The Pixies didn't create rock 'n' roll but they sure gave it a needed shot in the arm

As the Pixies come to town for a show at The Van Buren on Monday night, May 8, we should all be reminded why they are one of the great American rock 'n' roll bands of all time. Big words, yes, but true. They helped change rock for the better in the late 1980s.

Here's just one reason why:

A friend slides you a cassette tape in 1988. This was not out of the ordinary for music lovers in their late teens but the cassette in question was a life-changer. On that summer day in 1988, an 18-year-old's mind was blown.

Let's call him "Teenage T." The next day, Teenage T, or TT for short, convinced a friend with a car to drive him to Zia Records on Seventh Avenue in the Melrose District (a store that is now located at 19th Avenue and Camelback Road) to buy Surfer Rosa by the Pixies. A hand-lettered cassette copy was just not good enough after listening to the record all night long.

If Zia would have had the "Come on Pilgrim" EP that day, the young fella would have bought both, but he had to settle for the LP, which had come out a few months before on 4AD Records. Teenage T trusted 4AD because they put out Bauhaus, Pale Saints and Clan of Xymox, and many others.

If you have seen the cover of "Surfer Rosa," you will also understand another reason why TT was instantly stoked about his new record. It would be ungentlemanly to comment further, but the young lady on the cover is stunning.

In 1988, the Pixies were baring more than just breasts, though.

David Lovering's drum intro starts "Bone Machine" and in about nine seconds, Mrs. John Murphy (OG/former bassist Kim Deal's early stage name) joins in with a bass line that seared its way into Teenage T's head hotter than the super-seedy special weed had burned in his bong. When the guitars kick in, led by Joey Santiago's stripped down, perfectly distorted, warped as fuck take on surf guitar, then Black Francis starts talking about how "You're so pretty when your faithful to me," it's just too fucking much.

TT thinks, "This is the greatest band in the world" and at that moment in time, he's right.

At the time, Nirvana was just an up-and-coming Seattle band with a heavy, hooky sound and bands like REM and U2 were shedding their cool, underground skin and donning the suit-and-tie look of mega-stardom. It was prime time for bands like Pixies and Jane's Addiction to lead the way for "alternative music" to take over.

Pixies fully cemented their legacy in 1989 with the equally awesome "Doolittle." While people loved "Where Is My Mind" long before the film "Fight Club" became a thing, when "Here Comes Your Man" came along, they lost their minds. The band toured solidly to support "Doolittle" and their 1990 "Bossa Nova" record for a couple of years, stopping at Hayden Square in Tempe in November 1991.

If there's a weak spot in their game, it's stage presence, so it's a good thing the Pixies rock. The first few times Teenage T saw them, the band barely moved, and it was Deal who did any talking. Somehow, the lack of presence becomes a different type of presence, though, and it's easy to overlook Lovering's never wavering smile or Santiago barely ever looking at the crowd.

The lack of visual spectacle was every bit as mesmerizing as any of their more "active" peers. Pixies carved out a place for themselves among the best of the best bands. Respected, revered, misunderstood and moody, they were both mysterious and oddly straightforward at the same time.

Fast-forward 35 years, and the band has put out seven more records, some live stuff, EPs, and videos galore. The stuff on "Surfer Rosa" and "Come on Pilgrim" (which were combined on a later CD version 4AD put out) is still TT's favorite, but being a teenager was long, long gone. Like TT, the Pixies have grown, changed, shed skin, and been reborn.

Touring to support "Doggerel," the band's 2022 release, Pixies are still a force to be reckoned with, especially in a venue like The Van Buren. If their recent set lists (available on setlist.fm) are any indication, their show will be a barn burner featuring a nice mix of older classics and newer rockers. Hope you had a chance to grab your ticket early as the show is sold out.

Luckily, though, there doesn't seem to be any quit in this prolific band.