In A "Vault Of Heaven" with Pixies

Pixies performing at the Wiltern, LA by Shelby Pfau

WITH SUPPORT FROM LOCAL VETS CHERRY GLAZERR

Monday night in Koreatown started as predictably as ever. The sun had just set and a cool breeze swept an unfortunate scattering of litter onto the streets into the headlights of cars driving East on Wilshire. Approaching the Wiltern was a modest line with a casually eclectic group of indie kids from damn near every decade arriving early to secure their space to see the ever-iconic Pixies, with support from Cherry Glazerr. 

Rarely have I seen such a large turnout early on, and while the venue wasn’t quite packed yet, it was delightful to know that so many people would be present for Cherry Glazerr. The California native can be described as nothing less than electric; her soft voice finding grit in all the right places accompanied by a bellowing metallic twang from her black and white Fender. A truly complementary pairing for an evening with Pixies, she told us she’d “be with the guys.” 

As the moment grew closer the crowd was antsy, every soundcheck elicited a roar, until finally the house lights went down and the Boston quintet took center stage. Despite a brand new album, Doggerel, being unearthed mere days before the performance on September 30, Pixies took to opening with “Ed Is Dead,” from their 1987 debut, Come On Pilgrim. In fact, it wasn’t until about a third of a way through the performance before they began to dig in to Doggerel, but the first portion still had a healthy mix of Pixies through the decades, with tracks from Come On Pilgrim, Surfer Rosa, Beneath the Eyrie, Head Carrier, and Bossanova. 

Pixies performing at the Wiltern, LA by Shelby Pfau

From the beginning, the crowd’s semi-casual excitement was contagious, the kind of relaxed feeling you get from a Saturday afternoon sitting on a brewery patio coupled with the same unadulterated joy a 4-year-old feels when the family’s Prius gets to the gates of Disneyland. There was an atmosphere of belonging, with indescribable comfort and glee radiating from the sea of baseball caps and raggedy cardigans. Despite the vast age disparity, Pixies were able to miraculously make us all feel like a coherent unit, devoid of identity or status, all gathered together and experiencing the warm fuzz that radiated from the stage; from the eclectic intertwining of acoustic and electric guitar that was wholly encapsulating in true Pixies nature. 

The hits came late, a respectable move. Though my favorites came during the middle of the set, “Gouge Away” and “Hey” off of 1989 classic, Doolittle, Pixies finally played the infamous “Where Is My Mind?” as a second-to-last blow out, shortly after another love of mine from Doolittle, “Wave Of Mutilation,” before finally closing on “Winterlong,” a cover by Neil Young. It’s difficult to truly write and embody the sheer force of a band with a legacy like theirs, I think there’s an expectation that it’ll be some bursting feeling that’s impossible to contain, and in some ways that’s true… but really, it just feels like home. Check out the set list here!

PS: Check out our gallery of photos from the performance!

PS: Check out our gallery of photos from the performance!