3. “Joey” – Concrete Blonde: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

3. “Joey” – Concrete Blonde

(From the album Bloodletting)

1990

While recording their third album Bloodletting Concrete Blonde found themselves under pressure from the label (and possibly themselves) to get the album done quickly so as to follow up the success of “God Is A Bullet” from the previous record Free. The recording process had been originally hampered because the band’s drummer Larry Rushakoff went into rehab and so a replacement had to be found. The band ultimately hired Roxy Music drummer Paul Thompson to play on the album (bassist Alan Bloch was also let go with Napolitano once again assuming bass duties). All of this meant that the band was running out of time to finish the album on time. As the band’s primary songwriter, Johnette Napolitano was especially feeling the pressure to provide lyrics to some of the music that had been written. Out of time and needing lyrics to sing Napolitano began to scribble down some words that came to her mind while riding in a taxi to the studio. The words were semi-autobiographical and were about a woman in love with an alcoholic. Even written down Napolitano was hesitant to sing them as they seemed too personal, but the band was out of time and needed more songs for the record and so she relented. The song was “Joey” and when it was released as the second single from Bloodletting it went on to become the band’s biggest hit. “Joey” spent four weeks at #1 on the US alternative rock charts and crossed over to the mainstream, going Top 20 in several countries including the United States. The success of the song further raised the band’s profile and helped Bloodletting become a genuine hit album.

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2. “Bloodletting” – Concrete Blonde: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

2. “Bloodletting” – Concrete Blonde

(From the album Bloodletting)

1990

Concrete Blonde had scored an alt rock hit in the USA with 1989’s “God Is A Bullet” and so the pressure was on to follow up that success as quickly as possible to keep that momentum. With that in mind Concrete Blonde went back into the studio less than year after Free was released and began work on their third album Bloodletting. Bloodletting was less eclectic than their previous records and leaned into the band’s harder and more gothic aspects as can be heard on the title track and lead single “Bloodletting (The Vampire Song)”. With lyrics based directly on Anne Rice’s gothic vampire novel Interview With The Vampire”, “Bloodletting” is built off a huge riff and features Napolitano’s gravelly, powerful vocals at their finest. While the song is too heavy and too niche to probably have been a true hit (although it is a little surprising it wasn’t more successful on the college rock scene of the time) it has become one of Concrete Blonde’s signature songs. The album version of the song is good, but truthfully the extended version of the track with added sound effects and longer instrumental sections is really the version to listen to as it leans into the heavy, gothic nature of the song rather than trying to edit those down for more mainstream appeal the way that the album version does. The extended version of “Bloodletting (The Vampire Song)” is not on the Bloodletting album but can be found as a B-side on the 1992 single for “Ghost Of A Texas Ladies Man”. I have included that extended version here as I believe it is the superior version of the song.

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1. “God Is A Bullet” – Concrete Blonde: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

1. “God Is A Bullet” – Concrete Blonde

(From the album Free)

1989

Concrete Blonde’s roots go back as far as 1982 when singer, songwriter, and bassist Johnette Napolitano first began working with guitarist James Mankey in the Los Angeles area under the name Dreamers. Napolitano was an emerging songwriter with a powerful voice and Mankey had recently been the bass player for the band Sparks for their first two records before the Mael brothers left L.A. and decamped to the UK. This core duo of Napolitano and Mankey would see various other bandmates and band names come and go over the next few years but ultimately hooked up with drummer Harry Rushakoff and signed to IRS Records. Once on IRS they became label mates of R.E.M. and Michael Stipe suggested they change their name to Concrete Blonde. The band took his advice and would record their self-titled debut album under that name – Concrete Blonde – in 1986. The Concrete Blonde album was inconsistent but showed the band had promise with tracks like “Still In Hollywood”, “True”, and “Cold Part Of Town”, with “True” even scraping into the lower end of the US alternative rock charts. It took Concrete Blonde a few years to release their sophomore album, and by then the group had added bassist Alan Bloch to the fold so that Napolitano could focus on her singing and songwriting duties. This four person version of Concrete Blonde released their second album Free in 1989 and this album would finally bring the group some long awaited success, albeit on a limited scale. Most of that success came from the album’s lead single “God Is A Bullet”, a song that the band wrote based on all the gun violence that they had witnessed while living in L.A. This became especially apparent to singer Johnette Napolitano when her car windows were shot out one day and then only a few days later she witnessed a man pull a gun on someone. “God Is A Bullet” earned airplay on both American college radio and on MTV and the song peaked at #15 on the US alt rock charts. 

