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Phantom105.2 welcomes Pixies to dublin for three sold out nights in The Olympia theatre. For the next three nights Pixies will perform all of the songs from Doolittle and its related B-sides. Pixies' classics such as "Debaser," "Wave of Mutilation," "Here Comes Your Man," "Hey," and "Gouge Away" to name but a few!

Tonight (Wednesday), John Caddell on key Cuts 8-10pm will present 30mins of music from the Pixies and an interview with Black Francis.

Don't forget to check out our podcast interviews with Black Francis (Frank Black) and Kim Deal in our podcast section. Just search under interviews and you can listen on-demand or download!

'First, make a list of your overall top-20 artists. Then, for each of these artists, add the 8 most similar artists to your list. Delete any duplicates, add up the number of entries on your list and this will give you some idea of how eclectic your listening habits are. A score of 9 represents an extremely unvaried musical taste while a 160 represents an extremely varied one.

1. of Montreal
2. Radiohead
3. Yeah Yeah Yeahs
4. Animal Collective
5. Modest Mouse
6. The Dresden Dolls
7. Metric
8. Interpol
9. Pixies
10. Architecture in Helsinki
11. Nine Inch Nails
12. The New Pornographers
13. Foo Fighters
14. Rilo Kiley
15. Sufjan Stevens
16. The Smashing Pumpkins
17. The Strokes
18. Gorillaz
19. MGMT
20. Regina Spektor

1. The Apples in Stereo
2. The Olivia Tremor Control
3. The Unicorns
4. Beulah
5. Islands
6. Elf Power
7. The Fiery Furnaces
8. Thom Yorke
9. Jonny Greenwood
10. Muse
11. Sigur Rós
12. Coldplay
13. Placebo
14. Blur
15. The Kills
16. Be Your Own Pet
17. The Gossip
18. Blood Red Shoes
19. Franz Ferdinand
20. Panda Bear
21. Black Dice
22. Grizzly Bear
23. Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan
24. Avey Tare
25. Deerhunter
26. El Guincho
27. Dan Deacon
28. Ugly Casanova
29. Built to Spill
30. Wolf Parade
31. Neutral Milk Hotel
32. The Flaming Lips
33.The Shins
34. Death Cab for Cutie
35. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
36. Amanda Palmer
37. Vermillion Lies
38. Pretty Balanced
39. HUMANWINE
40. Katzenjammer Kabarett
41. Rasputina
42. Harlequin Jones
43. Jill Tracy
44. Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton
45. Emily Haines
46. Stars
47. Broken Social Scene
48. Tegan and Sara
49. Land of Talk
50. Editors
51. She Wants Revenge
52. Elefant
53. The National
54. I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness
55. stellastarr*
56. White Lies
57. The Breeders
58. Frank Black
59. Sonic Youth
60. Black Francis
61. Frank Black and the Catholics
62. Dinosaur Jr.
63. Pavement
64. Violent Femmes
65. Los Campesinos!
66. I'm From Barcelona
67. The Boy Least Likely To
68. Tilly and the Wall
69. Mates of State
70. Modwheelmood
71. Trent Reznor
72. Halo33
73. Tweaker
74. Marilyn Manson
75. Puscifer
76. Black Light Burns
78. Dirty Scarab
79. A.C. Newman
80. Immaculate Machine
81. Destroyer
82. The Decemberists
83. Spoon
84. Swan Lake
85. Audioslave
86. Incubus
87. Nirvana
88. Soundgarden
89. Puddle of Mud
90. Queens of the Stone Age
91. Stone Temple Pilots
92.Pearl Jam
93. Jenny Lewis
94. Jenny Lewis with The Watson Twins
95. The Elected
96. She & Him
97. Whispertown2000
98. Eisley
99. Johnathan Rice
100. Andrew Bird
101. Iron & Wine
102. Beirut
103. Bon Iver
104. Fleet Foxes
105. Anathallo
106. Denison Witmer
107. Zwan
108. Billy Corgan
109. James Iha
110. Auf der Maur
111. Silverchair
112. Albert Hammond, Jr.
113. Arctic Monkeys
114. Little Joy
115. The Libertines
116. Albert Hammond Jr.
117. The Last Shadow Puppets
118. Kings of Leon
119. The Killers
120. The Good, The Bad & The Queen
121. Daft Punk
122. Space Monkeyz vs. Gorillaz
123. Fatboy Slim
124. Beck
125. The White Stripes
126. The Chemical Brothers
127. The Management
128. Vampire Weekend
129. Klaxons
130. Black Kids
131. Empire of the Sun
132. Passion Pit
133. The Kooks
134. Late of the Pier
135. Fiona Apple
136. Jenny Owen Youngs
137. Kate Nash
138. Rachael Yamagata
139. Ingrid Michaelson
140. St. Vincent
141. Tori Amos

Holy shit, that was exhausting... Much higher score than anticipated though.

