Stallion Alert at the Movies: Pixies (2004)

Released in conjunction with Wave of Mutilation: Best of Pixies, this DVD features four distinct sections, all worth watching if you're a Pixies fan.

The first is a 15-song live set from May of 1988 that captures the band in a Surfer Rosa-era, semi-pro-shot set from London. The footage is of a very watchable quality, and seeing the band do a full show at this point in their career is fantastic. It's about a half-hour long, features "Hey" before it was released, and finds the band seeming completely invigorated and genuinely excited about playing. Incredible piece of history.

The second is a collection of the band's six videos that they released when they were together, as well as the promotional clip for "Debaser" that was pulled together from archive footage for the best-of release. That video is mostly pointless and often corny, but the other clips are great. The Pixies clearly hated doing videos, so the resulting output is, depending on how you see it, either frustrating or completely indicative of the way the band thought and acted. (The "Velouria" video, nothing more than the band running down a pile of rocks in slow-motion, is perhaps the most notorious of these here's-your-fucking-video spots.)

My favorite is probably the clip that combines "Dig for Fire" and "Allison," which starts with them donning motorcycle gear, moves to them riding in sidecars with grizzled bikers, and ends with them playing "Allison" live to an empty stadium. Though I also enjoy the "Alec Eiffel" video quite a bit, as well.

The third section of the DVD is called "On the Road," and it features home video footage of the band shot on one of their early European tours. Purely for the hardcore Pixies nerd, but there's some really cool shit here if you're into it. At 30 minutes, it's a nice watch.

The fourth and final section is "Gouge," a mini-doc about the band that has interviews with Bono, Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead, David Bowie, and the band themselves (except for Kim Deal), among others. The interviews are cool, but for some reason the only clips they show of the band and the only music they play is from the live show from the first section of the DVD. So when they start talking about Bossanova and Trompe Le Monde, they've got nothing. Though they still intersperse the discussions with songs from the live show, even though they're not on those records. Very strange, considering that there are videos from songs of both of those eras on the DVD as well, so there doesn't seem to be any rights issue. Though I don't really understand how that works.

Like I said though, the interviews are great, especially the ones with Joey Santiago and David Lovering. There's some great insight into where the band was at during the different phases of their short existence.

I am ashamed to say that I just saw this for the first time last week. Not sure what I was waiting for. I'm ready to watch that live set again right now.

Here's a clip from it:

"Something Against You"

Pixies - Pixies (CD, 2002)

I was completely unaware of the "Purple Tape" for a long time, but when I found out about it I was understandably intrigued. This CD compiles the nine songs that weren't taken from that tape and put on Come On Pilgrim.

And while this is definitely a must-have for serious Pixies fans, it's kind of a bummer that it's only 16 minutes long. Still, there are some things here that no Pixies ultra-fan can live without. Eh, fuck it: let's just break it down.

"Broken Face" - Not as strong as the Surfer Rosa version, but that's only because Black Francis sounds strangely tired on it. Still cool as shit.

"Build High" - The original verision! Hadn't changed much by the time they re-recorded for a Trompe Le Monde-era b-side, but this version is certainly much looser.

"Rock A My Soul" - Oh my lord, a previously unheard Pixies song. This is what everyone was looking forward to when this thing came out. Is it mind-blowing? Nah. There's a reason this is the only song here that never even made b-side status. Not that it's not nice. Because it is. Definitely a solid Pixies short one.

"Down to the Well" - The original version of this song, that would eventually make its way to Bossanova. The vocal feel is different and it's not as explosive, but I love this one.

"Break My Body" - A little bit different arrangement than the Surfer Rosa version (no intro), but otherwise it's basically the same.

"I'm Amazed" - Here's why we buy these things. There's a middle section on here that didn't make it onto the album version of the song. It's short, but it's really cool to hear.

"Here Comes Your Man" - This is another big reason fans need to have this: the original version of the Pixies' poppiest song. It's not quite as polished, and a great reference point.

"Subbacultcha" - A crazy version of this track, which wouldn't see the light until Trompe Le Monde. This is another one that contains extra shit - an short bridge and eventual outro thing that would end up being the basis for "Distance Equals Rate Times Time" from Trompe Le Monde. Really weird, and fascinating to see how the songwriting process works.

