4AD / USA / RE 2021
Originally released in 1990, Bossanova is the third studio album from Pixies, marking a pivotal shift in the band's trajectory. Moving away from the primal grit of Doolittle, the album finds the band—Black Francis, Kim Deal, Joey Santiago, and David Lovering—embracing a fascination with surf-rock and cryptic sci-fi themes. Recorded in Los Angeles with producer Gil Norton, Bossanova is a gleaming example of the band's ability to blend high-velocity melodies with an otherworldly, space-age atmosphere.
Lyrically, Black Francis dives deeper into celestial motifs, influenced by the cryptic nature of his sci-fi writing, which in turn inspired Vaughan Oliver's iconic planetary sleeve design. Featuring the standout singles "Velouria," "Dig For Fire," and "Allison," Bossanova remains a vital document of alternative rock's creative peak in the early 90s.