At the time of its release, ‘Surfer Rosa’ was no big deal. The Pixies’ debut album came less than six months after their first EP, ‘Come On Pilgrim,’ which included a handful of songs remixed from their scrappy demo tape. But ‘Come On Pilgrim’ didn’t stir much interest outside of a small college-rock cult audience. So when ‘Surfer Rosa’ hit shelves on March 21, 1988, it wasn’t like tons of fans were waiting for it.
The deluxe edition of the Pixies' 'Minotaur' box set -- which included all of the band's studio albums on gold-plated 24k-layered CDs, a Blu-ray /DVD disc featuring live video of a 1991 Pixies concert and all of their music videos, packaged with a 54-page book -- scored a Grammy nomination for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package in 2011. The award would have gone to art directors Jeff Anderson and Vaughan Oliver, not the band itself, but that didn't seem to impact drummer David Lovering's excitement. "It's the second time we've been nominated for a Grammy," he told the Vancouver Observer after the loss. "Maybe third time's the charm."
No band is an island. The best songwriters tend to be sponge-like soaker-uppers of music, film, fine art, literature and other forms of culture, be they popular or obscure, and these influences often find their way into the music, helping listeners branch out and develop new interests
The alternative '90s boom owes a big thanks to the Pixies and their songs. The Boston, Mass. rockers, consisting of frontman Black Francis, guitarist Joey Santiago, bassist Kim Deal and drummer David Lovering, were a big influence on bands like Nirvana, and the late Kurt Cobain admitted they owed a huge debt to them. The Pixies disbanded in 1993 after Francis said in an interview that they were no more, unbeknownst to the rest of the members.
