Danny Elfman Teams With Xiu Xiu for Delightfully Industrial Remix of ‘Serious Ground’

Danny Elfman has enlisted the experimental rock band Xiu Xiu for an overloaded, industrial remix of his song “Serious Ground.”

“I was introduced to Xiu Xiu by Stu Brooks, who kickstarted and co-curated the remix concept for Big Mess,” Elfman shared in a statement. “They have a fresh, progressive sound that I thought would make for a great collaboration.”

Xiu Xiu’s remix reshapes “Serious Ground” with extensively chopped vocals from the original recording and a full overhaul of the track’s instrumentation.

“Expecting the unexpected is the most fun part of this whole project so I was really curious and excited to see what direction they’d go in. I’m very happy to have them be a part of the Big Mess project,” said Elfman.

“Serious Ground” appears on Elfman’s latest album, June’s Big Mess, his first solo record in 37 years. The Xiu Xiu remix follows three other reimaginings of tracks from the album including Death Grips drummer and producer Zach Hill’s take on “Kick Me,” Squarepusher’s skittering “We Belong” remix, and Trent Reznor’s new version of “True.”

The scattered remix releases mark just one form of Elfman’s collaborative efforts. The composer best known for his work in film and television is currently slated to perform a set of live-to-film concert experiences bringing The Nightmare Before Christmas to life in Los Angeles on Halloween weekend. For the live sets, he has recruited Billie Eilish, Weird Al Yankovic, Ken Page, and more.