"In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song)" - Probably the least strong version of this song that exists, but it makes a nice little ending to this odd-ass batch.

If you're a big-time Pixies fan, you'll want this. But man, I'm having a hard time shelling out 30 bucks for the vinyl version, knowing how short it is and how often I'll listen to it...

"Subbacultcha"

Pixies - Complete 'B' Sides (CD, 2001)

I was a little bit pissed when this came out, because I had done a great job of compiling all of these songs on my own. So, the collector in me was annoyed. But, it's such a great group of songs that I couldn't really harbor any ill will. And it is nice to have them all in CD quality on one compilation, as I had some of the tracks on vinyl.

And best of all, the songs are arranged chronologically and Black Francis/Frank Black provides a little commentary on each one in the liner notes. Awesome. This has gotta be one of the strongest b-side comps ever.

"River Euphrates" - This is the re-recorded version from the "Gigantic" single, which was also redone for the 12" release. I kind of wish they would have included that as well, but their attention to detail when it comes to sticking to the title of the comp makes me equally happy. This version of "River Euphrates" is quite possibly better than the album cut.

"Vamos (Live)" - A solid recording of a live version of "Vamos" that features Joey Santiago going nuts and David Lovering just beating the shit out of the drums. Incredible.

"In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song)(Live)" - I mentioned in my previous post that this live recording was the only version of this song available (also on the "Gigantic" single) until the BBC album was released. That was fine, because this one makes for an intense few minutes.

"Manta Ray" - In the liner notes, FB downplays the quality of this tune, but I've always loved it. It's quite simple, but the melody in the verses is not to be messed with.

"Weird At My School" - Apparently this was an early Pixies song that didn't show up until it ended up as a b-side for the "Monkey Gone to Heaven" single. Frantic, two minutes long: everything you want from the band.

"Dancing the Manta Ray" - A sort of lumbering jam with Black Francis' vocals morphed into creepiness. Fun.

"Wave of Mutilation (UK Surf)" - Not sure why the slow version (this one) of this song has become the favorite of fans, but I guess it has. I may have mentioned it earlier, but my friends and I used to listen to the Pump Up the Volume soundtrack so we could hear this song and Soundgarden's "Heretic." Oh, the early 90's.

"Into the White" - I think I said earlier that "Gigantic" was the only track on which Kim Deal sang lead with the Pixies, and if I didn't say "album track," I should have. She has two lead vocal performances on b-sides, and this is the first. They used to play this live all the time, and it's a great song. Uncommonly long one at almost five minutes.

"Bailey's Walk" - Doolittle-era b-side that could have probably fit in on that record. Francis sounds fantastic on this track. All crackly and shit.

"Make Believe" - David Lovering's lead-vocal dedication to Debbie Gibson. Seriously. A more un-Pixies Pixies song you will not find, and it is all kinds of awesome.

"I've Been Waiting for You" - Kim Deal's singing lead again, and this time it's on the first of two Neil Young covers that show up here. One of my favorite songs on this comp. Santiago dials it.

"The Thing" - I mentioned this in my Bossanova entry as the last part of "The Happening," cut away from the rest of the track. In the liner notes, FB calls it a "re-mix of the outro section of "The Happening" from Bossanova, but it really sounds like a whole different recording to me.

"Velvety Instrumental Version" - One of the few Pixies songs that is full-on instrumental. It would later show up on the Frank Black album Devil's Workshop with vocals, but at this point, none even existed. The title, it seems, was a bit misleading. Sweet track.

"Winterlong" - Another Neil Young cover, and though this is a fine song, I prefer the previous one. Cute little ditty, though. Almost too cute...

"Santo" - This was one of the first Pixies b-sides I heard as a teenager. I've never been able to make any sense of this one (shocker), but I've always loved it.

"Theme from NARC" - A cover of the theme from the video game. Not technically instrumental (Francis says "Theme from NARC" a few times), but pretty much. Awesome idea, awesome song.

"Build High" - I bought the "Alec Eiffel" single that this was on, and always wanted to know the story behind it. Turns out it's really old Pixies song that they finally decided to throw down at this point. Bit of a hoedown.

"Evil Hearted You" - Another cover, this time done completely in Spanish. Beautiful tune, very mellow for the Pixies. But, of course, it works.

