People argue that the Pixies are venturing slowly beyond the realm of their capabilities as a band. With the loss of Kim Deal in 2013, the jury has been out on Francis and co. Indie Cindy struggled to convince critics that they were the same without her and Headcarrier continued to ask the same questions – although it was a better album, it wasn’t better enough to turn away the critics.

Having seen the Pixies play two times prior to tonight, I had a flavour as to how their live sets work: intense, loud and offering no chance for a breather between songs. This much hadn’t changed. Where they differ in how they have previously appeared live largely lies with the chemistry onstage. New bassist, Paz Lenchantin seems to have calmed the bitter taste that was left with Kim Shattuck who was in the group between 2013 and 2015. Ultimately though, the group reminded me once more why they mean so much to me as a band and how, as a live band, they lead the way in the business.

Some may argue it was excessively brave to open tonight’s show with ‘Where Is My Mind’ – a song that not only defined 90s American alt-rock for some time but also brought to life Brad Pitt’s finest on screen effort (Fight Club). This is the thing with the Pixies though: they are a band that don’t rely on big hits to fill sets, instead they put more effort into their performance overall, so ‘Where Is My Mind’ acted as a standard for the rest of the set to soar above.

The Headcarrier tour was briefly postponed when Joey Santiago had to turn to rehab to help curb his alcohol and drug dependencies, but he appeared top be back to his best tonight. ‘Vamos’ has long been Santiago’s chance to shine, unplugging his lead and tapping it to give stuttered buzzes of feedback above Francis’ vocals, it really riles the crowd tonight.

Songs both old and new worked well together with the Headcarrier material being brought to life marvellously by the four-piece. Flavours of the new album were given in the form of the abrasive, ‘Baal’s Back’, a song that is as volatile as ‘I’ve Been Tired’, ‘Talent’, ‘Tenement Song’, ‘Oona’ and the touching tribute from the Pixies to Kim Deal, ‘All I Think About Now’. New songs were given character as opposed to having it sucked out of them, a problem that their recent recordings seem to have.

The Pixies have always amazed me in how they tie their newer material into a pick’n’mix of favourites. Their set-lists never form much order or consistency, so it’s useless trying to look at old sets to predict what will come up and tonight proved no different. Smatterings of the era-defining album, Doolittle were aired in the form of ‘Monkey Gone to Heaven’, ‘Debaser’, ‘Crackity Jones’ and ‘Hey’ amongst others. It was ‘Tame’ though that really brought their set to life, unfortunately the audience struggled to come to life properly until this was played and, as it arrived so late, it would’ve have been interesting to see the reaction had it appeared earlier in the set.

Indie Cindy was seldom touched upon throughout the set but they did display ‘Magdalena 318’. The brutality that kicks behind the agile guitar strokes and magnetism in Francis’ vocal acts as a perfect addition to the set. Debut album, Come On Pilgrim was brought to life a few times but, much to my disappointment, they did not play ‘Ed Is Dead’, which I am still waiting to hear live. Still, the blistering sing-a-longs of ‘I’ve Been Tired’ and ‘Holiday Song’ more than made up for its absence.

It felt fitting for the Pixies to end on their early b-side, ‘Into the White’, a song that literally washed the band out in a fog of smoke and white lighting. The wall of noise sent the crowd into a frenzy of arms and legs. The set seemed to whizz by, an hour and forty-five minutes seemed to melt into ten minutes, such was the speed and force of the perfomance. For that time though, you were gifted with 34 memorable songs by the band. So, at a quid a song, they certainly offer great value for money!
Tom Churchill

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