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7. “Indie Cindy” – Pixies: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

7. “Indie Cindy” – Pixies

(From the album Indie Cindy)

2014

After more than a decade apart the Pixies reunited to play shows in 2004. During their time away the alternative rock scene that the Pixies helped launch had become the mainstream. Indeed, during that time the Pixies had gone from a cool cult band with a small, devoted following to revered pioneers of a scene that changed music and their 2004 reunion tour showed it, becoming one of the biggest and most successful tours of the year. The Pixies spent the next decade playing festivals, occasional tours, and releasing old material in new packages. However, in spite of playing with the Pixies during this time bassist Kim Deal still was more interested in her own band The Breeders (and still had issues with the other band members, especially Black Francis) and so in 2013 she left the band. Two weeks later the Pixies released the new song “Bagboy”. The new few months saw the Pixies release 3 EP’s of new music (with Simon “Ding” Archer on bass). These EP’s were then eventually compiled into a new Pixies album, released in 2014 and titled Indie Cindy. The title track “Indie Cindy” is one of the highlights and finds the band opening with an almost country vibe before the song alternates between chaotic near-spoken rant-like verses and a chorus that has a sweet, breezy quality with nicely sung lyrics. “Indie Cindy” is reminiscent of classic era Pixies but isn’t quite a retread of that sound. Indeed, the album Indie Cindy was a success, even without a big crossover hit single (likely reflecting the now legendary status of the band and the long gap since their last album) as it hit #6 in the UK and #23 in the US, easily their highest American chart position. The coming years would see a full-blown return of the Pixies as a working band. First they hired former A Perfect Circle bassist Paz Lenchantin as their permanent bassist (bringing a female voice and presence back into the band) then released a series of albums: Head Carrier in 2016, Beneath The Eyrie in 2020, and Doggerel in 2022.

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6. “Is She Weird” – Pixies: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

6. “Is She Weird” – Pixies

(From the album Bossanova)

1990

While many would argue that the Pixies had their creative peak with the twin masterpieces Surfer Rosa and Doolittle, their commercial peak came with 1990’s Bossanova, an album that had to overcome several obstacles just to be made. The tension between Black Francis and Kim Deal had continued to build over the tour in support of Doolittle and so when Francis, Santiago, and Lovering moved from Boston to Los Angeles to record the new album Kim Deal decided to not go with them. Instead Deal stayed in the UK to work on an album with her new side project The Breeders. Ultimately, Deal did rejoin the other Pixies in L.A. to record Bossanova but unlike past albums most of the songs for Bossanova were not written ahead of time and so most of the songs had been written by Black Francis while in the studio during the early phases of recording when Deal was absent and so her presence on Bossanova is notably less than on earlier Pixies records. Several other weird issues at the Pixies’ initial recording studio in L.A. plagued the early recording of the album as well and ultimately, via a chance encounter with Rick Rubin, a better studio was found and the recording finally went more smoothly and finished. In spite of its somewhat difficult birth Bossanova was the Pixies most successful album yet, going to #3 in the UK and breaking into the American Top 100 at #70. Both singles from the album – “Velouria” and “Dig For Fire” – also did well in the UK and on the US modern rock charts as well, with “Velouria” even cracking the UK Top 30. One of Bossanova’s more interesting deeper cuts is “Is She Weird”, a song that is part demented surf rock, part crazed intensity, but all Pixies. Proving once again that the Pixies had a unique sound and magic that was all their own. A year later Pixies returned to the studio to record 1991’s Trompe Le Monde, an album that continued to find Kim Deal playing a diminished role within the band. Trompe Le Monde was another critical success however and once again found the band scoring an alt rock hit, this time with their cover of The Jesus & Mary Chain’s “Head On”. The Pixies toured in support of the album and then signed on as the opening act for U2’s massive Zoo TV Tour. However, tensions between all of the members built up over these tours and when the support dates for U2 were over the Pixies decided to take a break to work on other projects. A year later during an interview with the BBC Black Francis announced that the band was over. He had not informed the other members of his decision. After the interview, Black Francis phoned Joey Santiago to inform him. He then notified both Kim Deal and David Lovering of the band’s end via fax. The Pixies wouldn’t play together for a decade and wouldn’t put out any new music for twice that time.

