Black Francis

Editor's Review:

For an artist who almost single-handedly invented what was to be (cat)called “alternative rock,” Black Francis certainly hasn’t reveled within any taste-making formula since the days his fabled Pixies decided to hang it up. What he has done is continuously reinvent the underground rock wheel, first with blistering solo albums, journeyman singer/songwriter endeavors and then (briefly), a Pixies reunion that reminded the world of the power of punk rock. Bluefinger finds Francis (neé Frank Black) muting his recent flirtation with Nashville country and turning his scope toward one of his great muses: the late Dutch artist/musician Herman Brood.



    Bluefinger scorches from the first track, “Captain Pasty,” a quick, odd-timed groove with tactful use of those classic Francis screeches, and plenty of scratchy/catchy choruses. Borrowing from punk traditions and incorporating a surly meld of voyeuristic musings on the life and times of Brood, Francis cultivates direct and indirect references to the famed artist’s troubled and remarkable life, even covering Brood’s “You Can’t Break A Heart and Have It.” In “Threshold Apprehension,” Francis wails, “Petite paramour/I will be the whore/and you’ll be my suicide” before going on to account a fictional alcohol and speed-injecting binge. The return to the old moniker is the first thing you’ll notice of this album; but the cryptic songs are what render this an instant classic for fans of the pioneer.


Write Your Own Review

Bookmark:

Record Label Cooking Vinyl Released September 2007

Tracks Captain Pasty Threshold Apprehension Test Pilot Blues Lolita Tight Black Rubber Angels Come to Comfort You Your Mouth Into Mine Discotheque 36 You Can’t Break A Heart And Have It She Took All The Money Bluefinger

Comments down for maintenance.