Tue 11 Aug – Black Francis w/ Mere Mortals

These are some of the songs from the Black Francis / Frank Black concert last night. Let me know which ones I missed. It was a great show at a great venue!

The Holiday Song
Nimrod's Son
Cactus
Where Is My Mind?
Gouge Away
Wave of Mutilation
Velouria
Los Angeles
I Heard Ramona Sing
Two Reelers
Headache
Bullet
Horrible Day
Manitoba
I Burn Today
Angels Come to Comfort You
Lolita
She Took All the Money

Recently I compiled a load of recent Black Francis (and Grand Duchy) songs that in one way or another resemble his first band, Pixies. This isn't a flawless mix, there's probably a few too many rockers and not enough gentle tunes but I thought it'd be interesting to see how people would treat this as a Pixies album. Black's solo work has always been overlooked and underrated but I've no doubt in my mind that the likes of Threshold, TBR, WTCTME and Black Suit would be appreciated up there with the likes of Tame, Velouria, Debaser, U-Mass, etc. if they were released under the Pixies name. So... discuss and don't take too seriously (I've enjoyed Bluefinger, Svn Fngrs and Petit Fours immensely and I'm not too dejected at the lack of Santiago-fuelled guitar brain-fucks / Lovering poundings / Deal croaking).

1. Come On Over To My House (GD) - not incredibly mind-blowing but nonetheless a pretty catchy song that incorporates a nice male/female vocal element that recalls the classic Black/Deal harmonies. [youtube]www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvanUbEQA2g[/youtube]

2. Threshold Apprehension - this has Pixies all over it; an aggressive, repetitive ruff, a punkish vocal delivery with great harmonies, and lyrics that would hold their own with any of the old Pixies nuggets.
I particularly adore this verse:

We got on my bike and we rode to the sea
I stood on the dock and you got on your knees
Grand Marnier and a pocket full of speed
We did it all day till we started to bleed
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muFE3BgSPWU&feature=related[/youtube]

3. Garbage Heap - cool cryptic lyrics, cool guitars, cool song. Has a bit of a Bossanova vibe going for it.

4. Tight Black Rubber - During my first listen of Bluefinger, TBR was the song that made me sit up, grin like a stupid fucker, tap my foot like a masturbatory hand and gain complete satisfaction over. The lyrics are so throwaway and quotable it is unreal. "My baby's so bad I nearly killed her / She bit me so hard when I just filled her." Also contains a chugging bass and the dynamics of a Pixies song. There's nothing else to say other than it's amazing, it works. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYFg86KjdGk&feature=related[/youtube]

5. Captain Pasty - Another gem of a song. Catchiness and kick-ass all over. [youtube]www.youtube.com/watch?v=1APh7zqNuf8
[/youtube]

6. The Tale of Lonesome Fetter - I've completely overplayed this song over the last 18 months but it's such a lovely tune that I have to include. It's not a rocker in comparison with the other tracks mentioned above but the outtro (?) has always reminded me of the end of No. 13 Baby (which recently forced me into fighting back tears of joy when witnessing it performed live).

7. You Can't Break A Heart And Have It - A cover of a Herman Brood song. Black at his screamy best. I'm dwelling over whether the roar at 1 minute 30 is his best ever.

8. She Took All Over The Money - Insanely catchy. Violet Clark provides harmony to a silly but brilliant chorus; something which prompts me to remember La La Love You.
(after YCBAHAHI)

9. I Sent Away - BF being influenced by the Stooges again? Yes, please. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugFvzM0FGz8&feature=related[/youtube]

10. Ermesinde (GD) - this song is just plain beautiful and epic (although the vecoder thing kinda spoils it).

11. Seven Fingers - Jaunty and brilliant. A polished Come On Pilgrim- / Surfer Rosa-esque shanty song.

12. Black Suit (GD) - Possibly BF's most Pixies-ish tune of late. Coolness musicified. [youtube]www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wc3PxlVPqQ [/youtube]

13. When They Come To Murder Me - Love this song so much. So ebullient. Lyrics are wonderful (involves bad sex and violence), the riff is so memorable and the intro even borrows a bit of The Sad Punk.[youtube] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3005XLDJYRs[/youtube]

That works out as thirteen songs and 42 minutes of snarls, cries, screams and croons. Could have been another five or six contenders but those'll do.

THIS MONTH IN SPIN MAGAZINE!