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5. “Here Comes Your Man” – Pixies: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

5. “Here Comes Your Man” – Pixies

(From the album Doolittle)

1989

The second single from Doolittle was “Here Comes Your Man”, one of the catchiest and most pop-oriented songs ever released by the Pixies. While “Here Comes Your Man” was still clearly the work of the Pixies, full of unexpected moments, unconventional dynamics shifts, and almost completely unlike anything else at the time; it also seemed to tie back into the era of early rock and roll and pre-British Invasion pop without directly paying homage to it. “Here Comes Your Man” also tied back into the sound of the band’s most successful pre-Doolittle song “Gigantic”, by prominently featuring Kim Deal’s vocals and bass playing. While Black Francis takes the vocal lead on “Here Comes Your Man” Deal provides both secondary and backing vocals that give the song a unique quality, while the song is propelled forward by Deal’s bouncy bass groove. “Here Comes Your Man” did even better than “Monkey Gone To Heaven” did, hitting #3 on the US alt rock charts and #54 in Britain. Although few, if any, knew it at the time the new sound the Pixies were pioneering was going to become much of the blueprint for the sound of alternative rock in the 1990’s. The Pixies were different from the “big” college rock and indie bands of the 80’s. They didn’t have the cinematic scale of U2 or the anthemic scope of Simple Minds or Peter Gabriel. They also didn’t have the witty literacy of The Smiths or the obscure beauty of R.E.M. The Pixies were raw and emotional, surreal and surly, blending sweet melodies with crazed intensity, and using unconventional non-linear lyrics and dramatic loud-soft-loud dynamics. The sound that would break the alternative into the mainstream was being established and a major shift in what was acceptable to a mainstream audience was just around the corner and the Pixies were playing a big part in that shift.

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4. “Monkey Gone To Heaven” – Pixies: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

4. “Monkey Gone To Heaven” – Pixies

(From the album Doolittle)

1989

While the Pixies never would become a mainstream commercial success, their third release Doolittle continued to elevate the band’s status in the alternative music underground scene. Musically, Doolittle continues the unusual blend of influences, sounds, and dynamics that the band had become known for. However, whereas producer Steve Albini had given their previous album Surfer Rosa a brittle and abrasive production, on Doolittle producer Gil Norton gave the songs a smoother, more mainstream production that focused on melody and dynamics. This didn’t make the songs less quirky or strange (or any more appealing to the mainstream) but it did make them more accessible and several of the songs on Doolittle have become staples of the Pixies career. Among the highlights are the thrashy surf/punk of “Wave of Mutilation”, the chill vibes of “La La Love You”, the crazed intensity of “Debaser”, and the fractured alt-pop perfection of the album’s first two singles: “Monkey Gone To Heaven” and “Here Comes Your Man”. In many ways lead single “Monkey Gone To Heaven” feels like a perfect entry point to the band; a summation of sorts of their skills and weird vision, and so it is fitting that it was the Pixies’ first single to be released in America (which had been slower to warm to the group than Britain had been). “Monkey Gone To Heaven” would hit #5 on the US alt charts and peak at #60 on the main UK charts, while earning generally positive critical praise. Indeed, David Fricke of Rolling Stone may have perfectly captured the spirit of the song when he called it “a corrosive, compelling meditation on God and garbage”. 

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3. “Gigantic” – Pixies: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

3. “Gigantic” – Pixies

(From the album Surfer Rosa)

1988

Over the next few years there would be a growing rift in the Pixies between Black Francis and Kim Deal. Francis was the band’s primary songwriter, vocalist, and founder (along with guitarist Joey Santiago). However, Deal’s unique bass playing style, perfect background and harmony vocals, and occasional songwriting credit were a significant part of the sound and style of the Pixies and Deal, a budding songwriter in her own right, wanted to be able to express herself and her art within the confines of the group more often. The beginnings of that rift likely began with Surfer Rosa’s sole single “Gigantic”. “Gigantic” was a co-write between Deal and Francis and featured Deal on lead vocals (singing about a “gigantic, big, big love”). The song is built off of Deal’s bassline and was chosen by record boss Ivo Watts-Russell to be the Surfer Rosa’s sole single even though he didn’t think any of the songs on the album would be radio hits. He was right, in spite of Surfer Rosa earning high critical praise in the UK and across Europe (with two publications naming it album of the year), “Gigantic” did not chart as a single (nor in the USA where critical praise was good but not as strong as in Europe). However, the song did become a live staple and a fan favorite and the fact the Deal-sung song was chosen as the only single began to cause tension between Black Francis and Deal. Black Francis viewed Pixies as his band, while the relative success of “Gigantic” gave Deal a taste for stardom (or at least control) and her own creative expression and outlet. At this time Francis and Deal were both just happy that the band seemed to be on the upswing and that people were beginning to notice them, but the seeds for future problems began to be laid. Nevertheless, enough buzz had been built up by Surfer Rosa that the band was encouraged to begin work on another new album as soon as possible. So, as 1988 ended the Pixies found themselves heading back to the studio to work on their third release in three years.

