It can be difficult to hear this new EP from Pixies over the sound of the alarm bells ringing since bassist Kim Deal’s departure. If you can silence them, you’ll get the good ol’ fashioned loud-quiet-loud of ‘Indie Cindy’, and a trio of downbeat tracks (‘Andro Queen’, ‘Another Toe In The Ocean’, ‘What Goes Boom’) that would have made it onto a decent Frank Black solo album. The legendary Boston band have chosen to make this, their first extended release in 22 years, the first in a series of EPs rather than recording a full album. And while it doesn’t reach the impossibly high standards of their back catalogue, there’s enough promise to suggest there are good times ahead.
Kevin EG Perry