Product Description

'Wave Of Mutilation' is the second 'Best Of' collection from seminal indie rock outfit the Pixies. Released to replace 1997's 'Death To The Pixies', the album features tracks fromtheir five studio albums as well as various B-sides, alternate versions and a cover of Neil Young's 'Winterlong'.

Track Listing

1. Bone Machine
2. Nimrod's Son
3. The Holiday Song
4. Caribou
5. Broken Face
6. Gigantic (single version)
7. Vamos (Surefer Rosa)
8. Hey
9. Monkey Gone To Heaven
10. Debaser
11. Gouge Away
12. Wave Of Mutilation
13. Here Comes Your Man
14. Tame
15. Where Is My Mind?
16. Into The White
17. Velouria
18. Allison
19. Dig For Fire
20. U-Mass
21. Alec Eiffel
22. Planet Of Sound
23. Winterlong

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8430 in Music
• Released on: 2004-05-03
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Explicit Lyrics

Amazon.co.uk Review
Though they recorded just four full-length albums and lasted only four years, the Pixies were easily one of the most influential bands of the 1980s. Wave of Mutilation is a fairly concise effort at capturing some of the band's greatest moments, with 23 tracks spanning their albums, with a bunch of quality B-sides and rarities thrown in to keep fans happy (there's even the hard-to-find Neil Young cover "Winterlong").

Inevitably, however, trying to distil the essence of a band like this into just one CD is going to annoy some of the more die-hards (there's no "I've Been Tired", for example). But as befits the Pixies, every song here is a gem. From the Latin-pop of "Nimrod's Son" to the heavenly Kim Deal vocals on "Gigantic" to the theremin-led "Velouria" to the bitingly sarcastic "U-Mass", Wave of Mutilation is a good introduction to perhaps the best band Massachusetts ever produced. That said, there's nothing here that should prevent anyone from investing in their entire back catalogue. Nirvana would never have existed without the Pixies, and few record collections should be allowed to exist without them. --Ted Kord

Album Description
During their six years together, the Pixies released five albums to fan, peer and critical acclaim. This new 23-track best-of CD runs almost chronologically and expands on the previous compilation, Death To The Pixies, with a couple of B-sides, the live favourite "Into the White", and a cover of Neil Young's "Winterlong". This is being simultaneously released with a DVD companion, simply titled Pixies.

Customer Reviews

The Best Place To Start
It isn't difficult to see why bands like Nirvana were so influenced by The Pixies.Songs based around a big thick bass sound with wailing,thrashing six strings crashing in with the chorus.Coupled with the high-pitched,screeching vocals of Charles Thompson, it all created a quite stunning effect.
If you are unfamiliar with or missed this wonderful Massachusett four piece during their brief six year career then this is the best place to start.
The Pixies musical styles are many and varied and this disc captures the very best of their songs from their four albums 'Surfa Rosa','Doolittle','Bossanova','Trompe Le Monde' and the mini-album 'Come On Pilgrim'.
The manic,frenzied assault of 'Broken Face',the chugging,menacing 'Bone Machine',the georgeous 'Where Is My Mind',the pure pop of 'Digging For Fire',the surf pop of 'Here Comes Your Man' and the mighty 'Gouge Away','Debaser' and 'Wave Of Mutilation' (from their best work-1989's 'Doolittle.')are some of the highlights from the 22 gems on offer here.
Complaints?Well there will always be unexplained inclusions and omitions,I personally would have left out 'Vamos' and included 'Break My Body','River Euphrates' or the dark,brooding 'Cactus' from their first album 'Surfa Rosa'.
All in all though a brilliant introduction to a truly unique band.

Well worth the money
Having bought most of the Pixies on vinyl and tape many years ago, I really havn't listened to them for quite a while. Time had dimmed the memory of just how good these guys were, and it was not 'til I forked out for this "best of" that the rush of listening to their 3 minute wonders flooded back. From "Monkey goes to heaven" to "Here comes your man" it was a solid hour of pleasure. I could proselytize about their importance and how they've influenced so many bands, but that's best left to Mojo and other assorted pundits. For me its simply worth the money.

Genius.
The Pixies are dark. Their songs concern sliced eyeballs, incest and motorbike crashes. Don't let that put you off though - they're one of the most consistent, genius rock bands you will ever hear.
The first Pixies song I ever heard was 'Gigantic', and my reaction was to laugh out loud at how *good* it is. The seductive whispers of the verse turn into a fully sexual chorus, which squeezes a fourth syllable out of the word. Listen for the slightly unhinged guitar solo too, it's a Pixies trademark.
By a trademark, I mean this - The Pixies can take a poppy, rifftastic song and subvert it by dark, thunderous bass lines and biting, lurid subject matter. Or they can twist feedback into a glorious fuzz-soaked pop-rock song. None of their songs are completely straight, there's always some humour in there you won't get until the third, fourth, fifth listen. The Pixies keep you coming back for more.
Most of this best of is taken from their masterpiece, Doolittle. 'Debaser' is a punk-pop anthem, so good it can make a thousand people sing about slicing eyeballs. 'Monkey Gone To Heaven' has another fantastic chorus, but vists themes of ecological destruction and despair at humanity's waste. 'Here Comes Your Man' is the best song The Beatles never wrote. And listen to 'Tame'. Those soft verse-loud chorus dynamics sound familiar?
Nirvana. Why Nirvana suceeded where the Pixies did not is a puzzle to me, because the Pixies are more than their equal. In fact, they were such an inspiration to Kurt Cobain he was afraid people would view Nevermind as one long Pixies rip-off. And hey, you can see his point. But personally, I like (and definately enjoy) The Pixies much more. They have a real sense of humour and (something Nirvana's songs never had) sexuality. They are never unlistenable, never rock to the point of being noise. Just fantastically, deliciously dark.
Doolittle is on a par with their other albums though. 'Gigantic' is a delicious power pop moment, 'Caribou' is simply beautiful, as is 'Veloria', and 'U-Mass' is the funniest, most sarcastic song you'll hear in a long time.
That's the great thing about the Pixies. The subversion behind the apparent poppyiness, the sex oozing out of every song. To put it simply, they are and were an incredible band. The Pixies can do anything. In this compilations are riffs a thousand wannabes would kill for, and pop moments to make boybands cry. Every single song on this compilation is good. It stands up to repeated listenings, and it is beautiful. Buy it, it'll make your day.