... The album I plumped for was 1989s Doolittle. Whilst I had heard very good things about this album I doubted it would come close to the brilliance of the wonderful Surfer Rosa LP. I was wrong.
Throughout their career the Pixies are a band whos members mixed infamously badly. Whilst this ... Read review
Doolittle - Pixies
If you want to plot a classic rise and fall pattern in the career of a band, look no ... more
further than the Pixies. This middle album, third of five, is the pinnacle of their noise equation: taut, terrifying and tightly edited, these 15 tracks (best known: "...
Doolittle - Pixies
If you want to plot a classicrise and fall pattern in the career of a band, look no ... more
further than the Pixies. This middle album, third of five, is the pinnacle of their noise equation: taut, terrifying and tightly edited, these 15 tracks (best known: "M...
Doolittle - Pixies
If you want to plot a classic rise and fall pattern in the career of a band, look no ... more
further than the Pixies. This middle album, third of five, is the pinnacle of their noise equation: taut, terrifying and tightly edited, these 15 tracks (best known: "...
Doolittle - Pixies
If you want to plot a classic rise and fall pattern in the career of a band, look no ... more
further than the Pixies. This middle album, third of five, is the pinnacle of their noise equation: taut, terrifying and tightly edited, these 15 tracks (best known: "...
Doolittle [VINYL] - Pixies
If you want to plot a classic rise and fall pattern in the career of a band, look no ... more
further than the Pixies. This middle album, third of five, is the pinnacle of their noise equation: taut, terrifying and tightly edited, these 15 tracks (best known: "Monkey Gone To Heaven"; best quality, the insane "Debaser"; or the predatory "Hey") have the confidence that was missing from Come On Pilgrim and Surfer Rosa, but without the bloated pomp of Bossanova or Trompe Le Monde. Black Francis, as Charles Thompson IV was known then, surfs fast with his and Joey Santiago's guitars, tempered by the groundswell of Kim Deal's fine bass and counter vocals. It is like the last stand of US indie-dom: intelligent music encased in its precious, intricate and trademark Vaughn Oliver sleeve. Charlie Porter
Doolittle [VINYL] - Pixies
If you want to plot a classic rise and fall pattern in the career of a band, look no ... more
further than the Pixies. This middle album, third of five, is the pinnacle of their noise equation: taut, terrifying and tightly edited, these 15 tracks (best known: "Monkey Gone To Heaven"; best quality, the insane "Debaser"; or the predatory "Hey") have the confidence that was missing fromCome On PilgrimandSurfer Rosa, but without the bloated pomp ofBossanovaorTrompe Le Monde. Black Francis, as Charles Thompson IV was known then, surfs fast with his and Joey Santiago's guitars, tempered by the groundswell of Kim Deal's fine bass and counter vocals. It is like the last stand of US indie-dom: intelligent music encased in its precious, intricate and trademark Vaughn Oliver sleeve.Charlie Porter
A review by PipJim on Doolittle - Pixies September 29th, 2005
Author's product rating:
Originality
Groundbreaking
Lyrics
Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks
A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases
Outstanding
Value for Money
Excellent
Advantages:
An album that's imaginative, well written and original .
Disadvantages:
Sometimes the lyrics might leave you a tad confused
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
After witnessing their stunning headlining set at this years Carling Leeds Festival I felt I had to have more albums by alternative rock legends the Pixies. The album I plumped for was 1989s Doolittle. Whilst I had heard very good things about this album I doubted it would come close to the brilliance of the wonderful Surfer Rosa LP. I was wrong.
Throughout their career the Pixies are a band whos members mixed infamously badly. Whilst this does seem to have adversely affected their last two albums and ultimately lead to their demise (they're now re-formed) it has not led to any audible problems on this third album, Doolittle. In fact the Pixies unique yet influential sound seems to have reached a near perfect pinnacle here. Lead singer Black Francis (Frank Black or Charles Thompson IV if you must) is on top form with his beautifully unusual vocals floating effortlessly from the gentile to heart-felt wails and screams. Black is backed up very strongly by Bassist Kim Deal who's haunting backing vocals mix excellently with Blacks on a number of Doolittles tracks. They may hate each other in 'real life' but on record they make a stunning combination. Their sound is completed by innovative, and often brilliant, guitarist Joey Santiago and drummer David Lovering.
