FRANK BLACK FRANCIS Frank Black Francis Cooking Vinyl COOKCD291
Now apparently combining his two noms de rock, the Pixies’ front man, Charles Thompson, offers this intriguing two-CD set. The first contains the demos Thompson made before the first Pixies recording session; just the man and his guitar pounding through the likes of The Holiday Song, Nimrod’s Son and Vamos. Thompson’s sleeve notes suggest that it’s one for “the überfans”, but anyone can enjoy hearing him mutter “There’s supposed to be a scream there” as he outlines Caribou for his bandmates, before thinking “Er ... why don’t I just...” and simply screaming. The second CD contains classic Pixies songs reworked with guitar-and-trumpet duo Two Pale Boys. The results are often fascinating, and — I know this is heresy — the claustrophobic Into the White and the echo-drenched Planet of Sound may just be better than the originals. Three stars
"Fried food, cigarettes, no exercise, chest pain..." (Excerpt from the Angina Monologues)
