Pixies Celebrate 25 Years of "Doolittle"

The holidays came early for Pixies fans last week with the release of the 25th anniversary edition of “Doolittle” (1989), the pioneering Boston indie/alternative rockers’ pivotal and highly influential second album.

The generous, three-disc set includes the original disc, live sessions, b-sides and demos, including previously unreleased material. It’s a treat hearing how “Doolittle” classics like “Debaser,” “Wave of Mutilation” and “Monkey Gone to Heaven” made their way from the demo stage to fully realized songs. It’s also nice to have assorted b-side favorites like “Manta Ray” and “Weird At My School” compiled in one place.

“Doolittle’s” status as a groundbreaking album lies in the band’s versatility. The Pixies move effortlessly on the 1989 effort between songs based on irresistible hooks and riffs (“Debaser,” “Monkey Gone to Heaven”) to the country guitar twang and pop sensibility of “Here Comes Your Man.” Then there are the tortured screams of “Tame” and the loud-quiet-loud motif perfected throughout the album. Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain famously stated that “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was his attempt to write a Pixies-style song.

Singer-guitarist-main songwriter Black Francis sings about surrealism, wanton violence, girls with “hips like Cinderella” and the despoiling of the environment. Bassist Kim Deal’s seductive backing vocals seem an odd combination for the subject matter, but they are part of the Pixies’ magic, as are Joey Santiago’s brilliant guitar playing and drummer David Lovering’s propulsive rhythms and subtle backbeats.

The Pixies broke up in 1993 and reunited in 2004. In April, the band released “Indie Cindy,” their first studio album in 23 years. The disc hit No. 23 on the Billboard Top 200 albums charts and tunes like the title track, “Another Toe in the Ocean” and “Greens and Blues” show the band hasn’t missed a beat. Today the Pixies feature Francis, Santiago and Lovering.

We spoke with Joey Santiago about all things “Doolittle” as well as his upcoming foray into film.

Take us back 25 years, coming off your debut album, “Surfer Rosa” and going into the studio to create “Doolittle.” Where were you at musically?

We were recording albums once a year back then so our chops were really up there. We had toured for a year and then went into “Doolittle.” We already had most of that material written. Charles (Black Francis) is a prolific writer and we were basically trying to keep up with him. Some of it we had played live before it was recorded. That’s a good way to test songs out. To me it’s like a continuation of our first album. I never considered it a sophomore effort.

What were the band’s spirits like at the time?

We were very excited to do it because we knew we had something good. We didn’t know that anybody was going to like it but we had a good feeling about it. We would all convene in either Kim or Charles’ apartment to rehearse. If it sounded good in a living room it was going to sound good on a record.

The Pixies, and the “Doolittle” album in particular, were a huge influence on the alternative scene that exploded in the Nineties, bands like Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins.

I think we showed you could make music with four people that sounds great. That inspired people to think they could do that with their own band. It sounded simple but you could start a band that way. It’s good and it’s quirky.

You covered a lot of ground musically in the Pixies, from pop to punk to what would become known as alternative. Was that the band’s goal starting out?

It’s weird that we had all those varieties of songs. From “Here Comes Your Man” to “Tame” to “Gauge Away” to “Silver,” they’re all different. But we do have this kind of sound that’s magical when the four of us get together. We put the songs through our little factory and it comes out as the Pixies. There were surprises too, like when Charles started screaming on “Tame.” He never screamed when we were rehearsing in the living room. Maybe he didn’t want to upset the neighbors.

Do you have any favorite songs or guitar parts to play on “Doolittle?”

I basically like all of them. I’ve always especially liked the simplicity of “Hey” and the guitar parts in “Gauge Away” and “Dead.”

You’re going to be filming your acting debut next year in an independent film called “The Bridge.” You’ve written film scores before but how do you feel about getting in front of the camera?

I’m very excited about it. I’ll see where it takes me. You have to stretch your horizons. I play a shady motel owner who plays an acoustic guitar. I love those types of characters so I’m going to be psyched to get in front of the camera.

The film is being funded through a crowdfunding campaign. As part of the campaign fans can bid to have Joey cook a pasta dinner for six people. For more information visit www.buildthebridgecampaign.com

For more on the Pixies go to www.pixiesmusic.com.