You never know what you're going to get with Xiu Xiu. Maybe it'll be plaintive piano ballads. Maybe it'll be crazy noise-rock. Maybe it'll be catchy, quirky little tunes that sound like they were played on a xylophone.

And this art-rock/experimental/indiepop band is in good form in their fifth album, "Air Force," which is supposedly about "perverse sexuality, boredom, and bird watching." Okay, whatever. It's a quirky, funny, weird, and sounds like a puppet show on acid -- isn't that what matters most?

It opens with a halting piano intro, and some equally halting vocals. Then -- CRACK! The percussion kicks in, with loud snaps that kick in every few seconds, with a few flickers of cymbals and synth buzz. And singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart pokes some fun at over-angsty lyrics. ""Your black hair is like black hair/Mine, I promise is like a jerk's hair/Your acne is like a pearl..."

It grinds to a halt with some weird chimes, before seguing into the undulating, shimmering, shifting melodies of "Boy Soprano," and the the xylophonic "Hello From Eau Claire," which sounds like a teenage girl nervously asking out a gay guy. ("I know it's dumb to say/but you are on my mind/I know it's stupid to dream/but you might think of me as a man...")

The songs that follow run the spectrum, in a flurry of shimmering synth, shifting melodies, and odd beats. They try out soft electropop indie ballads, unhappy piano songs, cluttered noise-rock, hesitant guitar pop, and spoken monologues with backdrops of oddball pop.

The songs just get weirder and weirder, but Xiu Xiu avoid the impulse to be self-consciously so. The weirder elements are just as decorations to the basic songs, rather than attempting to show "Look! I'm weird! I'm cool!" Instead, we have perfectly shifting pop music, dressed up in colourful and wacky instrumentation.

The album is awash in clashing instrumentation -- drum machines buzzing like cicadas, soft guitar, shifting layers of synthy pop, xylophones, keyboards, vibraphone, and aching strings that spring out unexpectedly like a butterfly's wings. Then the whole thing melts together into catchy pop melodies or ballads, but with an air of unpredictability.

It's not always obvious when Stewart is being serious. He always SOUNDS serious, in a quietly desperate way, but it's pretty obvious that some of these lyrics have tongue planted firmly in cheek. Caralee McElroy sings in "Hello from Eau Claire," which is Xiu Xiu's most enchanting ever -- just try to dislodge her cute "I can button my own pants" singsong from your head.

"The Air Force" is Xiu Xiu's best album to date, and plenty of fun for the indie-rock fan who wants something offbeat, but not incomprehensible. Delicious.

my girlfriend bought me this album for christmas. Xiu xiu is one of my favorite bands and i was really hoping that i would like their newest release. this album didnt disappoint me in the slightest. all of the new melodies that the band has added over their electronic beats really flesh the album out. the last xiu xiu release "la foret" experimented with horns and strings, but mostly in a texture/ambient way, and this one really tightens up the playing into some nice melodies. the lyrics and vocals 90% of them by stewart and 10% by caralee mcelroy are in a world of their own. I often found myself wondering if jamie was a gifted writer or just genuinely disturbed. the song "hello from eau claire" features caralee on lead vocals doing her sing songy indie girl voice and using it to great effect channeling feelings of naive longing and hopeless romance towards a guy that she feels insecure about liking. the other stand out track is save me, which is a really great song but features some insanely creepy lyrics" press my thumb onto your tongue, hand a knife up to me.....no eyes no mouth no mind". i dont know whether to laugh or cringe. overall this album is very disturbing but its haunting in its beauty and a refreshing change of pace for an already great underground rock band.

Yet another striking album. Pushing the contemporary ugliness in our faces. The music is a bit softer, but still moving and Stewart's diction is still wonderfully effeminate. My favorites: Boy Soprano, Bishop, CA, Save Me Save Me.