The musical style of Doolittle is something that proves very difficult categorise due, in the main, to the fact that the Pixies sound is so different to anything else that went before or came after. Sure they had a huge affect on the era of grunge that was just beginning to sprout when Doolittle was realised (a certain Mr Kurt Cobain himself said no Pixies then no Nirvana) but Doolittle lacks the angst ridden pure aggression that typified grunge. The guitar work of Santiago hints at something more indie-esque but Blacks vocals say that isn't true. If truth be told the Pixies can not be fitted into a genre just like that. The music on Doolittle alone encompasses so many sounds ranging from metal to country with lyrics that are often dark and depressing in nature. Sticking with the label alternative rock is probably the best policy for those that need a genre. What can be said though is that the music of consistently high quality and is always a pleasure to listen to and is probably best described on a song-by-song basis.
~~#Debaser#~~ If nothing else the opening track of Doolittle is one of the most influential songs written. The aforementioned Kurt Cobain was thinking of "Debaser" when he wrote a little ditty by the name of "Smells Like Teen Spirit". It hardly needs to be said that without that song and the album from whence it came the rock music scene of today would most likely be something quite different. But Debaser is something else too - it's a stunning song in its own right. It's one of the albums more upbeat tracks with positivity spilling out of the guitar work and vocals. This opener shows what a fine voice Black has not because of his abilities as a singer but because of its knack of grabbing the listeners attention and not let go. Debaser is quite simply an excellent rock song which is not afraid to use upbeat pop sensibilities and mingle them with the Pixies unique stylings. One of the best opening tracks to an album? I think so.
~~#Tame#~~ Tame by name but certainly not by nature. The verses are quiet with Black almost whispering the somewhat simplistic lyrics about a girl who's, well, tame and they lack lead guitar instead preferring to be driven by bass and drums. But then just as you're thinking this is going to be a rather lack lustre effort it suddenly explodes into a chorus of truly aggressive screams of the near inaudible word Tame. Quite how so much emotion is put into one word I'm unsure but in this song of two sides it is done.
~~#Wave of Mutilation#~~ One of the better known songs off Doolittle, Wave of Mutilation, is also excellent. It's subject matter is, as the title suggests, rather depressing. Far from going down a depressive route though instrumentally this song is actually fairly upbeat. You could certainly dance along to its typically rocky guitar, drum and bass combo. As with many of the Pixies songs it's far from over complicated but the short simple approach works here. I'd imagine many bands writing a similar song would make it into 5 minute epic whereas the Pixies barely break the 2 minute barrier and it does prevent them from producing brilliant songs.
~~#I Bleed#~~ A slower, bassy song that has a dark, almost smutty feel that wouldn't sound out of place on a Placebo album. Kim Deal and Black Francis sing the smae lyrics but just out of time with one and other with Deals high pitched vocals having almost ghost like echoey qualities. I bleed probably won't captivate the listener immediately but it's a song that grows on you slowly but surely.
~~#Here Comes Your Man#~~ Providing a complete contrast to the previous track the Pixies go all "pop" on us here. Though the lyrics verge on the cheesy with overly repetitive choruses and the guitar work seems to have suspiciously country roots this song is actually one of my favourites. Quite why this is I'm not sure. Perhaps it's because it's super catchy and great to sing along to. It's probably just because it's a near perfect pop/rock song though.
~~#Dead#~~ Though by no accounts is dead, dead awful (Ahem) I must admit I haven't particularly warmed to it. To me the sound is not far from that of the white stripes and I never was a big fan of Jack and Meg. One of few slight letdowns on Doolittle.
~~#Monkey Gone to Heaven#~~ Best Pixies song? Well no, that privilege must go to "Where is my Mind" (found on Surfer Rosa), but it isn't far off. The lyrics may be verging on the ridiculous but somehow the song manages to exude bucket loads of cool. Everything just seems to work for Monkey Gone to Heaven from the strong bass line to the distorted guitars and its general upbeat nature. The word "Rock me Joe" introduce a nice Santiago solo and the spoken vocals of the verses and bridge are just superb. It even manages to get a message about the damage man is doing to the Earths environment too (at least that what I've got out of it.) A real jewel in the crown of alternative rock.
