Xiu Xiu are on the road and in control

Sorry to break it to you, kids, but Jamie Stewart is not the over-the-top, melodramatic, sad bastard we all thought he was.

At the time of this interview, Stewart detailed his modest birthday plans with his friends and family, and spoke excitedly about Don Cheadle's performance in Hotel Rwanda. He spoke over the phone in a warm manner and had no trouble laughing out loud - not exactly what one would expect of the man behind pop rockers Xiu Xiu.

Jamie Stewart has played in bands since he was a teenager, but he did not commit to a music career until he was about 25. At one point, he was even a pre-school teacher.

"I miss hanging out with kids that age, but I don't miss being in charge," he said. But as the lead singer of Xiu Xiu, Stewart has managed to confuse, frighten and pretty much piss off countless people with the band's challenging and dark sound. Last year's Fabulous Muscles, however, showed a pop sensibility that made Xiu Xiu more accesible than ever. The rawness in his vocal delivery in songs such as "I Luv the Valley OH!" struck a nerve, and nary a person who hears Xiu Xiu has been left without a strong opinion on the music.

"We are definitely writing the music for, hopefully, somebody to get something out of it," Stewart said. "But I don't think it's possible for somebody to get something out of it unless we're writing in a way that's really honest for us. If we tried to write songs in a way that people would like them, then it would be really phony and impossible for people to like them."

Recorded mainly during January and February of this year, Xiu Xiu's next album, La Foret, is slated for release in July, but there is already a lot of excitement building toward the record.

"We actually just mailed it in about a week ago, so I still don't have any distance from it at all," he said of the new album. "I'm so focused on small details from it."

Although he couldn't - or wouldn't - describe the new album's sound, he did offer that it would be a mix of personal and political songs. Stewart said he's afraid that all this anticipation for the new album will lead to it leaking onto the internet before its release date.

"That kind of thing aggravates me, but there's really nothing I can do about it," he said, sounding defeated.

He tried to explain:

"When I was a kid, my dad was in the music business and told me that taping records was pretty much stealing music and work from the people who had made it," he said. "It's just a way of thinking that I grew up with."

At the same time, he admitted that the internet has augmented Xiu Xiu's profile immensely.

"I mean, we played a show last year where like 99 percent of the people at that show, the only reason they had any idea who we were was because of the internet, so that's definitely the other side of it," he said. "I have strong feelings [against downloading music illegally], but I don't know if I can really not contradict myself. I think I just want to have my cake and eat it, too."

For now, Stewart is focusing on the band's tour, which began, coincidentally, on his birthday, March 2. During previous tours, Xiu Xiu had several people playing on stage, but only Stewart and bandmate Carolee McElroy are embarking on this tour, testing out the new material along the way.

Since the band incorporates sampling as well as unusual instrumentation, it takes a lot of preparation for each show.

"We have to practice a lot," Stewart said. "Because it's just a duo, we both have to do a lot of things on stage when we're playing."

Stewart plays intense songs night after night, which can be exhausting.

"I definitely used to have a very specific ritual [to prepare for each show]," he said. "[But] one day, I was in the middle of doing it, and then I got it into my head, 'Oh, just go and play.' "

He is particularly looking forward to playing in New York City, which he said is one of his favorite cities.

"I think that it's impossible not to be excited about going there," he said. "I kind of like that it's totally impossible to understand and take all of it in."

Strangely enough, that is exactly what one could say of Xiu Xiu's music. €¢