Romp with the Pixies

From forming in Boston in 1986 to being one of the chief influences on Kurt Cobain and scoring that last shot in David Fincher’s Fight Club, the Pixies have come a long way.

Head Carrier, the Pixies’ second album since reforming in 2004 (the first being 2014’s Indie Cindy), continues the band’s winning formula of oddball alternative rock. The Pixies sound like nobody else, and despite losing cofounding bassist Kim Deal in 2013 the band retains its unique insanity.

From the Talking Heads–like title track that opens the album to the tender “All the Saints” that closes it, Head Carrier is an enjoyable romp.

Lead guitarist Joey Santiago’s dreamlike warble is highlighted in “Might As Well Be Gone,” “Oona,” and the catchy “All I Think About Now,” which sounds like a companion song to “Where Is My Mind.”

Other highlights include the frantic “Baal’s Back,” the silly “Um Chagga Lagga,” and the strange “Plaster of Paris.”

Sometimes the album missteps like on the predictable “Talent” and “Classic Masher,” but overall Head Carrier is a solid entry in the Pixie’s oeuvre.

• Record: Head Carrier
• Artist: The Pixies
• Label: Pixiesmusic
• Songs: (1) Head Carrier (2) Classic Masher (3) Baal's Back (4) Might as Well Be Gone (5) Oona (6) Talent (7) Tenement Song (8) Bel Esprit (9) All I Think About Now (10) Um Chagga Lagga (11) Plaster of Paris (12) All the Saints