On their new album, Pixies adopt eerie minor chords and haunting instrumentation
Subscribe
X

Get the latest from Beat

02.10.2019

On their new album, Pixies adopt eerie minor chords and haunting instrumentation

Words by Tammy Walters

Pixies don’t stray too far from their genre-defining sound.

When Black Francis posed the ambivalent question of ‘Where Is My Mind?’ back in 1988, the only thing that was clearly answered was the impact the track would have on setting Pixies up as musical pioneers.

Fast forward 30 years to Beneath The Eyrie. Francis’ state of mind is defined as Pixies deep dive into an underworld of gothic proportions. While known for their melancholic undertones and eccentric views of the world, Beneath The Eyrie capitalises on the band’s signature theme in an eerie yet poetic collection of stories about ghouls, ghosts, and witches throughout the ominous twelve tracks. Not in an Edgar Allen Poe sense of impending doom, but as a subtle nod to the horror genre.

While a concept album in nature, Pixies don’t stray too far from their genre-defining sound. Projecting from previous records, the four-piece adopt eerie minor chords and haunting instrumentation with distinct influence from their gothic-heavy producer Tom Delgaty (Pixies’ Head Carrier, Ghost, Royal Blood).

‘On Graveyard Hill’ and  Catfish Kate’ cover familiar territory sonically with Joey Santiago’s spacey guitar rings and the driving bass lines, while ‘This Is My Fate’ echoes the ‘Monster Mash’ introducing elements of theatrics and skat, capturing gloom in a glorious way.

8