Hey Paul, Hey Paul, Hey Paul, let's have a POLL: ILM Artist Poll #69 • Pixies (results!)

http://i.imgur.com/7gRM9Nk.gif

42 ballots determined a ranked order of the six Pixies studio albums (nobody voted for anything live or for any compilations), a list of favorite non-Pixies tracks by members of the band (which will roll out at the end after the tracks results), and a list of the top 51 Pixies tracks according to the opinions of ILM posters as of October 2014. Thanks for voting, enjoy the results!

Spotify playlist

Indie Cindy 35 points, 3 votes

http://i.imgur.com/Pnlxyos.jpg

Whoa! Here we are already. Johnny, do you want me to add a "51" to that post?

That one's really more of an honorable mention (one voter ranked the top 5 albums and then included Indie Cindy in 100th place).

5. Come On Pilgrim 485 points, 21 votes, 1 first place vote

http://i.imgur.com/9GDqYTD.jpg

Too low, btw!

4. Bossanova 565 points, 25 votes, 3 first place votes

http://i.imgur.com/XZgTBfi.jpg

(4. Bossanova 565 points, 25 votes, 3 first place votes)

Boy I love the Pixies' cover, they are all great. Bossanova is my favorite.

3. Trompe Le Monde 630 points, 25 votes, 4 first place votes

http://i.imgur.com/imIBfYb.jpg

So far it's in my exact order.

2. Surfer Rosa 765 points, 26 votes, 7 first place votes

http://i.imgur.com/RH8CiKN.jpg

1. Doolittle 830 points, 26 votes, 11 first place votes

http://i.imgur.com/wyDw4jC.jpg

I should have voted for the Death to the Pixies live disc. Completely forgot to vote for it even though that's actually the only album I listen to regularly enough that there's always a copy of it on my phone.

Well that was a fun time. Perhaps more commentary will come when the tracks start rolling out? lol

A word about the graphics (or lack thereof). There are only so many photos of the band circulating, and I couldn't think of any other non-band photo theme to go with, so I thought it would be cool to just use images of the soundwaves to demonstrate the loud/quiet/loud dynamic they're famous for. What I learned is that it's not really as prevalent as you'd think it is.

Anyway...

http://i.imgur.com/ANaV5Z3.png
51. Wave of Mutilation (UK Surf), 1989 (b-side) [122 points, 5 votes]

i get to be the first to declare: TOO LOW!

I love the idea of using the soundwaves for this pics.

That's a great idea JFK!

Sheesh

It was my bad for declaring I wouldn't be merging tracks. I ended up not separating any others, but the LP version and UK Surf versions of Wave of Mutilation are different enough that maybe it's warranted? Anyway, that's why there are 51 results instead of 50, because it's my fault.

I misinterpreted the instruction. I got it into my head that you would be combining tracks, so I just included the standard Wave of Mutilation on my ballot, thinking it covered them both. Completely a reading comprehension error on my part though.

Definitely too low. No way are there 50 better Pixies songs than that one...

http://i.imgur.com/17FXclM.png
50. Into the White, 1989 (b-side) [140 points, 6 votes]

http://i.imgur.com/8WBRHDX.png
49. Blown Away, 1990 (Bossanova) [150 points, 8 votes]

http://i.imgur.com/IlsiW0E.png
48. Silver, 1989 (Doolittle) [158 points, 7 votes]

the first one from my ballot. Had it at #6.

I had to come around to this song, and it took a long time. Even after really super embracing all of Kim's Breeders/Amps/etc material, "Silver" was still out there taunting me. I can finally say I like it (but not enough to give it a vote).

looking forward to seeing these.

http://i.imgur.com/vOjGWhP.png
47. Ed Is Dead, 1987 (Come on Pilgrim) [171 points, 9 votes]

xp: I don't really know the breeders stuff. I missed it for the longest time just because it was buried as the penultimate track on the album. I mean, sandwiched between Hey and Gouge Away? That's a tough spot to occupy. I think it really fills the need for atmospheric space there, but at the same time it gets stuck in my head a lot. Particularly on oppressive summer days.

Every track from Come on Pilgrim in these results gets an automatic "TOO LOW" from me btw. Just remember in case I forget to say so.

Pleased and surprised to see Blown Away up there - I thought I'd be the only one voting for it

Blown Away was in my top ten, I think. I am enraged it hasn't placed higher!

Also a Blown Away voter. Love the second side of Bossanova - always used to suspect it was a bit slept on because the first side is a bit hither-thither (ie 60s surf/shadows/Eloise pop with jarring Interruptions by Doolittle-model Pixies).

interesting take. Down to the Well through Havalina is straight awesome. I don't like Dig for Fire though.

http://i.imgur.com/1yW0WDV.png
46. All Over the World, 1990 (Bossanova) [178 points, 9 votes]

been reading some of the facts and quotes over at aleceiffel.free.fr/titles.html
Thompson's take on All Over the World: "The longest song we recorded ever. 5min is the usual average time for a song now, but for us it was a real event."

