The Pixies' first record, an EP called
Come On Pilgrim, comprised songs from an early Boston recording session. Pixies collects all the other songs taped in that session, most of which were later rerecorded and appeared on Pixies albums or singles. Even today, against a backdrop of rap rock and new metal, the frenzied riffs on "Broken Face" sound like really pissed-off birds; the previously unreleased "Rock A My Soul" screams, lurches and lives up to its title, and the prowling "Subbacultcha" resembles a recording of some sort of basement carnivore who just can't wait to eat live rockboy. The nine tracks on
Pixies clock in at just over eighteen minutes, so the CD comes off as a sketch of an unvarnished, restless band, coolly bashing out its world-domination plan, standing on the verge of getting it on.
PAT BLASHILL
(RS # 901 - July 2, 2002)
This compilation of six sessions the band did for the Beeb explodes with a brutally primal version of the Beatles' Wild Honey Pie. The slowcore version of "Wave of Mutilation" and a blown-out cover of the theme from the movie Eraserhead highlight this choice document of the band at its best.
