Pixies
Indie Rock / Alternative
The Pixies formed in Boston in 1986 when Charles Thompson dropped out of college and convinced his friend and roommate, Joey Santiago, to do the same. The two recruited bassist Kim Deal who suggested drummer David Lovering join the group, and the lineup was made official. Thompson adopted the stage name Black Francis and the group named themselves The Pixies after flipping through a dictionary. The Pixies quickly gained a cult following as well as critical acclaim for their signature blend of screaming punk noise, indie guitar rock, classic pop, and surf rock riffs mixed with impossible-to-ignore melodic hooks and Francis' bizarre lyrics about religion, UFOs and metaphysics - their own unique sound.
During their six years together, The Pixies released five albums on 4AD - "Come on Pilgrim" (1987); "Surfer Rosa" (1988); "Doolittle" (1989); "Bossanova" (1990) and "Trompe Le Monde" (1991). Experiencing particular success in the U.K. and Europe, The Pixies played sold-out festivals and received a multitude of fan, peer and critical acclaim - the U.K.'s NME named "Doolittle" the "Second Best Album Ever." The band's influence was far-reaching; U2's Bono referred to The Pixies as "one of America's greatest bands ever;" David Bowie called their work "just about the most compelling music of the entire '80s," and Kurt Cobain, who identified "Surfer Rosa" as his favorite album of that entire decade, confessed, when writing "Smells Like Teen Spirit," that, "Basically, I was ripping off The Pixies."
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