The Pixies

The Pixies are great, the best band of the late 80s.

see The Breeders, Frank Black, The Amps

Information: 4AD
Suggested first purchase/album: Doolittle
Suggested best of: Wave of Mutilation

Come On Pilgrim EP (1987) -- It's only twenty minutes long, but boy this is some good stuff. Highlights include "Caribou," "I've Been Tired," and "Levitate Me." A

Surfer Rosa (1988) -- Think of everything from 1988, then think of this. Still lots of fun and fresh today. Oh, and unlike many early "important" altertative/college rock bands from the 80s, these guys actually make things that are more good and fun than experimental. So there. Highlights include "Gigantic" and "Where Is My Mind?" A

Doolittle (1989) -- Even better than Surfer Rosa, which is quite a feat. Almost every song is a classic of some sort or another, including the irresistably poppy "Here Comes Your Man." The kind of music created when folks aren't lazy. A

Bossanova (1990) -- All Music put it best when they said this album was like "when a straight A student receives a B." It's not at all bad, certainly better than most, but they've done much better. Listening to this album the first few times is kind of a dull experience, but if you force yourself to get into it, it's kind of worth it, and some of the goodness begins to surface. B

Trompe le Monde (1991) -- Less sloppy and initially less boring than Bossanova, but also proving that The Pixies had pretty much blown their wad with the first two albums... though the individuals in the band hadn't, since Kim Deal was releasing greatness with The Breeders and Black Francis was about to do the same under his solo name, Frank Black. B

Complete B-Sides (2001) -- You know, it's a B-sides collection. So the songs are pretty good and fun, but not their best work. The most interesting parts are hearing different versions of familiar songs, like "Wave of Mutilation." A must, I suppose, for Pixies fans. B

The Pixies (1987/2002) -- The leftover songs from the initial purple album demo they made back in the day, all but one of which appeared in some form or another on other collections. It's interesting to have for fans. B