mui zyu Interview: Embracing the Chaos
Pop experimenter mui zyu--the stage name for London-based artist Eva Liu--combines explorations of her heritage with wide-eyed, open-hearted dives into the modern world. Born in Northern Ireland to parents who were Hong Kong immigrants, Liu grew up studying more classical art before choosing to pursue film studies at university. Her first foray into recording music was as lead vocalist of alt rock trio Dama Scout; she released her debut EP as mui zyu in 2021. mui zyu's debut album, Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century reckoned with ideas of identity and lineage but also memory and perception, Liu continuing her tradition of using field and voice recordings from her family. But it was a mere year later where Liu took the biggest artistic leap.
On miu zyu's second album nothing or something to die for (Father/Daughter), Liu's themes and soundscapes expanded beyond bedroom pop, beyond her head. Fittingly, it was her first time not recording at home. With a grant from the PRS Foundation, Liu and her longtime collaborator Luciano Rossi were able to set up at Middle Farm Studios in Devon, sessions that challenged Liu to take her sound to the next level, increasing her use of vocal manipulation and pedal wizardry. Its genre aesthetics are wonderfully all over the place. Scraped, raw acoustic guitar-led love song "everything to die for" is sandwiched between whirring synth-and-drum machine jam "the mould" and the melancholic, Postal Service-esque "donna like parasites". "speak up sponge", meanwhile, is a string-laden, comparative dirge. Album closer “扮豬食老虎”, with piano, sampled vocals from Liu's family, echoing field recordings, and decaying synths, exists somewhere between Rotten Bun and William Basinski's The Disintegration Loops.
What's also special about nothing or something to die for is that Liu was able to work with like-minded artists. Miss Grit, whose work also uses fantastical, sci-fi themes to investigate identity, lends her vocals to "please be ok", a song about not being honest with yourself about your feelings in the presence of others. She and Liu harmonize, eventually over a drum machine beat, only to be subsumed by faster tempos and distortion, as if to remind themselves it's important to let it all out in the beginning, else you're drowned out. Father/Daughter labelmate Pickle Darling features on "in the dot", providing strikingly atonal vocals to go along side warbling synths on a song that reminds us that momentary happiness is preferable to the destructive pursuit of perfection. Perhaps most meaningful to Liu, though, was getting to work with lei, e, aka Emma Lee Moss (fka Emmy the Great). Liu looked up to Moss, another Hong Kong British artist in the indie music scene, for years before getting to work with her, eventually opening for her and singing Cantonese covers with her at the Hackney Chinese Community Centre in London. For their first proper original song collaboration, mui zyu and lei, e take us on a sonic odyssey, adding to the album's canvas of synths, drum machines, and guitar distortion with off-kilter piano, noise, and then a quiet hum.
In September, mui zyu released nothing or something to die for (Cantonese tasting menu), 5 songs from the album translated into Cantonese. It was an opportunity for Liu to work with not only Moss but her father, for hours over the phone, on translating the lyrics. The specific songs picked are a perfect encapsulation of mui zyu's current diverse sensibilities; if you wanted to get a sense for who she is as an artist, ironically, I'd tell you to start there. Most exciting is that mui zyu remains unpredictable, the type of artist who could go in one of many different directions and will probably pick the least expected route.
Last year, I spoke with Liu over Zoom about her songwriting process and picking collaborators on nothing or something to die for, as well as how film inspires her music. Read our conversation below, edited for length and clarity.
nothing or something to die for cover art
Since I Left You: Now that nothing or something to die for has been out for a while, has your relationship with the music changed because you've gotten outside reception?
Eva Liu: I don't think it's changed. I finished the album [in October 2023]. We got it to a place where I was really happy with it. I haven't said goodbye to it, [but] once it's out of your control, you let it do its thing.
SILY: With the addition of videos, the album has a whole visual identity. It almost seems like nothing or something to die for is more than an album, like a conceptual world.
EL: Because [my] first [record] had a concept that arrived naturally, I didn't want this album to has as much of a concept. But it has definitely formed its own little world naturally. In a way, it's looking outwards as opposed to inwards like the first album. There wasn't a narrative I was building--the songs just go well together. Putting it together was kind of chaotic, and the album is about embracing chaos, so it seems like that was meandering throughout it.
SILY: Did you study film?
EL: I studied Film Studies at university. It wasn't practical or about making a film, but it was about film theory, kind of like [what Art History is to art.] I actually didn't want to go to uni, but I didn't know what to do. I love film, so that's why I chose [to study Film Studies.]
SILY: You've certainly mentioned a lot of direct filmic inspirations on some of these songs. How do you connect the film world to the music world? How do those inspirations, like 2001: A Space Odyssey on "satan marriage" or Blue Velvet on "sparky", come about?
EL: I don't really write with film in mind. I do have a sort of vision with the songs, and having been so influenced by film in the past, I am inspired a lot by images and art and how [movies are made.] Sometimes, if I want to capture a certain feeling in a song or video, I'll reference certain pieces of work that I love. But I'm not wanting to write about film, if that makes sense. It's just something that helps me creatively.