Oh that's a cool resource! Thanks for the tip.

http://i.imgur.com/egx9GK6.png
45. Nimrod's Son, 1987 (Come on Pilgrim) [180 points, 10 votes]

WAY too low, I don't know what's wrong with you people :P

obviously the result of incestuous union.

lol @ "The Nimrod was the Nimrod of the Old Testament. The Biblical thing, I think, has always been part of rock. Y'know, Jerry Lewis, 'Great Balls of Fire'..." (Frank Black in SELECT, October 1997)

I think I accidentally didn't vote for Nimrod's Son due to a list editing slip. CoP is the best 20 minutes ever and I would like to apologise to the Pixies for my mistake.

http://i.imgur.com/DK5FV5D.png
44. Mr. Grieves, 1989 (Doolittle) [191 points, 12 votes]

"It's about the end of the world I guess. Mr Grieves is the Death character of mythology. The 'man in the middle' is Dr Doolittle, because if you could speak to the animals you would be the great link between mankind and the animal world. There's this theory that if not smarter than us, animals are aware of what's going on and if we could communicate with them, they could give us the answer of the future and make everything ok. But I'm assuming that a nuclear winter will mean that Mr Grieves is going to win in the end." (Black Francis in the NME, April 1989)

Never cared much about this song until the TV on the Radio version came out.

I'm surprised it's only 2:06 in length. It has so many distinct parts I always assumed it was longer.

i feel that way about a lot of the songs on trompe le monde. so complex yet compact.

soundwave idea is very cool, kudos JF

i meant to vote in this :(

http://i.imgur.com/mspL807.png
43. Something Against You, 1988 (Surfer Rosa) [197 points, 9 votes, 1 first place vote]

Well, somebody didn't have something against this song. Rolling out the first of the first-place votes.

Tanya Donnelly quite pleased with herself in that video.

I remember watching that when it was broadcast.

6. The Breeders - Saints (140 points, 2 first place votes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29DKkmZMTlk

"Saints" is great, like everything else from this era of the Breeders, but to my ear a little bit more straight down the middle grunge than "Iris" and "Do You Love Me Now?" which could ONLY be them. Should have voted "Iris" but picking 5 was hard. Have we ever polled "No Alternative"?

5. The Breeders - Doe (150 points)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5UsciKpACU

Oh yeah we did. Iris didn't fare well!

"No Alternative" compilation poll

Didn't at all anticipate the Deals dominating like this. (I had three Breeders tracks and two Frank Black -- sorry, The Martinis)

4. The Breeders - Safari (155 points, 3 first place votes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xT6oZGThwis

Also this is making me realize I have no idea what's Breeders canon -- never knew "Doe" was so loved. "Cannonball" surely left -- in my world, "Happiness is a Warm Gun" a clear top choice too, though it didn't make my ballot. "Divine Hammer" I guess? "Headache?" Frank Black and the etc. may split votes by virtue of not really having obvious singles.

OK, now we're talkin'. I think there's an argument that Safari represents the perfected version of the sound, and maybe that it couldn't have been sustained for the length of an LP. In other words, it is the Breeders' Westing by Musket and Sextant.

3. Frank Black - Headache (160 points, 1 first place vote)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2zb_iZC6nI

"Safari" the song (but perhaps also the EP) is absolutely the perfected version of the sound to my ears. It was my #1 with zero hesitation.

Oh wait, it wasn't. LOL I voted for Breaking the Split-Screen Barrier in hopes it would squeak in, but that was purely strategic. Safari is it for me.

If I had voted for any Frank Black song, it probably would've been Ten Percenter (or maybe Abstract Plane).

Main riff of this is catchy as hell, and I often sing it to myself, but that's really ALL there is to this song. Cheap truckdriver key change at the end, thin sound -- I claim there are 10 songs from the 1999-2002 Frank Black and the Catholics peak that are better than this (not to mention 10 1990-93 Breeders tracks, 9 of which I guess we're gonna see..!)

2. The Breeders - Cannonball (185 points)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxvkI9MTQw4

You can barely make out a 19 year old Britt Walford in the background a few times in that Iris studio footage.

Thought this was a sure #1!

Jimmy Mac has always been a deceptively skilled drummer, because Cannonball is hard as fuck to play.

1. The Breeders - Divine Hammer (235 points, 4 first place votes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9il_iQ8bDM

Divine Hammer has always sounded like too traditional a pop song to me, and that's not what I seek The Breeders out for. ILM will be ILM, though.