"Letter to Memphis (Instrumental)" - Just the album version with the vocals taken out. Nice enough, but I never really understood the point of this one.

All in all, an incredible batch of songs, arranged in order, which again, is fantastic. So much to like here. This thing deserves to be lumped in with their studio albums. Yep, I said it.

"Make Believe"

Pixies - Pixies at the BBC (CD, 1998)

Follwing the mostly pointless Death to the Pixies best-of comp that came out in 1997, this was the second release in the post-Pixies, pre-reunion era. Not sure why they waited so long to put it out, but it's cool that they did.

The music on this disc is, of course, great. Frustratingly, the sequencing is shit. It's a compilation that just begs to be rearranged in your iTunes. There are 15 tracks here, culled from six different sessions. Why not just put them in chronological order? Instead, some of the songs that were recorded the earliest are at the end, and the ones that were recorded the latest are just floating around in the middle, not even near each other. There are other issues along these same lines, but they're not worth explaining.

I will never understand the thinking behind a track listing like this. Anyway.

There's some cool shit on here. The band's cover of the Beatles' "Wild Honey Pie" is here, as well as a really strange version of "Is She Weird," which is probably the most intriguing song for me. They also blaze through sweet versions of "Dead" and "There Goes My Gun," and hearing them do "Ana" live in the studio is phenomenal.

"Caribou" and "Levitate Me" are both almost as good as the studio versions, and a few random b-sides are here, too. "Manta Ray" is a great Pixies non-album cut, and the version here is solid. It's also nice to have a decent recording of "In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song)," which had previously only been released as a Surfer Rosa b-side in a live version.

All the songs here are fantastic, and the raw recording quality just makes it that much more enjoyable. "Letter to Memphis," heard without all the studio trickery and thick production, is still incredible, but in a completely different way. Such a great song.

This thing's not for the casual Pixies fan, but for people who love all their records, it's a must-own.

"In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song)"

Pixies - Trompe Le Monde (LP, 1991)

This was the only Pixies album I bought upon its release, and I really could not have been more excited. I immediately loved it, and continue to do so to this day. The band brought back some of the rougher edges that had been smoothed out on Bossanova, and Black Francis wrote some incredibly strong tunes for this record.

Apparently it's not everyone's favorite, but I could easily make an argument for this being the band's best record. Between this record and Frank Black's first two solo records, you've got the golden era of the man whose real name is Charles Thompson. I could go deep into into my Eric Drew Feldman theory right now (he plays on all three of the records), but I'll spare you that. So let's get to the songs and why they're so great.

"Trompe Le Monde" - This was the only Pixies record that took its title from the name of a song and not a lyric from a song, and they just went ahead and put it right out front. And that's where it should be. A great tune to start off with.

Random: In the break in this song, Black Francis sing/talks: "We went to the store and got something great/ Which samples this song from Washington State." A friend of mine in high school had this weird Radio Shack megaphone that not only amplified your voice, but also played college fight songs. Among them was the one from Washington State, and it played it just like the little blips that come after that lyric in the song. We were convinced that this megaphone is what they were talking about. I still am.

Also: This version of the band playing the song on Letterman remains bizarre and awesome.

"Planet of Sound" - If anyone was concerned about whether the Pixies were getting soft, this should have assuaged those fears. What a badass tune. "This ain't no rock & roll town/ This ain't no fuckin' around." Exactly.

"Alec Eiffel" - What an incredible melody (as usual), and Kim Deal really makes it work on this one. One of the singles from this record, and it's definitely one of the more accessible tunes.

"The Sand Punk" - This track contains one of my favorite Pixies lyrics ever: "And evolving from the sea/ Would not be too much time for me/ To walk beside you in the sun." It really doesn't get much better than that. Love this song.

"Head On" - The second of the only two covers that made their way onto proper Pixies albums. It's a fine song, but I prefer their original material.

"U-Mass" - Somewhere along the line this became a Pixies head-bangin' classic, and I'm fairly certain it's more tongue-in-cheek than people realize. Again: great lyrics.

"Palace of the Brine" - One of two minute-and-a-half ass-kickers on this record. This song is untouchable.

