For the next 30 days, I’ll be taking the #AprilAcrossAmerica challenge, picking one song a day as I make my way across the country and across genres at the same time.
Day 23: Roswell, NM
By Trompe Le Monde, the Pixies were past their prime. But they were still true to their identity, refusing to cave in to the direction of the sounds that surrounded them. The Pixies are the influencers, not the influenced. The kings of quiet-loud-quiet, loud-quiet-loud, and all their variations. They were forerunners to the grunge movement. And yet their music is unusually resilient, holding up year after year, decade after decade. And there’s no better place to start than one of the deep cuts from Trompe Le Monde, “Motorway To Roswell”.
A bit more melodic and poppier than we were accustomed to hearing from The Pixies, “Motorway To Roswell” was as tame (song reference intended) as the band got. Black Francis gives the screaming and howling a rest, and sings in a way that gives the melody more power. But this is no softie. Santiago’s guitar still lights up like a three-alarm fire. While Trompe Le Monde may not be their piece de resistance, I find myself tipping my proverbial hat to originals like “Motorway To Roswell” more so than the covers.
“Last night he could not make it. He tried hard but could not make it.”