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2. “Where Is My Mind?” – Pixies: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

2. “Where Is My Mind?” – Pixies

(From the album Surfer Rosa)

1988

1988 saw the Pixies release their first full lengthed album Surfer Rosa (although who doesn’t count Come On Pilgrim as their first album?) and it was the album that really solidified their sound by containing several of the band’s key songs and fan favorites. Songs like “Bone Machine”, “Broken Face”, “Gigantic”, “River Euphrates”, “Cactus”, and others are all found on Surfer Rosa. While most of these are not well-known outside of the alternative rock world they have become standards of alternative and indie rock even today. However, there is one song on Pixies’ Surfer Rosa that has entered the mainstream rock canon and that is “Where Is My Mind?” “Where Is My Mind?” borrows from surf rock and then twists it inward with a droning, lazy riff provided by Santiago’s guitar. Lyrically, the song references Black Francis’ time in Puerto Rico and a time he was chased by a very small fish while he was scuba diving. Those lyrics sit juxtaposed with the chorus where Francis questions his own mental state. Kim Deal’s bass and David Lovering’s drums provide a simple, but perfect structure for the song, which builds to an eerie, echoing end. The song was among the highlights of Surfer Rosa from its release, but when it was prominently featured in the closing scene of the 1999 film Fight Club the song gained much wider exposure and became the Pixies’ best-known song. “Where Is My Mind?” was never a commercial success (it was never even released as a single) but time and exposure have increased its status to make it one of the most important songs in the Pixies canon and a key moment in alt rock’s move into the mainstream. Steve Albini’s thin and frenetic production and the general sound and structure of the song were both an influence on Nirvana and many other bands that would soon change the rock landscape. 

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1. “Levitate Me” – Pixies: An Artist A Week/A Song A Day – A History of Alternative Music

1. “Levitate Me” – Pixies

(From the album Come On Pilgrim)

1987

The legend and the impact of the Pixies are both much bigger than their commercial impact ever was. Formed in 1986 in Boston, Massachusetts by the quartet of Black Francis, Joey Santiago, Kim Deal, and David Lovering, the Pixies combined a wide array of musical styles that included everything from punk, surf rock, noise rock, Christian rock, college rock and beyond, and twists them into something that was very unique. The Pixies mix of the catchy and the abrasive would also become a major influence on the grunge and alt rock that would explode into the mainstream in America in the 1990’s. However, their first break came not in the US but in the UK. Renowned British indie label 4AD had signed Throwing Muses as their first American band a year earlier. Throwing Muses were also from Boston and when the Pixies opened a show for Throwing Muses it kicked off a chain of events that eventually led to the Pixies recording their famous demo the “Purple Tape” and then it finding its way into the hands of 4AD President Ivo Watts-Russell. Pixies were then signed to 4AD and eight of the seventeen songs from the Purple Tape were then remixed and released as the Pixies debut album (or EP or mini-album, depending on who you ask) Come On Pilgrim. Many of the songs on Come On Pilgrim dealt with religious themes or used religious imagery (often of the more disturbing variety). This interest in religious themes and imagery was carried over to the album’s cover art of a man wearing a hairshirt and to the album’s title Come On Pilgrim which was lifted from a Christian rock song by Larry Norman who had been one of Black Francis’ early musical heroes. The phrase “come on pilgrim” can also be found in the closing track “Levitate Me”, a song that encapsulates the Pixies early sound and style very well. “Levitate Me” is both undeniably weird and undeniably catchy. The lyrics evoke images and feelings more than any literal story (a hallmark of Pixies’ songs) and showcases Black Francis’ vocal style, which is almost genderless in tone and shifts from whine to sing to snarl almost instantaneously. While not as prominent as in other Pixies’ songs “Levitate Me” also finds the band exploring the start/stop and loud-soft-loud dynamics that the Pixies, and later 90’s music more broadly, become known for.

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