A gift for all of you who love this album. This is the new Mobile Fidelity issue of the 1988 masterpiece, "Surfer Rosa", a super audio hybrid. Rock. Sounds good to these years, yes yes. I really had forgotten how good the Pixies were over the years...after listening to this again, I must say I'm very much tempted to pull out all their CDs, they were great! :thumbsup:
Heather Phares/Allmusic.com wrote:
One of the most compulsively listenable college rock albums of the '80s, the Pixies' 1988 full-length debut Surfer Rosa fulfilled the promise of Come on Pilgrim and, thanks to Steve Albini's production, added a muscular edge that made their harshest moments seem even more menacing and perverse. On songs like "Something Against You," Black Francis' cryptic shrieks and non sequiturs are backed by David Lovering and Kim Deal's punchy rhythms, which are so visceral that they'd overwhelm any guitarist except Joey Santiago, who takes the spotlight on the epic "Vamos." Albini's high-contrast dynamics suit Surfer Rosa well, especially on the explosive opener "Bone Machine" and the kinky, T. Rex-inspired "Cactus." But, like the black-and-white photo of a flamenco dancer on its cover, Surfer Rosa is the Pixies' most polarized work. For each blazing piece of punk, there are softer, poppier moments such as "Where Is My Mind?," Francis' strangely poignant song inspired by scuba diving in the Caribbean, and the Kim Deal-penned "Gigantic," which almost outshines the rest of the album. But even Surfer Rosa's less iconic songs reflect how important the album was in the group's development. The "song about a superhero named Tony" ("Tony's Theme") was the most lighthearted song the Pixies had recorded, pointing the way to their more overtly playful, whimsical work on Doolittle. Francis' warped sense of humor is evident in lyrics like "Bone Machine"'s "He bought me a soda and tried to molest me in the parking lot/Yep yep yep!" In a year that included landmark albums from contemporaries like Throwing Muses, Sonic Youth, and My Bloody Valentine, the Pixies managed to turn in one of 1988's most striking, distinctive records. Surfer Rosa may not be the group's most accessible work, but it is one of their most compelling.
Pixies
Surfer Rosa
2007.05.29; 4AD/Mobile Fidelity (USA); UDSA 2032
TITLE COMPOSER
1. Bone Machine ····························· Black Francis
2. Break My Body ···························· Black Francis
3. Something Against You ···················· Black Francis
4. Broken Face ······························ Black Francis
5. Gigantic ············ Mrs. John Murphy and Black Francis
6. River Euphrates ·························· Black Francis
7. Where Is My Mind? ························ Black Francis
8. Cactus ··································· Black Francis
9. Tony's Theme ····························· Black Francis
10. Oh My Golly! ····························· Black Francis
11. Vamos ···································· Black Francis
12. I'm Amazed ······························· Black Francis
13. Brick Is Red ····························· Black Francis
Recorded and mixed at Q Division, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Produced and Engineered by Steve Albini
Sleeve Art Direction and Design by Vaughan Oliver at v23
Photography: Simon Larbalestier
Mastered at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, Sebastopol, CA, by Shawn R. Britton on the Gain 2 System.
Pixies:
Black Francis - Vocals/Guitars
Joey Santiago - Lead Guitars
Mrs. John Murphy - Bass/Vocals
David Lovering - Drums
Originally released on 4AD (UK) on March, 21 1988 as CAD 803
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