SILY: The folks you collaborated with on this record are everyone from those you looked up to in the past to your peers and a Father/Daughter labelmate. How did you choose your list of collaborators, and what does it mean to you to have this group in particular on the record?
EL: lei, e was someone I looked up to in my journey with music and identified with, having not seen many artists who are from Hong Kong or Hong Kong British, especially in the indie scene. I loved her music, and she was definitely a role model for me. I had reached out [three] years ago on the off chance she wanted to collaborate, and we've done a few things together since. [pauses] Oh, that's funny, she just texted me. [laughs] We ended up doing shows together and events at the Hackney Chinese Community Centre here in London, on Cantonese translations for songs, and a whole bunch of other stuff. She's become a very dear friend of mine. I really wanted to work with her on [an original] song, which is why she was one of the people I wanted on this album. She's got such a nice voice as well.
Miss Grit is someone I met [two years ago.] I loved their guitar playing. We just got chatting, and it was great to collaborate. These artists, I didn't directly pursue them to work with, but when I was writing this album, there would be some songs I had in mind for collaboration, and certain artists made sense for what I felt the song needed. Pickle Darling, we're on the same label, and I love their whole sound and delivery.
SILY: Did the lyrics or the concepts come before the instrumentation?
EL: Usually, in my music, the instrumentation comes first and lyrics after. I sort of tend to write based on a feeling and how that feels on an instrument. I'm actually not very good with words in general. I find it easier to translate what I'm trying to create with music as opposed to words.
SILY: Throughout the record, there's such an interplay between what you're saying and what the song's about, and the way the songs are constructed. You play a lot with tempo, and I feel like it's somewhere between thrilling and disorienting. It's a very effective contrast to the songs. Was that intentional?
EL: There's definitely a relationship. The music is based on a certain feeling or message I'm trying to portray, and the words come together and arrive gradually. Sometimes, they come to me much quicker than others. It takes a bit more time with lyrics [for me.]
SILY: Is the title "telephone congee" named after the term that suggests it should take the length of a phone call to cook congee?
EL: It's actually to do with the length of time you're on the phone, if you're talking too long, you're boiling congee. My mom and aunt would be on the phone for ages, and my dad would be like, "You're talking so much, it's like telephone congee." It's quite colloquial, but it means you're on the phone too much.
SILY: Are the two "telephone congee" interludes plus the final track, "扮豬食老虎", all sampled vocals from your family?
EL: That's my mom speaking Cantonese. She was also on the first album as well. I need to stop getting my family to do stuff. [laughs]
SILY: They've been on everything, right?
EL: Yeah. Even the first EP. My niece and nephew were on [a record], and my dad was on the first record. It's been a nice way for me to do something with them. They're quite far away. My parents are in Hong Kong, and my sister and brother are spread out. Growing up, music wasn't that encouraged. [My parents] encouraged piano lessons and to learn classical music, but not as a career. They must have gotten around to the idea that music is more than a hobby. It's kind of like letting them in to my world, having them send me voice notes or sing on stuff.
SILY: Do they know the voice notes they send are going to be used on your music?
EL: They do, but sometimes, my mom will send me a voice note, and I'll ask, "Can I put this on a song?" and she won't really know what it's for.
SILY: Can you tell me about the album art?
EL: The album art was done by a friend who calls herself Waffle Burger. She's a great artist, a painter. She does these incredible apocalyptic paintings that have this kind of eerie but cute element to them. I felt like that's how my music feels like at times. I like things that are juxtaposing. I actually bought one of her small paintings. We were chatting more when we were working on this album, and I thought of her to do it, and she was receptive. We discussed what sort of vibe it would be, and I picked out things I liked in her work. Her understanding on the album was translated into this strange cave with these creatures. I didn't ask her to, but my cat's in it, in the little picture frame.
SILY: Are you the type of artist always writing songs, or do you have to set aside time to do it?
EL: I wish I could be someone who's just constantly creating, but I'm someone who has to set aside time to focus on it. I noodle on guitar quite a bit, but when it comes to writing, I have to set aside time.
SILY: Is there anything you've been listening to, watching, or reading lately that's caught your attention?
EL: Recently, I've been listening to a lot of Sun Ra and Xiu Xiu. I went to see MaXXXine at the cinema. I enjoyed that; that was fun. Me and my friends have been watching a lot of horror movies. I watched Scanners and loved it and re-watched The Wicker Man, one of my favorite films--the 1973 version, not the Nicolas Cage one. I watched some interesting horror films my friend was keen on seeing, like Paranormal Activity 2--my friends were having a [marathon], and I joined for the 2nd. It's not something I normally watch. I think they watched all 7? I didn't even know there were 7 Paranormal Activity [films.] I've been listening to The Blindboy Podcast.
2/24: El Cid, Los Angeles, CA
2/27: Public Records, Brooklyn, NY
3/1: Wavelength Winter Festival, Toronto, Canada
3/29, Far East Film Festival. Udine, Italy
