The Pixies Rock Raleigh

The Pixies Live at the Red Hat Amphitheatre with Spoon and Fazerdaze - Raleigh, NC - Tuesday, Sept. 9

I hope we never take The Pixies for granted.

Nearly 40 years since forming in Boston, Mass., the band remains a potent power of the best in weird and snarling yet melodic and smart rock and roll. Their most recent album, The Night the Zombies Came, is another example that despite lineup changes they will deliver the goods, with a few surprises mixed in.

That brings The Pixies into Raleigh with support from the casually electric Spoon and New Zealand singer songwriter Fazerdaze. A rather subdued crowd on a Tuesday night left something to be desired, but the bands delivered tight, focused sets, just like the old pros they are.

Rock me, Emma.

And she did just that. New bassist Emma Richardson (previously of Band of Skulls) stepped up for the first song to sing and play that gutteral bass on the Pixies staple "In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song)," a cover of Peter Ivers and David Lynch's Eraserhead track. As far as introductions go, it was about a perfect showcase that Richardson has all the chops to do the gig and do it well.

The Pixies are all business as they tear into songs with minimal fuss, including the rising intensity of lining up "Vamos" (with a playful extended guitar solo from Joey Santiago) with thrashy crowd favorites "Debaser," "Head On," "Isla de Encanta" and "Tame."

Santiago's playing is always a highlight as he remains one of the unsung heroes of guitar. He can play sweet and salty, and always complements Black Francis' unique melodies.

The first two-thirds of the band's set relied on the classics from their first few years. A sublime "Monkey Gone to Heaven" followed by the crackling "Bone Machine," howling "Caribou" and a heavy take on "Planet of Sound."

The only moment in the set Francis spoke to the crowd came late as he thanked everyone for coming and also thanked everyone for sitting to hear some of the new songs, which they then tore through three of them from the latest album. "Chicken" finds Francis in typical black humor and "dealing with decapitation." "Kings of the Prairie" is another strummy, sleepy song Francis seemingly can write in his sleep. "The Vegas Suite" most assuredly is about religion, a topic the band has explored and often skewered since Come On, Pilgrim.

All three could have been sprinkled anywhere in the set and fit just fine.

The Pixies wrapped up the night with "Where is My Mind?" and "Into the White." The former being the big singalong of the night, the latter being an angsty sendoff until next time.

Spoon is touring on the back of two recently-released singles ("Chateau Blues" and "Guess I'm Fallin in Love"). They tore through 15 songs, spanning their career and sounding sharp. Vocalist Britt Daniel reminisced with many in the pit about previous Spoon shows in Raleigh going back to 2000.

The tour has a few more U.S. dates before heading over to Japan, Australia and New Zealand to round out 2025.

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