Pixies vs. End of Fashion – Song Parallels
They may not have achieved widespread commercial success during their early years, but the Pixies were one of the most influential bands of the ’80s — and as we demonstrated in an earlier Song Parallels, echoes of their work can be heard in songs by a number of other artists.
However, in the case of End of Fashion’s single ‘O Yeah,’ you can hear a bit more than an echo — in fact, it sounds like the Australian band lifted pretty much the entire guitar riff from the Pixies’ ‘Where Is My Mind?’ and repurposed it for a song about the inanity of making small talk with someone you’d like to take home with you.
The similarity between the two songs was pointed out by critics, some of whom seemed to take genuine offense at End of Fashion’s fairly brazen borrowing. One reviewer accused the band of trying to appeal to “the 95% of people that haven’t heard (and still remember) the Pixies’ ‘Where Is My Mind?’”
None of the Pixies, who ceased recording in 1993 and have toured sporadically since reuniting as a live act in 2004, have bothered to comment publicly on End of Fashion, but then again, with critics’ quotes like that, they don’t really need to. Have a listen to the clips below and see what you think.
Listen to Pixies, ‘Where Is My Mind?
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Listen to End of Fashion, ‘O Yeah’
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