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Frank Black is back. And he's feeling a bit mellow.

Frank Black, still the leader of the Pixies, visits Summerfest Thursday.

Black, leader of the Pixies, who'll co-headline the Marcus Amphitheater Thursday, arguably did more to inspire a generation of alt-rock musicians - and fans - than nearly any other musician still touring today. In the late '80s, the proto-grunge act, fueled by Black's abstract lyrics and kamikaze fusion of guitar styles, caught the ear of everyone from Kurt Cobain to PJ Harvey, not to mention a long list of adoring rock critics.

After calling it quits more than a decade ago, the Pixies' legend only grew. When the band decided to reunite for a tour last year, nearly every show sold out within minutes, even though the band had no new album and zero radio play on commercial stations.

Instead of making a quick buck by throwing together a studio album by the band to meet renewed zeal for the Pixies, however, Black is readying a solo album unlike any other he's recorded in his long and unpredictable career.

How unexpected is "Honeycomb," due in stores July 19?

Well, here's a hint: Black covers "Song of the Shrimp," a forgotten Elvis Presley tune from the 1962 movie "Girls! Girls! Girls!"

"Honeycomb" was recorded in four days in 2004 in Nashville, with iconic session musicians such as Steve Cropper, David Hood, Spooner Oldham and Reggie Young backing up Black. It's a soulful, sometimes haunting and uniformly excellent take on Americana as only the mercurial Black can do. More country and folk than chaotic alt-rock, the disc features some of Black's most accessible lyrics.

We caught up with Black by phone in June to talk about "Honeycomb" and the Pixies' continued comeback success.

Q. Did you decide it was time for a Nashville-flavored album, or did you visit Nashville and wind up getting inspired by the place?

A. It came in very broad strokes, like, "Hmm, I think I'd like to go to Nashville one day." Next page, "Hmm, the producer booked time in Nashville and booked all these great musicians for me; I should probably write some songs," and so on. Knowing I was going to Nashville probably affected the songwriting process for me in some subconscious way, but I don't analyze it.

Q. How do you get people like Cropper, Buddy Miller, Anton Fig and the rest into a single room?

A. I have to give all the credit to (producer) Jon Tiven. I had nothing to do with it. But I knew when I started working with him that he would find great musicians. I know his little black book has a lot of names, a lot of e-mail addresses in it.

Q.How did working with such storied veterans affect the recording process?

A. The reason the album has a laid-back, organic, natural feel is because that's the way these guys are. They don't listen to the music and look at the songs beforehand. What you're hearing (on the album) is them playing and hearing the music for the first time, which is why I think it has a jazzy feel - they never rehearsed. We could have controlled them more. They would have complied. They're professionals. But I think when you're dealing with talented people, you should just let them do what they do.

Q. Was this a one-off, or do you think you'll record more albums in a similar vein?

A. I think you might find me running to Nashville a lot more. It was great. The great thing about these musicians was that they're about great music; they're not hung up on a genre. Recording it was not about, "do you know who I am? I know who you are" - it was all about the music, about creating art and working with that art form. It was like we were five, 10 guys all working on the same sculpture. There was not a lot of ego. I find that in general to be the case, especially when you're dealing with older, incredibly talented musicians.

Q.The lyrics on "Honeycomb" are some of the most open and mature of your career. Was it a conscious attempt on your part to be less obscure?

A. My ex-wife started me on a path of being more personal, more universal with my lyrics, to be less abstract. And of course when I got divorced I started going down that road a lot more. But there's no rules about what you have to sing about, and I wouldn't force it.

Q. There's also a very raw, spare honesty to the disc, which reminded me of a number of other albums out now, including Shelby Lynne's "Suit Yourself" and much of The White Stripes' recordings. Do you think there's a growing backlash in rock, conscious or not, against ProTools and other commonly used programs that are the equivalent of musical airbrushing?

A. There must be a subconscious reaction to the ProTools thing, people out there going enough is enough. There's no rules, but the more processed everything is, the less connected it is to music. Sometimes that's OK, if you're trying to make something completely artificial. But with these genres, it's not what you're looking for. You want to make that connection back to people. A lot of music out there sounds the same, like it comes from the same island.

The Catholics' guitar player Rich Gilbert has a saying: "Tuning is overrated." And that's true. That's not what it's about. It's all about great performances. There's a rock and roll film from the '70s, from a show in New Jersey with all these stars from the '50s and Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley are having a duel. Diddley is hopelessly out of tune, but he rises above the fact that his guitar is out of tune, and the spirit and life in his playing are amazing.

Too many people are trying to perfect things. There's a lot of soulless music out there. But millions can't be wrong - there are a lot of people out there with soulless taste.

Q.How do you think the Pixies' fan base will react to "Honeycomb," and do you care?

A. I don't think they really care. There is a small percentage of Pixies fans that do care, but the bulk of them are not interested. There's really only so much time in the day. If people like my work with the Pixies, that's great, but I don't expect them to keep up with every aspect of my career. I don't keep up with every aspect of other people's careers. There are the über-fans out there who do that, but you don't need to encourage them. They do it on their own.

Q.When will we hear something new from the Pixies?

A. We're mostly all about touring right now. We want to go into the studio but we're not in a rush. We talk about it once a month. I'm trying to organize a tour for "Honeycomb" with the same guys (who played on the album). Maybe it will happen, but it's hard dealing with five schedules.

Q.What can Milwaukee fans coming out to the show tonight expect?

A. When I think of Milwaukee, I think of this men's clothing store in the lobby of the hotel where we stay. I bought this shirt there that I really like. I've been wanting to go back and get another one. It's just a nice, $200 shirt. So people at the show will probably see me wearing a new shirt (laughs).

E-mail Gemma Tarlach at gtarlach@journalsentinel.com

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Originally posted by dayanara
If people like my work with the Pixies, that's great, but I don't expect them to keep up with every aspect of my career. I don't keep up with every aspect of other people's careers. There are the über-fans out there who do that, but you don't need to encourage them. They do it on their own.

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Originally posted by Ziggy

Haha. I love the shirt anecdote.

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Originally posted by vilainde

quote:

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Originally posted by dayanara
If people like my work with the Pixies, that's great, but I don't expect them to keep up with every aspect of my career. I don't keep up with every aspect of other people's careers. There are the über-fans out there who do that, but you don't need to encourage them. They do it on their own.

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That's us! That's us! Look, Frank's talking about us!


Denis

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I know the god of rock n roll / Yeah I sold him my soul!

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Originally posted by billgoodman

$200 for a shirt?
my shirts cost $20

"I joined the cult of Jon Tiven/Bye!"

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