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Pixies
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Formed in Boston in 1986, the Pixies were one of the most influential alt-rock bands of the late 1980s. With singer Black Francis’ pounding guitar chords, guitarist Joey Santiago’s squealing lead, drummer David Lovering keeping time, and future Breeders’ frontwoman Kim Deal on bass, the group released their first EP, Come on Pilgrim, in 1987. Their full-length debut, Surfer Rosa (1988), produced by Steve Albini, received critical praise. They signed with Elektra Records in 1989 for their follow-up, Doolittle, which contained the modern-rock hits "Monkey Gone to Heaven" and "Here Comes Your Man." During a hiatus in 1990, Deal formed the Breeders with Throwing Muses’ guitarist Tanya Donelly. A brief reunion in 1991 led to the release of Trompe Le Monde and a gig as U2’s opening act during the Zoo TV tour. In 1993 Francis changed his stage name to Frank Black and released his self-titled solo album.
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As he was preparing to release his solo debut, Francis gave an interview on BBC's Radio 5, announcing that the Pixies were disbanding. He hadn't yet informed the other members; later that day, he faxed them his statement. Inverting his stage name to Frank Black, Francis released his eponymous debut that spring to mixed reviews; over the next few years, Frank Black's audience gradually shrank to a small cult following. The Breeders released their second album, Last Splash, in the fall of 1993. The album became a surprise hit, going gold in the U.S. and spawning the hit single "Cannonball." Soon after, Deal ... formed the Amps, who released their one (and only) album, Pacer, in 1995.
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Between 1988 and 1991, the Pixies performed six sessions at the BBC, playing on a variety of programs. For years, these sessions were hot bootleg items, especially since their first session for John Peel (on May 3, 1988) featured two otherwise unreleased covers -- the Beatles' "Wild Honey Pie" and "(In Heaven) Lady in the Radiator Song," from Eraserhead. It took Elektra/4AD until 1998 to release the six sessions, and when the 15-track Pixies at the BBC did appear, it was a mixed blessing. Certainly, the music itself is pretty terrific -- none of the versions are radically different (although "Wave of Mutilation" is performed in its "UK Surf Arrangement" from the "Here Comes Your Man" single, not the Doolittle version), but each cut is raw and vital, and recasting "Wild Honey Pie" as pure primal dementia was brilliant. What is suspect is the presentation. Instead of keeping each session intact, the compilers have assembled individual tracks in seemingly random order so the disc bounces from 1989 to 1991 to 1988 to 1990.
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For more than ten years, since the Pixies ended their run with a meltdown that left pretty much everyone pissed off, the chances of this group ever getting back together were basically nil. All four members scattered: Frank Black embarked on a solo career that has produced ten albums, many of which were critical triumphs and all of them anticipated eagerly by long-time and new fans. Joey Santiago did session work and got into scoring television and film projects in L.A., and received critical kudos for the two albums he did with wife Linda Mallari as The Martinis. Kim Deal put together the Breeders who opened for Nirvana, headlined at Lollapalooza, and recorded a platinum album. After finding little satisfaction in studio work, Dave Lovering gave up music entirely and began a career as a professional magician.
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The Pixies were formed in Boston, MA, in 1986 by Charles Thompson and his roommate, Joey Santiago. Born in California, Thompson began playing music as a teenager, before he moved to the East Coast during high school. Following graduation, he became an anthropology major at the University of Massachusetts. Half way through his studies at the college, he went to Puerto Rico to study Spanish, and after six months he decided to move back to the U.S. to form a band. Thompson dropped out of school and moved to Boston, managing to persuade Santiago to join him. Advertising in a music paper for a bassist who liked "Hüsker Dü and Peter, Paul & Mary," the duo recruited Kim Deal (who was billed as Mrs. John Murphey on the group's first two records), who had previously played with her twin sister Kelly in the folk-rock garage band the Breeders in her hometown of Dayton, OH.
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Lucy is the elusive Prankster Pixie, she came up with the concept of giving all Pixies the joy of Pranks, Wade agreed and all Pixies were given the ability to play hilarious pranks on each other and on humans. She has all the usually Pixie powers and she ... has wings to fly and flutter about with. She is equal in terms of Magic to the Musical Pixie AKA Hayley Williams and they both enjoy Music and Pranks. This does not mean however that they are interchangeable, which makes it all the more confusing whenever people talk about them without using their first names.
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