"Letter to Memphis" - I always think of this one and "Palace of the Brine" as a one-two combo that should not be separated, because the break between the two songs in short and seamless and they really work well as a pair. Not sure if this is supposed to be a love song in the traditional sense, but it sure works as one.

"Bird Dream of the Olympus Mons" - Leave it to Black Francis to write a frighteningly beautiful song about a bird dreaming that he flies to Mars. These lyrics are insanely good, and the buildup in this song is flawless.

"Space (I Believe In)" - One of the longer songs on the record, and though I certainly like it, it's not one of my favorites. The end is great, though.

"Subbacultcha" - I never had any idea that this was one of the earliest tunes that Black Francis wrote for the band, and I was a bit surprised to find out that it was. It fits in fine with the rest of the songs here, though it remains one of their weirder tunes, which is saying something.

"Distance Equals Rate Times Time" - I always forget the name of this song because "D equals R times T" is mentioned in "Space (I Believe In)" and it mixes me up. This is the other minute-and-a-half ass-kicker on this record and it will knock you over.

"Lovely Day" - Apparently not one of the band's most enduring songs, but I always felt it deserved to be. Wish I had the faintest idea what this song is about, because I bet it's interesting. "You will be my martian honey all the day" makes me very curious.

"Motorway to Roswell" - Black Francis was still obsessed with aliens (and would continue to be), and this song seems to tell the fractured tale of an outer space visitor who ended up somewhere he didn't want to be. It's the longest song on the record, and it deserves the extra space.

"The Navajo Know" - The last song on the last Pixies record, and though I don't know why, it seems like a fitting send-off. It's got a great little melody, obscure-as-shit lyrics, and makes little sense. I love the production on this track.

It's possible that I've listened to this LP more than any other Pixies record. I had it on cassette right when it came out, and it got a lot of play. Tons. Sometimes I still think this is my all-time favorite Pixies album, but that remains a tough call to make. I guess it's safe to say that it's right up there with all their other ones.

And this would be it for the band who pioneered alternative rock and then broke up before they could enjoy the landscape they created. I always thought that was a sweet move. Don't worry, though - there's a bunch more Pixies stuff coming. Settle in.

"Head On"/"Bird Dream of the Olympus Mons"

Pixies - Bossanova (LP, 1990)

Some years back, I was talking with a friend who I went to high school with. We were listening to Bossanova in his car. He said, "Do you remember back in high school when everybody said that Bossanova was the one Pixies record that wasn't very good?" I said I remembered that. He said, "What was up with that? This album's incredible."

And indeed it is. But that was the word on Bossanova after it came out: "It's OK, just not nearly as good as Doolittle. Bossanova was the last Pixies album I bought before Trompe Le Monde came out, and though I didn't really put it off, I was hesitant, because everyone framed it as a huge disappointment. Then I bought it, loved it, and wasn't sure what the fuck everyone was talking about. Yeah, there's a lot less of the loud-quiet-loud dynamic on this one (mostly in favor of just plain loud) and the drums sound like machine guns, but if there exists a sorely underrated Pixies record, it's this one.

Maybe people were put off by the surfer-girls-in-outer-space theme that runs through this thing, but I always thought that was quite charming. And though this record is notorious for being the one that almost broke up the band, maybe that's what makes it so wonderfully tense-sounding. This is usually where people start complaining about Kim Deal not singing enough on the late Pixies records, but I've never understood that. She's all over this thing.

Like all the other Pixies records, this one has often been my favorite. In fact, right now, it's probably holding the title. "Is She Weird," "Ana," and "Allison" remain some of the band's best tracks. And this thing is sequenced beautifully, just like all the other Pixies records. Don't think I've mentioned that yet, but they really were masters at putting the songs in order. I can't picture their albums switching the tracks up and being any better than they are. With that in mind, let's start at the top:

"Cecilia Ann" - There were only two cover songs that made their way onto proper Pixies records, and this one's the first. Originally a straight-up surf tune, the version here is obviously way more electric and way bigger. A great choice to set the stage for what's to come. This also holds the distinction of being the only instrumental song on any of the Pixies' studio albums.

"Rock Music" - The title only begins to describe the blistering menace of this tune. The lyrics are fairly indecipherable on the album version, and they didn't bother to print them in liner notes. Bold move. You can sort of make them out in live versions. They make little sense. Incredible song.

