Pixies’ second record after
their long hiatus is an improvement on 2014’s Indie Cindy, in that it’s a far more consistent and cohesive
record. That’s not much of a surprise,
as Indie Cindy began life as three EPs
– which explains its variations in quality and tone – whereas Head Carrier is their first ‘true’ album
since Trompe Le Monde in 1991. ‘Baal’s Back’ is great: all primal and jagged
at the edges. ‘Um Chagga Lagga’ is a
punk/blues mashup in classic Pixies
style. ‘Plaster of Paris’ has that same surf
rock vibe that they’ve used before. The best track of all here is ‘Might as well be Gone’, which recalls Pixies’ 1989 classic ‘Monkey Gone to
Heaven’. Wonderful stuff. Elsewhere there are some weaker songs (‘Classic
Masher’, for example, is ‘fine’ rather than ‘great’), and overall Head Carrier never meaningfully competes
with the work of their late 80s/early 90s heyday. The loss of Kim Deal from the band is
certainly felt, and this is neither as visceral nor as beautifully crafted as Pixies at their best. But it’s a step forward from Indie Cindy, and has plenty about it to
love.
sample track: Might as well be Gone