PIXIES
The Pixies are an American alternative rock band formed in 1986 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Pixies achieved relatively modest popularity in their home country, but were significantly more successful in the United Kingdom, mainland Europe and Israel. The band’s style of music contains a range of elements, including psychedelia, noise pop, hard rock, surf pop, and surf rock. Black Francis is the Pixies’ primary songwriter and singer. His lyrics feature a number of offbeat subjects such as extraterrestrials, surrealism, incest, and biblical violence. Despite limited commercial success, their jarring pop sound subsequently influenced bands such as Nirvana, Radiohead, The Strokes, Blur, and Weezer. The Pixies’ legacy and popularity grew in the years following their break-up, leading to sold-out world tours following their reunion in 2004. (More from Wikipedia)
Later, Deborah Harry in Blondie and Chrissie Hynde in Pretenders led two of the most successful rock bands of the 1970’s and 1980’s. The above record covers illustrate the difference in the way the women appeared within their groups, with Deborah Harry standing out among the men, though frankly, it could hardly have been any other way. Chrissie Hynde though is often regarded as being of equal status with the male bandmembers; what’s more, Hynde was also a guitarist in the band, whereas Harry primarily sang. This is a stance that alternative rockers would take later on, such as identical twins Kim Deal and Kelley Deal in Pixies and the Breeders.
(October 2013)
