The Night the Zombies Came
Pixies
BMG
25 October 2024
It’s unbelievable that Kim Deal and The Night the Zombies Came have now recorded more songs than Kim Deal‘s famous contributions combined. That is assuming we are not counting the debut mini-album Come on Pilgrim ( 1987 ), in which case, the math is different, but the effect is much the same.
For those who are keeping track, the band’s first iteration with Deal includes Surfer Rosa ( 1988 ) through Trompe le Monde ( 1991 ). If Pixies ‘ bassists may be likened to James Bond players, they have been made to fight with Deal’s Sean Connery-sized reputation. Simon” Ding” Archer—the George Lazenby in this scenario—played bass on the EPs that became Indie Candy ( 2014 ). Dancing was followed by Paz Lenchantin, who was with the group for the next ten years until her unexpected departure earlier this year. She was then followed by the more permanent Paz Lenchantin ( previously of A Perfect Circle and Zwan ). Emma Richardson ( formerly of Band of Skulls ) received an out-of-the-blue call to join Pixies, and she abruptly tossed aside her paintbrushes to play on the new record. Richardson shows up up to the challenge, properly stepping up and making important contributions when requested.
The essential question still remains: how do you proceed beyond the first move of Pixies ‘ songs? The answer is you do n’t. Specific acts, like the Stooges, the Velvet Underwater, and Pavement, probably took the right strategy to just let things lay with their legacy alive. Another bands, like the Fight and the Substitutes, had less than stellar goose songs, but the purpose was there. With this most recent release, Pixies are attempting to achieve something that few other artists have, at least with the same prospect singer and main singer.
Pixies have released some bangers since their reformation in 2014, but they have n’t flown the flag proudly, perhaps due to each release’s lukewarm, if not poor, reception ( consider certain outlets ‘ evisceration of those first EPs ). Pixies have been planning to play the hits and some covers at their life shows while keeping much of the past decade’s output aside, but they have just started playing songs off of the new album that might suggest a new direction. Everything is earth-shattering about The Night the Zombies Came, which is consistent with the singer’s recent data. Having said that, there is a lot to enjoy and very little to complain about, which adds up to another good Pixies release.
Listeners can anticipate hearing most of Pixies ‘ signature sounds on this album, from the rock and sea rock designs to their guttural and ethereal deliveries. As the name suggests,” Lily” opens the song with dreamlike pictures that approximates the primary signs of spring. The viewer is led through the woods by the steady beat and modest solo. There is a distinct shift in tone to the waking, streetwise” You’re But Impatient”. The words” I took you out to the new dead mall/ To see the scary show/ I simply sucked one sourball/ When you said that we got to blow” sound like they came from a 1980s movie.
Many of the songs favor the majestic over the frightening, as is the case with the orchestral title track” Jane ( The Night the Zombies Came )” for a record that sprinkles in horror themes throughout. In inclusion,” I Hear You Mary”, with the phrases” sweet body is on the bone”, brings market stone immensity instead of gothic darkness. Different frightful thoughts appear generally unrelated. ” Chicken” begins as a dead ringer for” There Goes My Gun” ( from Doolittle, 1989 ), but it meanders at a laborious pace with human concerns put in poultry terms: fear of proverbial decapitation, running around in circles, and searching for a lover who’s not a killer.
Ultimately, The Night the Zombies Came is sophisticated, if not pretty, with a lovely design that works more often than not. It includes a dozen disappointments, including the uninteresting” Hypnotized” and” Kings of the Prairie”. In contrast, Joey Santiago’s piano seems reigned in, while David Lowering’s drum do certainly pack their common bite. However, Leprechauns prove they can still blow, as heard in the clear rock stone of” Oyster Beds” and bluesy beach style of” Ernest Evans”.
Also, Pixies also possess a mystery that cannot be replicated. ” Motoroller’s” portrayal of mortality seems actually cooler when one sees the frontman behind his personal pitch-black colors. Even the easy” Mercy Me”, about losing one’s puppy, creates feeling through Black’s gruff singers juxtaposed with Richardson’s wonderful tones. ” The Vegas Suite”, in particular, showcases Pixies ‘ skill. The main section of the song, which channels Chuck Prophet‘s lazy attraction, is one of the songs ‘ key points. Notably, it contains a standalone guitar excursion and haunting clip, which—much to the happiness of Pixies ‘ aficionados —hearkens back to an earlier time.
In these latter times, Pixies have become more of a system for Frank Black‘s music than a follow-up to their ground-breaking output. By then, enthusiasts should be used to Black’s shape-shifting nature ( is it Black Francis, Frank Black, or simple old Charles Thompson? ), which is on full screen around. Listeners may favor The Night the Zombies Came to others, just as we all lean toward a few Frank Black solo albums. They may at least have some standout events, apparently finally recognizing that nothing can rival the original.