Pixies
Country of origin:
U.S.
Type of music generally:
Alternative rock
Status:
Most recent release, Head Carrier (2016)
See also:
Pixies' siteWikipedia's entry on the Pixies
The Ectophiles' Guide entry for The Breeders and The Amps, Kim Deal's other projects
Comparisons:
The Breeders, Throwing Muses
Covers/own material:
Own material, some covers
General comments:
Kim Deal. sure she's great on the guitar. but she made the Pixies for me. listen to GIGANTIC. (iflin@speakeasy.net)I always felt that they thought they were cleverer than they really were and sang with their tongues firmly in their cheeks with a rather smug sense of their own worth. I preferred the more shambolic, underproduced and visceral Husker Du, myself. I loved grunge: the guitars, bass and drums, the anguished, visceral vocals. The Pixies had these in spades, and are often credited with being ur-grunge. So, if all the ingredients are there, why don't I like them? (adamk@zoom.co.uk)
i never thought of the pixies as anything pertaining to grunge. they're more "post-punk," and have a lot more in common with mission of burma and bauhaus than they do with nirvana and pearl jam. grunge (of this sort) is sort of an illegitimate child of neil young and the beatles, while the pixies seem to draw more on zappa and eno and salvador dali. (brni @ kappamanki.com)
Recommended first album:
Doolittle
Recordings:
- Come On Pilgrim (1987)
- Surfer Rosa (1988)
- Doolittle (1989)
- Bossanova (1990)
- Trompe le Monde (1991)
- Live in Minneapolis, MN (2004)
- Pixies (EP, 2002)
- EP1 (2013)
- EP2 (2014)
- Indie Cindy (2014)
- Head Carrier (2016)
Doolittle
Release info:
1991—Elektra (US)/4AD (UK)—CAD 905
Availability:
Widely available
Ecto priority:
Highly recommended for alternative rock fans
Group members:
Black Francis—vocals, guitar
Kim Deal—bass guitar, backing vocals (slide guitar on "Silver")
Joey Santiago—lead guitar
David Lovering—drums (lead vocal on "La La Love You", bass guitar on "Silver")
Guest artists:
Karen Kalsrud—violin on "Monkey Gone to Heaven"
Corine Metter—violin on "Monkey Gone to Heaven"
Arthur Fiacco—cello on "Monkey Gone to Heaven"
Ann Rorich—cello on "Monkey Gone to Heaven"
Produced by:
Gil Norton
Comments:
maybe Black Francis and Kim Deal are Lennon-and-McCartney-s—dissimilar musicians who sparked each other to fiery brilliance, never to shine so bright in their solo careers. then again, maybe not: for all that Frank Black and the Breeders just aren't as staggering as Pixies were, comparisons to the Particularly Fab Two seem less apt than those to, say, a major industrial accident or repeated blows to the head. Doolittle is repeated major industrial blows to the head. not much here that is traditionally "Ecto", perhaps; it's loud, tangled, rude, and far far from ethereal. but the songs, particularly "Debaser", "Gouge Away", "Here Comes My Man", "There Goes My Gun" ;), and the astounding "Monkey Gone To Heaven", are almost perfect. (bossert@suddensound.com)
Indie Cindy
Release info:
2014—Pixies Music—PM006CDX
Availability:
Wide
Ecto priority:
Recommended
Produced by:
Gil Norton
Comments:
While I like to listen to these songs for the lyrics and the novelty of something that's not typically my taste, I can't get myself to really like them. Rating: 38/100. Best track: "Magdalena 318." (raschee@gmail.com)
Thanks to Sarah Morayati and JoAnn Whetsell for work on this entry.