~~#Mr Grieves#~~ Bizarrely the intro to this song almost make it a ska/reggae number due to the typical ska sound played out on guitar. (Unfortunately!) that all changes when the bass kicks in after the first 30 seconds or so. Even after losing its ska sound Mr Grieves is a really groovy little track though.
~~#Crackity Jones#~~ Sounding like the Pixies were on a amphetamines when they wrote/ performed this (and in all likelyhood some were) Crackity Jones is an insanely fast paced track. Black Francis' rasping, urgent vocals just about work here. 1 minute 20 is all that they could manage and its probably wise they kept it short. Any longer and this song would probably fall flat. As it is it works well.....just.
~~#La La Love You#~~ This is a goodie! Kicking off with a drum intro, La La Love you is lyrically rather sparse (which are incidentally sung by drummer Lovering) but what it lacks there it makes up for with some lovely clean guitar. And just you try not to whistle along to the "woot-woo" whistles. It really is hard to resist!
~~#No. 13 Baby#~~ A fairly typical Pixies track this. It lacks anything that particularly sets it apart from its peers but is still a decent enough effort. You wouldn't skip it but you wouldn't skip to it either.
~~#There goes my Gun#~~ Beginning with some nasty, yet deliberate, high guitar feedback this is a jolly, if somewhat repetitive, track. I do really rather like the short solo though (even if I can't decide if it's performed on a four string or the lower notes of a six string. Hmm.)
~~#Hey#~~ A right funky little song is Hey. Underpinned by a typically groovy Pixies bass line, Black and Santiago combine nicely on lead and second guitar here. The vocals are pretty smart too.
~~#Silver#~~ Freaky is this one. Kim exchanges her beloved 4 string for 6 on which she pulls off some rather nifty slide guitar work. This mingles with her wailing, high pitched vocals to create a chilling, haunting. Slow, weird and yet in some strange way relaxing
~~#Gauge Away#~~ Not a bad way to finish off Doolittle at all. It's quick paced, beat heavy with a simplistic bass line. Gauge away is probably the track that most resembles the grunge sound that was just about to make it big.
Whilst it is for the music that you WILL(!) buy this album word should also be given to the sleeve and booklet that accompany the CD. Firstly the booklet contains lyrics for all the songs which is always handy (especially when you consider Black Francis' screams are often difficult to decipher.) But what sets the booklet out as something pretty cool are the photos. On each left hand page is a bizarre picture in brown, black and white of some odd object or other. It was only through writing this review that I realised these pictures related to the lyrics of Doolittles songs. The obvious one is a picture of a monkey sporting a halo for Monkeys Gone to Heaven. Others include a crab and half an old shoe sole for Wave of Mutilation ("I walked the sand with crustaceans") and a bell complete with set of molars for I Bleed ("a ringing bell, behind my smile, it shakes my teeth.") It took a bit of time to get all the connections so I'll leave the joy of figuring out the remainder to you. Aren't I nice?
All in all Doolittles songs are a near perfect mix of alt. rock that make an immensely good album featuring a number are absolute classics in their own right. If I have one criticism it's that sometimes, if you really listen, the lyrics seem to make little sense on many tracks and in some cases are just random words. This probably has something to do with the fact the Black believes he was abducted by aliens as a kid though and it's only occasionally I get to thinking like that. Overall the music of Doolittle is not far from perfect and it has quickly become one of my favourite albums.
Doolittle can be picked up right now for a bargain £5.97 on Amazon and cheaper still on Ebay.
Not convinced yet? Download (legally as you like): Debaser, Monkeys gone to Heaven, Here Comes your Man.
For fans of: Grunge, The Smashing Pumpkins, Janes Addiction and Faith no More.
Advantages: Impassioned Disadvantages: I was too young 1st time around !
