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Pixies reunite for Doolittle tour

Where The Wild Things Are

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From the moment Christian Slater first spun the upbeat version of "Wave of Mutilation" in the anthematic film, "Pump of the Volume", I was hooked on the Pixies. I went out and bought Doolittle - mostly out of curiosity and dumb luck - and discovered one of the critical albums that served as a precursor to grunge and gave modern rock a harder edge than it had known in the eighties.

Black Frances, who later recorded as Frank Black, had a voice that gripped you and brought you closer, only to gouge your eyes out. Layered with the quiet, angelic voice of Kim Deal (who later formed the Breeders), the Pixies intended to be punk, but accomplished it with amiable overtones.

Doolittle was the masterpiece in the Pixies catalog with great pieces like "Debaser", "Here Comes Your Man", "I Bleed", and the crowd-favorite "Hey". So, when I heard the Pixies were reuniting as a band to play the album in order from start to finish, I knew I had to find a way to go. A few clicks later, and I was booked on a flight to see the band play at Denver's Fillmore Auditorium.

The venue was perfectly sized for the thirtysomething crowd that squeezed their way towards the stage to get a good hard look at what the band had become. When Black and crew made their way on stage, it was a supersized sillhouette of what we all remembered from twenty years before. They started the show with clips from the French silent film, "Un chien andalou", which the band bases the lyrics to the opening track "Debaser" on. When they made their way to the stage, it was to play through several B-sides from the album before pushing play on the track-by-track playlist.

The band performed energized and relied on Kim Deal for the few pieces of commentary offered between songs. Mostly she just giggled and poked fun at Frances, offering the crowd an antiquated reminder when they switch to side two of the album. The visual effects were minimal, mostly lighting the band from the back, but offering some interesting montages especially during "Monkey Gone to Heaven" and "La La Love You".

The concert flew through the first 20 songs before taking a brief pause and returning with the UK Surf version of "Wave of Mutiliation" and the sweltering "Into the White". The second encore presented the band its most unique opportunities during the Doolittle tour where they have consistently selected 3 or 4 favorites from earlier albums. They stormed on stage with the classic "Where Is My Mind" before tearing into "Isla De Encarta" and finishing with "Something Against You", "Nimrod's Son" and the hypnotic "Caribou".

In the end, I found myself longing for even more, yet happy that the band decided to give their fans another evening to revel and reminiscence and giving Frances permission to gouge away one more time.