Bossanova

by

Pixies

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I, like many other young'uns, was introduced to the Pixies by the name-dropping habits of bands like Nirvana. After buying Doolittle, and scarfing up the rest of their releases, the rest of my CD collection has basically been rendered average. At first listen, Bossanova sounded rather dull compared to "Debaser," "Here Comes Your Man," and other perfect pop tunes off of Doolittle. But like any great album, it slowly but surely grows on you. Every listen will reveal a new quirk. "Cecilia Ann" gets things rocking majestically but of course with a surfer's touch. "Rock Music" has become my favorite song with indecipherable lyrics. Black Francis' scream is truly an instrument as much as the guitar or bass. "Velouria" has a guitar riff and melody that seem odd at first listen but totally make sense and seem like perfection later. This entire album is chock full of great melodies and harmonies. The fastest song on the album, "Allison," also seems to be a love song of sorts, or at least infatuation, featuring the simple yet effective lyric, "and when the planet hit the sun, I saw the face of Allison." "Ana" is a great acoustic song with an overall eerie vibe. Same for "Havalina," which closes out the album with a bit of calm after the chaotically fun "Stormy Weather," which I like to think of as a sing-a-long for the end of the world. Then there are the epic tracks "All Over The World" and "The Happening," which are great examples of lengthy songs that can keep a listener riveted through their entire playlength. The latter of the songs also features Black Francis' trademark lyrics dealing with outer space and its inhabitants. The album as a whole features wonderfully obscure lyrics that will leave you scratching your head, smiling, thinking, or possibly all of the above if you're moderately demented. I cannot stress how great this album is!

BOSSANOVA, released in 1990, was the third album by the Pixies. Musically it continues the style of their previous release DOOLITTLE: a harsh tone matched to lush production, surf-rock allusions, lead vocals by Frank Black with all his weird lyrics and most songs lasting well under 3 minutes.

The instrumental "Cecilia Ann" is a fine opener, two minutes of power chords. "Rock Music" introduces Frank Black's vocals, but it's a bit of self-parody, as his hoarse screaming is unintelligible. "Velouria" is the sort of Pixies song that invites singing along. "The Happening" has an unusual amount of variety for a song from this band, with

I find BOSSANOVA slightly less memorable than its predecessor. The group was getting a little too polished and technically proficient at this point, and the passionate DIY vibe which somehow persisted through DOOLITTLE is missing here. Still, this is an entertaining enough album.