Although I was a bit young to find the Pixies when I was younger (I'm only 20) after hearing a few tunes I invested in their best of Death To the Pixies, and sybsequenty the rest of their back catalogue. While always alternative, the Pixies managed to weld their dynmanics and passion to insanely catchy riffs and choruses, and Frank Black's lunatic vocals on Debaser are enough to grab the attention of any listener, but even the more restrained tunes ...
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Advantages: The abiliy to swap between two contrasting thought processes. Disadvantages: n/a
...enough to be nu-metal.
Doolittle is, as are most Pixies albums, different to all the other Pixies releases. This album in particular is quite dark and sombre, with the expected exceptions. It uses the rocky style of the Pixies, yet incorporates the early inspiration that was to become grunge at the hands of Nirvana. Kurt himself has said he was influenced by Black Francis and his motley crew.
Track Listings:
1. Debaser
2. Tame
3. Wave of Mutilation
... ...7. Monkey Gone to Heaven
8. Mr Grieves
9. Crackity Jones
10. La La Love You
11. No. 13 Baby
12. There Goes My Gun
13. Hey
14. Silver
15. Gouge Away
The songs on the album are all outstanding, especially due to their variety. The opener to the album is 'Debaser', the most successful Pixies track to date, with it's poppy theme. On a similar note, it contains 'Here Comes Your Man', which is cheese pure and simple, but brilliantly done.
However, ...
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Advantages: More accessible Pixies, beautiful melodies Disadvantages: None Whatsoever
Doolittle is a strange album as it combines dark, moody music with poppy, upbeat music, in a Pixies way ofcourse. Don't get me wrong, this cd is not happy and jolly. We still have all the screaming from Black Francis, the insanely wonderful guitar from Joey Santiago and whining backup vocals from Kim Deal. The cd opens with Debaser, one of their finest ever songs, which is sure to make you drum your hands on your thighs. Then we have darker, heavier ... ...quietly and burst into a loud, in-your-face chorus. Here Comes Your Man is probably their most poppy, catchy song ever, yet it still done in the regular Pixies way. Undoubtedly, the highlight is their biggest hit, Monkey Gone to Heaven, an amazing song with quiet voice-and-bass-guitar verses, typical of the Pixies, and again bursts into a chorus to kill all other choruses. Every single other song on the album is also good. Not a single weak track ...
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Doolittle, the Pixies’ third album, opens with “Debaser”, the band’s most successful single to date. This song has been covered by, among others, Kerbdog (who split up recently – and Wilt have been formed by the lead singer – check them out), and it sets the feel for the rest of the album.
Kim Deal’s simple, melodic bass lines and Dave Lovering’s usually even simpler drums (although the drum track on “Debaser” is amazing) act as a tonic to the manic ... ...lead vocals of Black Francis.
This is the first Pixies album I ever bought, and it made me buy everything else they had ever recorded. The only (slightly) bad track on this record is “Silver”, as it is quite dissimilar to the others, and I would say this is the only bad song the Pixies have ever recorded.
Highlights on this album are “Monkey Gone To Heaven”, “Wave Of Mutilation”, “Gouge Away”… the list goes on and on…
If your musical tastes are ...
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Advantages: The perfect punk pop record Disadvantages: i cant find any-other than it didnt set the charts alight
The pixies make their intentions clear by opening the albumn with possibly their best ever tune - Debaser. From this moment on its clear why kurt cobain would try to make nirvana sound so much like the pixies. This is perfect pop music. This the pixies third albumn is their finest albumn that they recorded in their all too short career. It is understandable that many people believe that there latter work does not match up to Doolittle. How could ... ...and punky generaly abiding by Black Francis'
much copied formula of quiet verse and explosive chorus. That is not to say that the songs are not diverse, a mixture of different musical styles and even languages (with some verse in spanish) mean this albumn has a long shelf life. This is a must have for anyone who wants to know where all the alternative acts of the 90's got their ideas from. ...
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Advantages: The chance to hear the Pixies doing something different Disadvantages: erm...
...of the most outstanding tracks on Trompe Le Monde; an even more sparse version of the Doolittle track 'Hey'; 'Wave of Mutilation' - one of the most successful Pixies tracks, alongside 'Caribou' and 'Monkey Gone to Heaven' - all three of which appeared on Death to the Pixies; and '(In Heaven)- Lady in the Radiator song 1' as the final track of the album ending on a very serene note.
