Xiu Xiu

A revolving cast around Jamie Stewart

Xiu Xiu formed in San Jose in 2002 after Jamie Stewart's earlier band, Ten in the Swear Jar, ended; MusicBrainz gives 2000 as the start year. Stewart is the only constant member. The name comes from the Chinese film Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl, which Stewart and Cory McCulloch watched early on and related to the lead character's hardships. The early line-up included Lauren Andrews and Yvonne Chen; Caralee McElroy, Stewart's cousin, joined in 2004 and left in 2009; Stewart ended his working relationship with McCulloch in 2006 and drummer Ches Smith joined. Angela Seo was recruited in late 2009 and is still in the band, and David Kendrick, formerly of Sparks and Devo, has played drums since 2022.

Knife Play (February 19, 2002) and A Promise (February 18, 2003) came out on 5 Rue Christine, followed by Fabulous Muscles (February 17, 2004), La Foret (July 12, 2005) and The Air Force (September 12, 2006). Women as Lovers (January 28, 2008) was their last for Kill Rock Stars; from Dear God, I Hate Myself (February 23, 2010) they were on Bella Union and Polyvinyl. Later albums include Always (2012), Nina (2013, Graveface), Angel Guts: Red Classroom (2014), Forget (2017), Girl with Basket of Fruit (2019), Oh No (2021) and Ignore Grief (2023). In September 2024 they released 13" Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips.

They also record in other formats: Plays the Music of Twin Peaks (2016), Sal Mineo with Eugene Robinson of Oxbow (2013), and the Larsen collaboration XXL. In May 2018 Stewart performed "Deforms the Unborn" at the Guggenheim in New York, and in July 2025 the band pulled their music from Spotify in protest of its chief executive's investment in AI weapons. Of the nostalgia question, Stewart told Hyperallergic in 2017 that he is very interested in continuing to work and not feeling nostalgic or looking back in any way.