Because we sorta like her?

[Video][Website]
[6.43]Daniel Montesinos-Donaghy: A hymn recited and rewritten in onomatopoeia, only for words to leap out of the word-swamp: “I’m gonna find you!,” more words of comfort than threats. A musical adventure in the timeframe of a sojurn, a showcase for Rubinos to do with her voice what Marnie Stern can do with a guitar, to ramp up Juana Molina’s energy levels in harmony, to fuck about and make a two-person Battles with her drummer (Marco Buccelli, take a bow), to suddenly make squeaky doors listenable to the human ear. Some will listen and deem this an exercise in technical tomfoolery, a bubblegum howl of “look what I can do.” Well, c’mon – look what she can do.
[9]

Anthony Easton: This reminds me of Tanya Tagaq’s attempts at making ancient Inuit vocalizations modern. It would be difficult to listen to more than two minutes, but within that two minutes the variation is stronger than would seem necessary: the introduction like the opening of an unoiled door, the almost manic breathing in and out, the percussive way she works her voice, and even that section around the 30-second mark where the sound swings out. I actually almost want this to be the source of something.
[9]

Alfred Soto: I thought my iTunes started playing a Raincoats song. Then I remembered: I don’t remember drum parts in Raincoats songs.
[6]

Jonathan Bogart: “Whirlwind” isn’t much of a single; the promo video seems to be more of an excuse for a clever film editor to try using the same quick-fire cut-up technique as the studio track. Xenia Rubinos, as a singer, writer, and performance artist, deserves to be known for her actual songs, like “Pan y Café” or “Help” or “Cherry Tree,” and for the breadth of technique and formal inventiveness that they represent.
[6]

Brad Shoup: Doesn’t make me smile like “Pan y Café” from the same record. The mutato squeak puts us one away from a trend, though, and I’d rather get more of that than exercises in vocal latticework.
[5]

Will Adams: True to its name, “Whirlwind” brtuss thguroh wtih a mses fo ujmedlb inoes. What the hell just happened?
[4]

Katherine St Asaph: Fantastic frame. Where’s the song?
[6]