Mui Zyu: Five Essential Albums
mui zyu (photo by Celia Tang, PR)
Women's history is world history, but care is taken in March to elevate the message and mission of Women's History Month. We've asked some of the "Women We Love" to write about their "Five Essential Albums" for FUV.
Eva Liu, who records as mui zyu (pronounced moy-joo), is best known as frontwoman of the London indie rockers Dama Scout, but earlier this month she released her solo debut album, Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century.
Not only is the title a provocative one, but so are the personal journeys that mui zyu takes on songs like the piqued, rhythmic sighs of "Ghost With a Peach Skin," collaborating with guzheng (Chinese plucked zither) player Yijia Tu, and the squelchy-synth dream pop of "Talk to Death."
Liu's mui zyu project opens the door to her own Hong Kong heritage, her family (both of her parents inspire songs on Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century), and the dichotomy of her own British-Chinese identity. “I am Chinese and I am owning it,” she said in a press release for her label, Father/Daughter Records. “Before, I would resent it. I tried doing things that would make me like less Chinese somehow.”
Just before she set off for SXSW this year, mui zyu sent on her Five Essential Albums for WFUV.
mui zyu: Five Essential Albums
Low, Double Negative
I saw Low last summer; I was in a puddle of tears in a freezing auditorium in Barcelona. This particular record has melted my mind about what recorded music can be.
Miharu Koshi, Parallelisme
I found this record after wandering through Haruomi Hosono’s other work and its claws have never left me, beautiful melodies and production. It sounds effortless but with sneaky super-pop everywhere.
Scott Walker, Scott 3
I love all Scott Walker’s work and go through phases with different records. I had Scott 3 on a lot over the pandemic when I started working on my own solo music. The impressionistic orchestral elements with his theremin-like voice immediately transport me out of myself.
Broadcast, Tender Buttons
One of my favorite records of all time, I’ll never tire of it. There are so many hidden treats in the music, after years of listening I’m still finding new things to love inside.
Oneohtrix Point Never, R Plus Seven
One of my all time favorite brains, hard to choose one album, but recently this is the record I’ve been returning to the most. It’s like a portal to another world.
- mui zyu
March 2023