THE DEAD WEATHER
First there were the White Stripes. Then The Raconteurs. Now Jack White has joined forces with Alison Mosshart, Jack Lawrence, and Dean Fertita for a smoldering new band The Dead Weather that has him so excited he's even a little scared.
MORE >>

Grizzly Bear
Kinda folky? Kinda spacey? Brooklyn's Grizzly Bear have just released one of the year's most anticipated albums. Just don't try asking them what it sounds like.
MORE >>

Spinnerette
Ex-Distillers singer Brody Dalle, now of Spinnerette, takes us along for a 36-hour joyride through L.A.
MORE >>

Hot Leg
As frontman of British pomp rockers The Darkness, Justin Hawkins was flying high on a stuffed tiger - until cocaine addiction brought him crashing down to earth. Now, as he brings his new band of jokers, Hot Leg, to South by Southwest, he tells what it's like to have to start over.
MORE >>

Jarvis Cocker
With a new solo album, the Britpop giant Jarvis Cocker talks about bum-rushing Jacko, life after Pulp, and why his songs are better in bed than he is.
MORE >>

Noise:
In My Room: Grand Duchy (featuring Black Francis)
The Inquisition: David Johansen
What You Need: Floral patterns are in bloom.
Breaking Out: Emily Wells, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and Florence and the Machine.
The SPIN Mix: Songs you must hear now!

Reviews:
We rated the hottest albums from Green Day, Mos Def, the Mars Volta, and dozens more! Plus, Prince runs an L.A. marathon - one night, three venues.
MORE >>

READ NOW >>

THE CANSECOS – Win the International Songwriting Competition!

A huge congratulation goes out to The Cansecos as they win First Place for the most celebrated song-writing competition in the world, The International Songwriting Competition. Over 15,500 songs were considered by a secret judging panel, stacked with legends (T-Pain, Robert Smith, Tom Waits, Black Francis, Chaka Khan, Tiesto). The Cansecos “Raised By Wolves” (Juices! Upper Class Recordings) wins for Best Electronic/Dance Song of 2008. The admiration bestowed on The Cansecos is a great honour and accomplishment.

International Songwriting Competition

THE CANSECOS w/Shout Out Out Out Out

As promised The Cansecos and Shout Out Out Out Out have been locked in bass drenched battles in Toronto, London, Waterloo and Ottawa this past week where the usual dressed to impressed enthusiasts hit the dance floor for the rapture of Canada’s finest electro outfits. Don’t miss The Cansecos on their night on the road in Montreal Tonight @ La Sala Rossa. The Cansecos will be jamming out music from their two studio albums, their disco mash up Juiced! and live versions of their famed remixes. The dance floor swell will continue in Montreal at the Official AfterParty @ Tokyo Nightclub DJ Sets by The Cansecos, Smalltown Dj’s, DJ Pump

April 30 –Montreal – La Sala Rossa

Facebook Event



New Merch Available On Tour and the Upper Class Recordings Store

Black Francis «Svn Fngrs» (p) 2008

Располневший и жизнелюбивый человек, лидер великолепных Pixies, в последние годы ударившийся в исполнение своего рода кантри. Здесь у него все получается убедительно — достаточно послушать пластинку «Honeycomb», где автору аккомпанирует Спунер Олдхэм. Его настоящее имя Чарльз Томпсон. Во времена расцвета Pixies он называл себя Black Francis, сольную карьеру начал под именем Фрэнк Блэк. До недавнего времени Фрэнк был этакий визуально смешной усатый и пузатый американский житель глубинки. Однако, последние две пластинки, выпущенные после кратковременного реюниона Pixies, точно записаны человеком, которого вновь зовут Black Francis. Непричёсанные гитары и настроения чуть мрачнее недавних были заметны уже на предыдущем диске «Bluefinger», который Фрэнк посвятил памяти голландского панка, художника и поэта Хермана Брода. Новый релиз «Svn Fngrs» инспирирован мифическим героем Кухулином. Он был записан всего за шесть дней в компании с Вайолет Кларк и Джейсоном Картером. Согласно ирландской мифологии, Кухулин имел по семь пальцев на руках и ногах, а глазах его было по семь зрачков. Думаю, излишне говорить, сколько песен вместил в себя диск «Svn Fngrs».

Читать обзор целиком

I could make a million of these trails with no effort now. I wrote a small app that follows the similar artists and spits out the results.
It's not very interesting though. I guess the journey truly is more important than the destination. All that time navigating the artists' profiles was the fun part--reading about each band, and then clicking on to the next step of the trail.

1. Pixies
2. Frank Black
3. Frank Black and the Catholics
4. Black Francis
5. Frank Black Francis
..... redacted due to boringness.
47. Emma Pollock
48. Jesca Hoop
49. Laura Veirs
50. Mirah
51. The Blow