wut

Divine Hammer	160	75	235			235
Cannonball		185	185			185
Headache	40	120	160			160
Safari	120	35	155			155
Doe		150	150			150
Saints	80	60	140			140
Iris		120	120			120
Do You Love Me Now?	80	25	105			105
Invisible Man		105	105			105
Bragging Party		95	95			95
Metal Man	40	55	95			95
Oh!	40	55	95			95
When I Was a Painter		90	90			90
Fortunately Gone	40	45	85			85
Breaking the Split-Screen Barrier	40	30	70			70
Off You	40	25	65			65
White Noise Maker	40	20	60			60
Hag		55	55			55
Glorious		50	50			50
Lime House		50	50			50
Bullet	40		40			40
Speedy Marie	40		40			40
Too Alive	40		40			40
Only in 3's		35	35			35
Los Angeles		30	30			30
Thalassocracy		30	30			30
21 Reasons		25	25			25
Don't You Rile 'Em		25	25			25
Drivin' on 9		25	25			25
Flipside		25	25			25
Shocker in Gloomtown		25	25			25
Tipp City		25	25			25
(I Want to Live on An) Abstract Plain		20	20			20
Back to Rome		20	20			20
Every Time I Go Around Here		20	20			20
Happiness Is a Warm Gun		20	20			20
Huffer		20	20			20
Opened		20	20			20
Superabound		20	20			20
Forced to Drive		15	15			15
Full on Idle		15	15			15
No Aloha		15	15			15
Overglazed		15	15			15

one of the greatest, weirdest, fiercest acts of the era and ilm votes for the song that sounds like a cover of "feed the tree"

Though actually I rate "Feed the Tree" above "Divine Hammer" and would probably place it 4th or 5th on Last Splash if the Breeders had chosen to cover it, mind you

Thanks, JF, this was awesome!

Can you remind me how to read this chart though?

It's tough.

I scored ballots like this: 40:30:25:20:15. But the pivot table I made threw together the results without the number of votes, so the only important numbers to look at here are, in the cases where a song received a first place vote, is to notice the multiple of 40 closest to the song title and the final point total farthest away from the song title.

W T F ,

can you guys just listen to this and concede it crushes "headache" like a grape

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMT0BXosu3g

Great to see all the love for both "Safari" and Safari.

I haven't investigated solo Frank that much outside of the debut. The big alt-theatre company down here staged a musical based on Bluefinger a few years back and it ruled.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FYR2hkQD6k

Wait what!? There was a side project poll? Why did I not know this?

side poll makes you think Kim was the true creative force behind pixies.

surely all (most) those Divine Hammer votes must have been tactical, trying to break an assumed Cannonball stranglehold

can you guys just listen to this and concede it crushes "headache" like a grape

nope

I mean, okay, I listened, and nope

the only post-Doolittle Blank Frank record I own is the Headache 7" with the acoustic version on the B-side, but I liked the first album

[checks Teenager track listing]

Whatever Happened to Pong?, (I Want to Live on an) Abstract Plain, Bad Wicked World - heard all those on a '90s radio session ten years ago, also p good iirc

Still repping for Speedy Marie, still don't really get to complain because I didn't vote :(

top three seemed pretty obvious, in some order. never really need to hear any of them again. pleased that safari, do you love me now and iris placed well.

thanks JF for the whole shebang, great stuff

surely all (most) those Divine Hammer votes must have been tactical, trying to break an assumed Cannonball stranglehold

I guess? But to me this is one of those areas where popular judgment basically got it right. "Cannonball" was a giant hit because it was unstoppably great. I voted "Do You Love Me Now" #1 but it was a close thing between those two.

Cheap truckdriver key change at the end, thin sound

Truckdriver key change usually refers to a whole-step modulation -- "Headache" jumps up a 5th, from B to E!

one of the greatest, weirdest, fiercest acts of the era and ilm votes for the song that sounds like a cover of "feed the tree"

eh I feel this stupid need to insist that "Feed the Tree" is p. great and weird, if not fierce, and "Divine Hammer" has reasonable scores for all 3 imo (OK maybe more "lyrically unconventional" than "weird"), but I get your point

I didn't vote in either poll because I didn't feel my knowledge was encyclopedic enough but if I'd paid attention to the fact there was a side-projects poll and thought about how much of the 90s I spent listening to the Breeders (and all related bands) and pre-Catholics FB I should probably have got something together

But to me this is one of those areas where popular judgment basically got it right. "Cannonball" was a giant hit because it was unstoppably great.

yes, I agree, one of the two best pop singles of the '90s - which is why I assume people overthought their voting, because it should have won.

or if beaten, only been by Safari

Whatever Happened to Pong?, (I Want to Live on an) Abstract Plain, Bad Wicked World - heard all those on a '90s radio session ten years ago, also p good iirc

still an overall great album – white Noise Maker also got a vote from me in the side poll and Thalassocracy came close.

can you guys just listen to this and concede it crushes "headache" like a grape

i will also "nope" this. 'tis a fine song, but for me Headache is an all all-time great song.

wheay-hey-hey-hay, isn't so great, since you learned karate, chop chop CHop chop...

I remembered reading an article about the Pixies about 20 years ago where it described the Velouria video as "the band members running in slow motion in the buff" and this thread somehow jogged that out of my memory banks so I just went to YouTube to watch the video and realize that it was actually "the band members running in slow motion down a bluff".

lol

Cannonball: Love Shack:: Divine Hammer: Roam

good call!

wow there is something so deeply, deeply right about that analogy

I'm ranking for fire!.