Albums

Pixies - Best Of Pixies: Wave Of Mutilation

Benjamin Short 03/05/2004

Rating: 4/5

This collection is released with perfect timing, to capitalise on the Pixies hysteria which has surrounded the band's reunion. Despite this, it is a worthy testament to their brief but productive career. 'Wave of Mutilation' has a similar but more comprehensive track listing to 1997's 'Death to the Pixies' compilation.

All the Pixies' most famous and well loved songs are here, to provide an ideal introduction to possibly the most significant and influential bands of the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Joey Santiago's schizophrenic lead guitar is matched by Black Francis' frantic (and occasionally Spanish) lyrical yelping, whilst Kim Deal's bass on 'Gigantic', and her sensual lead vocals on 'Into The White' prove that less is indeed more. Yet there is no avoiding the fact that Pixies are a band far greater than the sum of their individual parts.

Other highlights include 'Broken Face', 'Hey', 'Tame', 'Debaser', 'Planet of Sound', and 'Where is my Mind?' (Which incidentally has been both covered by Placebo, and featured in the closing sequence of 'Fight Club').

Whilst it is difficult to be critical of the musical content of this record, it's greatest failure is in terms of failing to provide any new material for established fans of the band. The accompanying DVD offers live footage, a 50 minute documentary (featuring Radiohead's Thom Yorke), and a selection of promo videos.