"Velouria" - One of the Pixies' more blatant stabs at semi-mainstream appeal. Not my favorite song, but it does have a ton of charm. And the bridge is great.

"Allison" - Black Francis' shout-out to Mose Allison, which also works well as a love song. This melody is unstoppable. I have a promo single for this song that contains this song and this song only. It is one minute and eighteen seconds long.

"Is She Weird" - There was a bootleg video of a Pixies show in 1991 at the Brixton Academy that I used to rent all the time from a local video store. The whole thing was amazing, but their performance of this song was always the highlight. "Your heart is ripshit" is just a staggering lyric. One of my favorite Pixies songs. Among many.

"Ana" - This is the one with the tricky lyrics that spell out "surfer" with the first letter of each line. That novelty always struck me as odd for this band, but this song is so beautiful that I was never paid it much mind.

"All Over the World" - The last song on the first side of Bossanova, and easily the band's longest song. From a group known for keeping things around the two-minute mark, getting into the five-minute-plus realm was certainly unexpected. I've always thought it was pretty cool that they only did it once. And this song deserved it - the ending is sweet.

"Dig for Fire" - I'm pretty sure this was an old song that got resurrected for this album (much like "Subbacultcha" would on their next record), and it was probably a smart move, because it fits in perfectly with this group of songs. The single version is different than the album version. No idea why.

"Down to the Well" - Where Black Francis gets all guttural with his wailing and screams out "I can hardly wait - Betty" like no one else could. Awesome.

"The Happening" - On the "Velouria" single, there's a song called "The Thing" which is a standalone version of the second half of this song (though a different recording). Wish I knew more about how this thing got put together, but I don't. I do know that this is one of many songs Black Francis wrote (or would write) about aliens landing here and how he would like to hang out with them. ("They've come so far I've lived this long/ At least I must just go and say hello.")

"Blown Away" - Another song with a great hook that is further proof that the Pixies were masterful at the two-minute pop song.

"Hang Wire" - The song from which the album takes its title, and another one where Black Francis gets all blood-curdly with the vocals. Kim Deal is great on this one.

"Stormy Weather" - It is time for stormy weather. Indeed.

"Havalina" - Every time Kim Deal sings "Arizonaaaa," I still get chills. A legitimately pretty song, and a great one to close the album out with.

I have a very early copy of this record on vinyl that contains the rarely-seen 10" booklet on the inside. A few notes on this:

This is the only Pixies album to contain photos of the band on the inside.

The booklet does not contain the lyrics to "Rock Music," "Havalina," or "Havalina," but for some reason, it has the lyrics for "Make Believe," a song that was another b-side of the "Velouria" single. Weird.

This record is incredible. You know that.

"Dig for Fire"/"Allison"

Pixies - Zurich 1989 (CD, 1992)

The date on this CD is 1992, but chronologically the show would go here, so that's where I'm putting it. It's a bootleg, so I'm breaking all the rules.

Bootleg CDs were hot shit when I was a teenager (I spoke a little about that here), and this was one of the precious few that I got my grubby hands on. I think it was a gift, but now I can't rightly remember. However I got a hold of it, this one was a great choice.

Recorded in June of 1989, this is Pixies in their prime. Though the back of this CD says that the show was recorded during the Surfer Rosa tour, this was actually two months after Doolittle came out, and the band plays every song on that record except for "Silver," "La La Love You," and strangely enough, "Here Comes Your Man." So that's 12 tracks. The other ten are mix of stuff from their first two records. The live versions of "Vamos" and "Isla De Encanta" are spectacular. In fact, this whole show is damn good.

The band sounds really into it, and the recording (which, from what I can tell, was bootlegged off the radio - Kim Deal keeps saying "We're on the radio!"), while not crystal clear, is plenty listenable. In classic Pixies fashion, there's little talk between songs (aside from Kim rambling, but the rest of the band always cuts her off by starting the next song), so it's just 22 tracks of live Pixies from 1989, and hardly a bit of filler.

I'm sure this is readily available on the internet these days, but back before the internet made the obscure accessible to anyone, this was a rare find. And I've always loved it for that, but mostly because the actual performance here is a great one. Pixies in '89. Tough to beat.