4 Stars
For a cover song to merit existence, it should enhance appreciation for the original and bring an entirely new manner of seeing, feeling and hearing the song. This is why covers of great songs often fail miserably: from the beginning, there is less room for elevating material and more impetus to assist in its plummet. That said, one of the true highlights of Women as Lovers surprisingly is a cover of the acclaimed 1981 Queen and David Bowie hit "Under Pressure." Though the original has undergone a legacy of renditions (having been notoriously sampled by Vanilla Ice in 1990 and then subsequently covered by artists ranging from Keane, The Flaming Lips and My Chemical Romance), the Xiu Xiu version featuring Michael Gira of Swans is markedly innovative. The song operates on numerous levels, overemphasizing lyrics such as "so slashed and torn" by harmonizing high and low-pitched voices over a synthesized cymbal-heavy beat. The haunting array of instruments including saxophone, accordion and flute inspire a state of simultaneous comfort and disorientation that makes it possible to imagine the track as an original Xiu Xiu masterpiece, something not often said of covers.
The fact that a centerpiece of Women as Lovers (which also contains standout tracks "Gayle Lynn" and "No Friend Oh!") is a cover of a recognized song is indicative of a larger trait of Xiu Xiu's new album: accessibility. Critics have deemed the band inaccessible for the very reason fans have revered it: the ability to create bizarre compositions replete with dissonant pulsations and brooding, confrontational lyrics. This album marks a change in the direction of wider accessibility for Xiu Xiu, yet in a decidedly uncompromising manner that should leave even long-standing fans at ease.
