-up of busted cymbal from "Metal." Corresponding photos by Eli Jace.
   While ascending the steep staircase of the Lower West Side’s The Kitchen, the sound of knocking faded in with each step. Two Thailand-based gold pounders, Nantapol and Pruan Panicharam, were swinging mallets in rhythm onto a cement block. Commissioned by Danh Vo, they were flattening 24-carat squares of gold into leaf for a future sculpture. Their consistent pounding acted as the human metronome for “Metal.”  
   The live installation went for three weeks with a grueling schedule. Each week, Tuesday through Saturday, noon-3 p.m. Jamie Stewart was joined by Shayna Dunkelman, Ches Smith and, later on, Angela Seo for an abrasive and chaotic percussive performance.
   In the middle of the open space was a semi-circle of loaded cymbal stands with two xylophones in the middle. The group played 52 five-minute compositions loosely chained to the gold pounders’ beat with each one cut off by a loud gnarled feedback screech. Some of the pieces were clearly annotated, while others existed for the purpose of spontaneity.
   One segment called for each person to run in a single line, crashing an instrument, one after the other, around in a continuous circle. Stewart flinched spastically with each cymbal hit. The unpredictability kept the crowd vulnerable with anxiety. For one interval everyone grabbed slingshots and flapped wrapped butterscotch candies at the gongs and cymbals that hung. The candies broke into shards and catapulted across the room. A sugary crust collected on the floor.
   On the final Saturday Stewart and company ended “Metal” as they did every other day. They completely dismantled every cymbal stand and threw each cymbal, gong and percussive piece into a large pile with the force of a tantrum-throwing child. Nuts, bolts and pink vibrating eggs flew in the faces of everyone watching.
   All the noise and experimentation and charring of New York City culminated in a proper Xiu Xiu set at Glasslands in Brooklyn on October 18. The current live lineup of the band consists of Stewart and Dunkleman. Their setup was minimal: a table of electronics and pedals for Stewart and a pile of scrap percussion for Dunkelman.

GLASSLANDS
   Stewart, without guitar, moved with a dreadful grace. He exhibited the motions of a ballerina, diving side to side like a swan on heavy drugs. When a certain lyric called to be belted out, his eyes would slip right to the back of his head, revealing only the white in his sockets. Stewart choked down the microphone, sometimes blaring louder than the percussion.
   Their set was made mostly of recent songs and decade-old classics. Most of this year’s Angel Guts: Red Classroom, the group’s ninth album, was played. “Black Dick,” “Stupid In The Dark,” “Lawrence Liquors,“ and “Archie’s Fades” all showed up in the setlist early. Songs were their usually startling selves, but louder. The sound scraped against the walls of Glasslands.
   Shayna Dunkelman played her drums like she was in a funeral march. The rhythms were tight and punctuated the dark, grinding electronics.  Her eyes would close tight and wince at each manic yelp from her neighbor. She was momentarily swept away in a trance.
   In addition to the new songs, they played only from their earlier albums. There was nothing after 2004’s Fabulous Muscles. The older songs offered the greatest relief from the barrage of caustic pounding. “Ian Curtis Wishlist,” the final track off A Promise, was a nice surprise. A harrowing drone flooded the room as Stewart released the panic of his mind and the restlessness of his heart. “Will you ever bleep out,” he screamed. “Do you love me Jamie Stewart?!” Everyone suddenly had goosebumps.
   The set ended with two Xiu Xiu classics: “Sad Pony Guerilla Girl” and “I Luv The Valley OH!” The instantly recognizable notes molded the mass into a slow-dancing form. Stewart’s voice still retains its glum trepidation and he still performs like his feet are on fire.
   For a full ten minutes following the final note the crowd stood at attention waiting for an encore. Eventually Stewart returned with news that he could play no more because the pornstar-cum-DJ Jessie Andrews was up next for a different show. In lieu of an extra song he kindly offered a long-winded joke about an aspiring clown in a brand new town. It started quiet at first, with hiccups and giggles, but ended with a scream that invaded the ear holes for one last time. “Fuck you clown!”
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BACKSTORY
One night in Phoenix during the La Foret tour, I went to see Xiu Xiu at the Modified. Pregaming then was breaking bottles in vacant parking lots and a shard of glass struck my ankle, leaking blood quietly into my shoe, in and around the venue, leading into the bathroom where I was attended to by staff and where Jamie Stewart leaned his square head in and remarked, “That’s pretty goth.”

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