Words by Marie Miller | Photos by Calum MackIntosh
Pixies stroll onto the stage of Edinburgh’s Usher Hall, their first visit to the city since 2005.
No greetings or pleasantries are offered as they blast into ‘Cecilia Ann’, but then again, do they really need to spout some sycophantic nonsense like “Edinburgh you’re the best audience ever” when they can instead crack on with whipping through a set of 35 plus songs at Crackity Jones speed?
Black Francis is relentless in his fury as he belts out ‘U-Mass’ followed by the short but never sweet ‘Something Against You’ and ‘Vamos’, an unhinged epic, dripping with distortion and feedback. Joey’s extended solo on this number has become a bit of a regular during the live shows, but tonight even this is cut back, with only a spot of guitar trickery with his flat cap before moving on to the next track.
Five songs in and the tempo drops a pace as we’re given the first taste of new album, ‘Beneath the Eyrie’, with bassist Paz taking the lead on ‘Los Surfers Muertos’. Gloriously gloomy, her vocals drift dreamlike through the song she co-wrote about the death of a surfer friend. From the Spanish title and moody bass line to Joey’s brooding guitar, this is pure Pixies and a sound that wouldn’t be out of place on one of the early albums.
With ‘Surfer Rosa’s’ average song length coming in at 2.30 seconds, and that being largely propped up by ‘Vamos’, it’s no surprise that they batter through the old favourites. ‘Caribou’, one of the earliest Pixies creations, is a song Black Francis loves to play so much, he’ll sneak it in if it’s not on the setlist. This is Pixies at their finest, encompassing a mellow build to the demonic wails of ‘Repent’, which pervade every nook of the Usher Hall. The deliciously macabre ‘Gouge Away’ delights the crowd, and from the sinister opening strum of ‘No. 13 Baby’, through to the most sublime of outros, yep, I’m in a state. ‘Break my Body’, ‘Isla de Encanta’, ‘Ed is Dead’ and the divine harmonies of Neil Young’s ‘Winterlong’ complete the evening’s highlights for me.
But although the set is largely made up of old crowd-pleasers, this tour is, let’s face it, all about showcasing ‘Beneath the Eyrie’. Tonight they play the whole album interspersed between the classics, which should keep those who refuse to budge from the comfort of their nostalgia tunnel, happy in the knowledge that an oldie is just lurking in the wings. A few of the new numbers are accompanied by a bit of a sideways shuffle to the bar and toilets, but that’s always going to be the case. Singles ‘On Graveyard Hill’ and ‘Catfish Kate’ get a great reception and album opener, ‘In the Arms of Mrs Mark of Cain’, with its spookily psychedelic intro and galloping guitars, hits the spot nicely. ‘Bird of Prey’ is a nonchalant little number which echos Nick Cave and underlines the rapport between Francis and Paz, who look like they’re having a ball. The ever-smiling David Lovering shines on the quirky ‘This is my Fate’ and Francis howls “I’m all done talking to you” on ‘St Nazaire’, a number he described as ‘the album’s F U song’, proving their raw, crushing edge hasn’t diminished with time. But ‘Beneath the Eyrie’ high point is ‘Long Rider’, another surf track co-written by Paz and embracing everything Pixies in its sound, from the clashing harmonies and pulsating bass line to Joey’s frenzied guitar.
There’s been a lot of whinging about the inclusion of all twelve new songs on this tour, but given that they aren’t played in unison but being slipped in between around 25 oldies (notably, only one other song played tonight is post-1991), what’s the problem? The last time they played Edinburgh they notched up around 26 numbers, so it’s value for money in Pixies terms and a refreshing change. I was never a fan of ‘Here Comes Your Man’ and that was in the days when there was no skip button…but it never stopped me from listening to ‘Doolittle’ obsessively and still believing today that it’s one the greatest albums ever recorded. Of course their music’s going move on – it’s 28 years to the day since ‘Trompe le Monde’, the final album of the original line up, was released. And reacting to such criticism that they’ve mellowed and matured, Black Francis recently said, “What do people expect? I haven’t discovered the fountain of youth…”. Well maybe he hasn’t, but as far as I’m concerned, he doesn’t need to as they’ve displayed more energy in these last two hours than most of today’s teenagers expend in a month.
‘Beneath the Eyrie’ is a compelling listen, and just another version of Pixies’ unorthodox sound. And live, Black Francis has lost none of his youthful angst. He gets so caught up in his rage, the pained expression which grips his face makes me briefly wonder if the poor chap’s getting enough fibre in his diet. But he’s a sight to behold, with no emotion spared…an open book down to the last minute, when during the encore of Debaser he looks a little jaded, balanced off by Paz’s enthusiastic bass-stomping. And it has to be said, Paz has truly earned her place in the band. Cool as…nope, I won’t say it…she’s made a solid contribution to the new material and always looks like she’s having such a blast, it’s infectious.
As the four take centre-stage for an end of show bow, their faces speak a thousand words of modest gratitude to the jubilant audience. I was lucky enough to experience Pixies at the height of their first wave on the ‘Bossanova’ tour of 1990, where they also opened with ‘Cecilia Ann’. As live performers they’ve not lost their edge, just added an extra layer to the party. What a whirlwind. I’m exhausted, I’m amazed. What a blast! There’s more to come from these guys…they’re just building up again.