Pixies have announced a new album, entitled Head Carrier, their second since their reunion in 2004. The first single, ‘Um Chagga Lagga’ is available to stream above right now.
The album, with artwork by long-time collaborator Vaughan Oliver, is the first to feature new bassist Paz Lenchantin. Produced by Tom Dalgety and recorded at London’s Rak Studios, the 12-track album is a continuation of the legendary band’s signature blend of alternative rock and surf-pop psychedelia.
After the constraint of writing and recording on the road during Pixies’ original incarnation, the band have enjoyed spending a greater time in the studio, writing and rehearsing, before recording the album. "This was a wonderful luxury, for us to have the time to be able to really work these new songs out, says drummer David Lovering. "By the time we started recording, we all knew the songs backwards and forwards, so it took half as long for us to make this album as it did to make Indie Cindy."
Following the departure of original bassist and backup vocalist Kim Deal in 2013, the band found a replacement in Paz Lenchantin, who had been touring with the band since early 2014. "I was very nervous in the beginning when I went to that first rehearsal," said Lenchantin. "There were these shoes I felt I had to fill and I tried to do the best I could for the fans, to make the live performances sound true to the originals.
"I spent three years learning to understand what being a Pixie meant, and now, my heart, spirit, and love for their music is embedded in me and I feel like I have become a Pixie. We had been more about the history of the Pixies, but now, we are about going forward."
Head Carrier is out September 30, via Pixiesmusic/Play It Again Sam. The band are touring Europe in November. Tour dates and tickets can be found here.
