If anyone out there has ever been seeking an answer to the question “how many victory laps can a person run before he/she turns into a weirdo a-hole?”, Frank Black, Kim Deal, David Lovering, and Joey Santiago have extracted a really solid, scientifically valid, empirically-based result: about seven years-worth.
As we all know from watching loudQUIETloud back in the day and immediately basing our Pixies Reality off of it no-questions-asked, The Pixies love them some paychecks, even at the expense of having fun. Heck, especially at the expense of having fun! Well what could be less fun than making a record?? According to The Guardian, almost nothing. That’s why several members of the band are talkin’ loud about making a new album together after the latest tour is finished. “We gotta plan to make something new,” drummer David Lovering said while looking into his prop crystal ball. “We’re gonna wear out our welcome soon enough.”
See, The Pixies reunited in 2004 (after splitting in 1993) and have been touring their cult classic albums pretty much nonstop ever since. And although there has been talk of a new album for years, word on the playground is that Kim Deal’s reluctance to play ball with Black has been gumming up the works. But in the words of Black Francis himself on Pixies breakthrough album Crooked Rain, Croooked Rain: “the times, they are a-changin’.” “Making a record will be in the forefront [after the tour],” guitarist Joey Santiago says. “We’ve definitely gelled as a unit and hopefully when we can all bury the hatchet — and we have — maybe we’ll go in there and hope for the best.” While no one is suggesting that Deal and Black still have ‘friction’ between them, Santiago seems overall pretty fine with the two of them almost killing each other so that he doesn’t have to go back to doing film score work. “I think [the tension] makes good music,” he says. “[The Kinks’] Ray Davies, you know, beating up his little brother, [laughs] that friction, we’ve always kind of used it. Like, ‘Oh yeah? Screw you, we’re gonna play’. That little angst, it’s good.” In other words, so what if a few people die? New Pixies!
Oh, P.S.: Santiago also claims that none other than Bono has been bugging for some new Pixies! “Bono even asked […] He’s like, ‘Please make a record!’ Goddamn, we can’t leave that unturned. That would frustrate me. It would. I think we should do it. But it’s up to everybody.” There you have it, folks. Bono may be a little slow when single-handedly creating sweeping social reforms, but he can still bully a rock band into making a new album like no one else in shades.
Remaining tourdates, a.k.a. countdown to TOTALLY DEFINITE new Pixies record:
05.03.11 - Vancouver, BC - Orpheum Theatre
05.04.11 - Vancouver, BC - Orpheum Theatre
05.05.11 - Victoria, BC - Save On Foods Memorial Centre
• Pixies: http://www.pixiesmusic.com