Pixies have cracked open the vault, releasing four previously unearthed songs from the late ’80s and early ’90s on streaming services for the first time.
The collection includes an early Steve Albini-recorded version of “Dig for Fire,” along with “Go Man Go,” “Brackish Boy,” and “Punk Loop.” The tracks previously surfaced last month on bonus 7-inches packaged with limited Dinked International editions of the band’s newly remastered Bossanova and Trompe le Monde, but are now widely available digitally.
Perhaps most notable is “Dig for Fire (Albini Version),” recorded in late 1987 during the sessions for Surfer Rosa. The rougher early take predates the version that ended up on 1990’s Bossanova by nearly three years.
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“Go Man Go,” interestingly, has an especially tangled history. Co-written by Black Francis and Kim Deal, the song was recorded by both Pixies during the Bossanova sessions and The Breeders around the making of Last Splash, but neither version made its respective album. The Breeders’ recording circulated on a bootleg demo and occasionally appeared live before its master was rediscovered and officially released with the 30th anniversary edition of Last Splash in 2023.
The remaining pair comes from the Trompe le Monde era. “Brackish Boy” is an early version of the song Black Francis later re-recorded for his 1993 self-titled debut as Frank Black, while “Punk Loop” was captured during the 1991 Trompe le Monde sessions and preserved on tape simply as “‘Punk Loop’ MSTR.”
The archival releases arrive ahead of a busy 2027 for Pixies. After a run through South America beginning in March, the band will join Queens of the Stone Age for their spring US arena tour beginning May 1st in San Diego and wrapping May 24th in Boston.
For more, revisit our recent cover story with Josh Homme, who reflected on Queens of the Stone Age’s latest chapter.
Stream “Go Man Go” and “Dig for Fire (Albini Version),” as well as “Brackish Boy” and “Punk Loop,” below.