All in all, At The BBC is not quite what you'd be expecting from a Pixies album, but it's outstanding nonetheless......
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Advantages: Brillant songs Disadvantages: So badly recorded it's not funny
...Surfer Rosa is my favourite Pixies release. OK, it's not as good technically as Doolittle, (in fact is one of the worst recorded things I've ever heard) but the songs still shine through - my favourites being Gigantic (sung by future Breeders singer Kim Deal under the name of Mrs John Murphy) and Where is My Mind? which showed that under all the shouting they could do a slow number. Overall though (especially when coupled with Come On Pigrim - as it is on the CD reissue) it is a very good buy - although i would recommend Doolittle if it was the first Pixies album you were thinking of buying.....
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Advantages: Another reacording from a much missed band Disadvantages: The small amount of crackling
...Having completed my collection of studio albums by Pixies, I'm always looking for something new, especially as merchandise is a pain to track down. (Nearly 2 years for a poster!!) However, today was my lucky day as I discovered two other recordings to add to my collection, at a CD fair in Leeds. What luck.
The first one of these CD's is Transatlantic. This is basically a Pixies live CD, from the Doolittle tour in 1989. The two gigs it is made up of were Chicago, Illinois, and Vienna, Austria. Most of the tracks are from the first gig, with just a handful at the end from Vienna.
For those of you that don't know much about Pixies music, they were about in the late '80's-early '90's, led by Frank Black, or Black Francis ,as he was then. Their style of music is pretty rock based, coupled with grunge, and a few country hints...
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Album Notes: The Pixies: Black Francis (vocals, guitar); Kim Deal (vocals, slide guitar, bass); David Lovering (vocals, bass, drums); Joey Santiago (guitar). Additional personnel: Karen Karlsrud, Corine Metter (violin); Arthur Fiacco, Ann Rorich (cello). Recorded at Downtown Recorders, Boston, Massachusetts. From the opening bars of DOOLITTLE, the Pixies' brilliant duality comes into focus. Chiming guitar streaks waft over an AOR-ready riff, while vocals bark out references to a deliberately obscure culture. "Debaser," for instance, finds singer/songwriter Black Francis alluding to "Chien Andalou," Spanish director Luis Bunuel's surrealist film renowned for a scene where an eyeball is sliced. The Pixies' calling card is their calculated sonic mayhem. Francis and bass player Kim Deal weave vocal harmonies of inimitable dissonance as guitarist Joey Santiago's leads ring like air-raid sirens. DOOLITTLE perfectly captures The Pixies' refusal to be categorized into one form of musical identity. The album's most gorgeous melody is wrapped around the words "cease to exist, giving my goodbye," and crowned with the title "Wave Of Mutilation." The rest of the album follows suit, and even the love songs bear Francis' warped humor, boasting titles like "Tame" and "Dead." DOOLITTLE is quintessential Pixies. Unflinching in their abrasion, the group created some of the best, most intriguing rock music of the early 1990s.
Album Reviews: Rolling Stone (11/28/02, p.94) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...[Featuring a] breathtaking mix of noisy, almost surflike guitars, sweet pop melodies and primal-scream-therapy vocals..." Q (1/03, p.69) - Included in Q Magazine's "100 Greatest Albums Ever" Alternative Press (7/95, pp.78-79) - Ranked #13 in AP's list of the 'Top 99 Of '85-'95' - "...The fractious combination of [Black] Francis's over-the-top but strangely relevant lyrics and vocals, and the band's unsettling melodicism reached its epitome in 1989's DOOLITTLE..." CMJ (1/5/04, p.26) - Ranked #2 in CMJ's "Top 20 Most-Played Albums of 1989"
Titles on disc 1
1.: Debaser
2.: Tame
3.: Wave Of Mutilation
4.: I Bleed
5.: Here Comes Your Man
6.: Dead
7.: Monkey Gone To Heaven
8.: Mr Grieves
9.: Crackity Jones
10.: La La Love You
11.: No. 13 Baby
12.: There Goes My Gun
13.: Hey
14.: Silver
15.: Gouge Away
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20.07.2000
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