The Air Force

For other uses, see Air force (disambiguation).

The Air Force
Studio album by Xiu Xiu
Released	September 12, 2006 (2006-09-12)
Genre	Art rock experimental post-punk
Length	34:37
Label	5 Rue Christine
Producer	Caralee McElroy, Greg Saunier, Jamie Stewart
Xiu Xiu chronology
La Forêt (2005) The Air Force (2006) Tu Mi Piaci (2006)

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	76/100 [1]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Cokemachineglow	81% [3]
Drowned in Sound	8/10 [4]
Los Angeles Times	[1]
Now	[5]
Pitchfork	8.0/10 [6]
PopMatters	8/10 [7]
Slant Magazine	[8]
Tiny Mix Tapes	[9]
Under the Radar	8/10 [10]

The Air Force is the fifth studio album by Xiu Xiu. It was released on September 12, 2006 and was produced by Greg Saunier of Deerhoof, who also performs on the album with band members Caralee McElroy and Jamie Stewart.

Production

The album was produced by Greg Saunier of Deerhoof, and released on 5 Rue Christine in September 2006. Stewart said that the year was "one of the first not dominated by personal tragedies" and that the album is about "making other people feel bad" instead of feeling bad oneself. ^[11] Its major themes are "guilt and sex as opposed to sorrow and sex". ^[11] Stewart considered it their best and most consciously pop album yet. They said that the band was obsessed with Weezer's Blue Album and The Smiths's The Queen Is Dead while on tour, though the album does not reflect those albums particularly. ^[11]

The album cover includes "Christ crowned with thorns" by Renaissance painter Fra Angelico.

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Jamie Stewart, except "Bishop, CA" and "Wig Master", which have additional lyrics by Angela Seo.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Buzz Saw"	3:01
2.	"Boy Soprano"	3:23
3.	"Hello from Eau Claire"	2:54
4.	"Vulture Piano"	3:23
5.	"PJ in the Streets..."	2:57
6.	"Bishop, CA"	4:06
7.	"Saint Pedro Glue Stick"	1:17
8.	"The Pineapple vs. the Watermelon"	3:28
9.	"Save Me Save Me"	2:39
10.	"The Fox & the Rabbit"	3:12
11.	"Wig Master"	4:17

iTunes Store bonus tracks

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Bonus Track"	1:28
2.	"Feeding the Raging Heart"	2:18
3.	"Bonus Track"	1:13

Notes

• "Feeding the Raging Heart" is the opening song to the 2007 Robby Reis film of the same name. ^[12]
• "Hello from Eau Claire" and "Saint Pedro Glue Stick" do not have vocals by lead member Jamie Stewart; instead, Caralee McElroy does all of the vocals on the former, while the latter is instrumental.

Personnel

Xiu Xiu

• Jamie Stewart - Production, vocals (1–6, 8–11), percussion (1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9), drum programming (2–4, 6, 9, 10), synthesizer (2–4, 6, 8, 10), guitar (2, 4, 5, 8, 10), bass (4, 5, 8, 9), sampler (3, 5, 7), harmonica (4, 6), piano (1), accordion (2), recorder (2), autoharp (5), mandolin (9)
• Caralee McElroy - Production, vocals (1, 3, 6, 10), flute (2, 4), synthesizer (4), glockenspiel (9), cymbal (10)

Additional personnel

• Greg Saunier - Production, vocals (1, 3, 5, 6, 10), sampler (2–4, 9, 11), synthesizer (1, 4, 6, 9), guitar (2, 4, 5, 10), percussion (1, 2, 5), piano (1, 8), drum programming (2, 4), bass (3), electronic drums (3), banjo (6), bass drum (6), snare drum (9), glockenspiel (9)
• Devra Hoff - Double bass (2, 10, 11), bass (10)
• David Horvitz - Koto (7)
• Nedelle Torisi - Violin (9)

References

1. "The Air Force by Xiu Xiu". Metacritic . Retrieved October 3, 2016.
2. The Air Force at AllMusic
3. Eley, Craig (September 14, 2006). "Xiu Xiu - The Air Force". Cokemachineglow . Retrieved November 22, 2025.
4. Cawley, Rachel (May 22, 2007). "Xiu Xiu: The Air Force". Drowned in Sound . Retrieved November 22, 2025.
5. Liss, Sarah (October 19, 2006). "Xiu Xiu". Now . Retrieved November 22, 2025.
6. "Xiu Xiu: The Air Force: Pitchfork Record Review". Archived from the original on October 31, 2006. Retrieved September 14, 2006.
7. "Xiu Xiu: The Air Force" . Retrieved October 3, 2016.
8. Keefe, Jonathan (October 9, 2006). "Review: Xiu Xiu, The Air Force". Slant Magazine . Retrieved November 22, 2025.
9. Haney, Paul. "Xiu Xiu - The Air Force". Tiny Mix Tapes . Retrieved November 22, 2025.
10. There aren’t any huge surprises or new developments on The Air Force;. Which, coming from a band that sounds like nothing else on the indie landscape, means that it’s another devastating collection of deluded, terrifying grandeur. [#15]
11. Stosuy, Brandon (April 9, 2006). "Xiu Xiu". Pitchfork Media . Archived from the original on July 23, 2014. Retrieved July 13, 2014.
12. "FEEDING THE RAGING HEART". Natali Film. July 14, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2022.