Pixies

:This article is about the band named Pixies. For pixies of folklore, see pixie.

History

The band was formed in 1986 in Boston, Massachusetts by Joey Santiago and Black Francis (born Charles Thompson IV). Bassist Kim Deal later joined Santiago and Francis after responding to a classified ad Francis had placed, seeking a bassist who liked both folk music icons Peter, Paul and Mary and hardcore punkers Hüsker Dü. She also suggested that they pick up drummer David Lovering, whom she had met at her wedding reception.

Related Topics:
1986 - Boston, Massachusetts - Folk music - Peter, Paul and Mary - Hardcore punk - Hüsker Dü

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They arrived at a name ("Pixies") after Santiago selected the word randomly from a dictionary, liked the definition (although they were originally named Pixies In Panoply for a short time), and began playing shows in the Boston area.

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During a concert with Throwing Muses, the band was noticed by Gary Smith, a producer at Fort Apache Studios. Smith became the band's manager and produced a 17 track demo (known as the "Purple Tape", publicly released in 2002). The demo fell into the hands of Ivo Watts-Russell, owner of 4AD, who signed the band. Eight tracks from the demo were selected for the Come on Pilgrim EP, the band's first release. It was followed by their first full-length album, Surfer Rosa in early 1988, recorded by Steve Albini.

Related Topics:
Throwing Muses - Gary Smith - Fort Apache Studios - 2002 - Ivo Watts-Russell - 4AD - Come on Pilgrim - EP - Surfer Rosa - 1988 - Steve Albini

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4AD was a British music label, and the notoriously rabid/laconic British music press immediately clutched Pixies to their collective bosoms and refused to let go. The band remained unsigned in the US for a while, but after a foray up the UK pop charts and some inroads into American college rock stations, they were picked up by Elektra Records. For the remainder of their career, Pixies remained large-scale stars in Britain and cult figures in the US.

Related Topics:
Music label - Elektra Records - Cult

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Their second album, Doolittle, featured the prominent singles: "Here Comes Your Man," and "Monkey Gone to Heaven." It was a top 10 hit in the UK and reached the top 100 in North America.

Related Topics:
Doolittle - North America

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After Doolittle, Pixies went on hiatus and Black Francis temporarily went solo, while Kim Deal formed The Breeders with Tanya Donelly of Throwing Muses. During this time, Black Francis limited Deal's contributions to the band; the first two albums had been partly written by Deal, but when Bossanova was released in 1990, all the original songs were by him. Deal was not pleased, and unilaterally announced an apparent break-up of the band on-stage during the following tour. Pixies were at the height of their popularity, however, and while headlining at the Reading Festival in 1991, they played a highly enthusiastic version of "Debaser" which has become legendary among fans.

Related Topics:
The Breeders - Throwing Muses - Bossanova - 1990 - Reading Festival - 1991

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Break-up announcements notwithstanding, one more album was to follow. Trompe le Monde, released in 1991 still featured little input from Deal and wasn't as critically well-regarded as their first few albums. Following the release and an uncomfortable tour supporting fans U2, Pixies went on sabbatical and focused on separate projects. In early 1993, Francis supposedly faxed an official notice to the other members that the band had split.

Related Topics:
Trompe le Monde - 1991 - U2 - 1993

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