Maps of Music

Bossanova (1990)

Where the lyrics of Bossanova take you, and where it was really made.

One song on this Los Angeles-era album was recorded in Berlin, and the producer was flown in just for that one-song session.

Key places

Where the sessions began (1990)

Recording site Cherokee Studios — The band began recording material for this album at Cherokee Studios in February 1990. The sessions ran into problems at this studio. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

One of the recording studios (1990)

Recording site Echo Sound — The album credits list Aire, Silverlake and Cherokee studios in Los Angeles as recording places. The point is set at the city center, not the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Where recording continued (1990)

Recording site The Enterprise (Burbank) — After the problems at Cherokee, the band continued recording at Master Control. The point is set at the city center of Burbank, not the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

The one-song session in Berlin (1990)

Recording site Hansa Studios — "Blown Away" was recorded at Hansa Tonstudio in Berlin. The session took place after the band's June 19 concert in the city, and the producer was flown in for it. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Bossanova: third studio album by American alternative rock band Pixies
• Released 13 August 1990 by 4AD in the UK and by Elektra Records in the US
• Elektra handled US distribution because 4AD was an independent label
• Peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart and number 70 on the Billboard 200
• Two singles: "Velouria" and "Dig for Fire"; both charted on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, at No. 4 and No. 11
• Credits list 14 tracks; producer Gil Norton
• Cover photography credited to Simon Larbalestier; art direction and design by Vaughan Oliver / v23

Background

• After the tour for the second album Doolittle (1989) ended in January 1990, Black Francis, Joey Santiago and David Lovering moved from Boston to Los Angeles
• Lovering said the three moved to Los Angeles because that was where they intended to record the next album
• Bassist Kim Deal stayed in the UK to record the Breeders' first album, then decided to travel to Los Angeles with the group
• The three members lived in the Oakwood apartments; producer Gil Norton also moved into the complex

Recording

• Sessions began at Cherokee Studios in February 1990, but ran into problems
• Norton found that any time something was plugged into a guitar amplifier, a loud hum appeared
• Norton refused to tell 4AD owner Ivo Watts-Russell about the problem until he felt he could address it
• After Norton and Santiago met producer Rick Rubin at a bar, Rubin had his secretary find another studio
• The band continued recording at Master Control
• Black Francis wrote "Blown Away" in Spain in early June 1989 while on tour
• "Blown Away" was recorded at Hansa Tonstudio in Berlin, after the band's June 19 concert there, with Norton flown in for the one-song session
• Many songs were written in the studio and few demos were made; the band practised for only two weeks, unlike in Boston

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1986.
• Original lineup: Black Francis (vocals, rhythm guitar), Joey Santiago (lead guitar), Kim Deal (bass, vocals), David Lovering (drums).
• Named after a word Santiago picked randomly from a dictionary.

Members

• Francis is the primary songwriter; his surreal lyrics cover extraterrestrials, incest and biblical violence.
• Deal left in 2012; Kim Shattuck and then Paz Lenchantin followed; Lenchantin became a full member in 2016.
• In 2024 Lenchantin was replaced by Emma Richardson, formerly of Band of Skulls.

Career

• Debut mini-LP Come On Pilgrim (1987), followed by Surfer Rosa (1988), Doolittle (1989), Bossanova (1990) and Trompe le Monde (1991).
• Disbanded in 1993 after modest US success, but gained more popularity in the UK and Europe.
• Reunited in 2004 with sold-out world tours; released The Night the Zombies Came in 2024.
• Known for extreme loud-quiet-loud dynamics blending surf rock and punk rock; influenced Nirvana, Radiohead, Weezer and others.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Q's Mat Snow reviewed the album in September 1990 and said "the Pixies are masters of the calculated incongruity"
• Mat Snow also wrote that the band give other rockers an object lesson in how it should be done
• NME's Terry Staunton said the production leans towards the harsh garage grunge of Surfer Rosa, while the songs keep the strong melodies of Doolittle
• Staunton concluded that "Bossanova is the composite Pixies LP"
• Rolling Stone's Moira McCormick described the album as more of a straight-ahead rock album by the Pixies' standards
• Rolling Stone gave the album three stars out of five
• Chris Willman of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the band came off as a cross between Sonic Youth and Chris Isaak
• Jon Dolan of Blender called it "their sunniest record"
• UK magazine Select made Bossanova its album of the year for 1990

Reappraisal

• In 2025, the staff of Radio X included the album in its list of "The 10 most disappointing follow-up albums"
• Radio X said it is not a bad album in itself, but it is not as era-defining as Doolittle

Records

• Peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart
• Reached number 70 on the Billboard 200
• "Velouria" and "Dig for Fire" charted on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart at No. 4 and No. 11
• Obtained a gold disc in France and the UK, but failed to reach that level in the United States
• Included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The three band members lived in the Oakwood apartments, along with comic Garrett Morris and members of the band White Lion.
• Norton kept the amplifier hum problem from 4AD owner Ivo Watts-Russell until he felt he could fix it.
• Rick Rubin's secretary found the studio that let the band keep recording after the Cherokee problems.
• Black Francis wrote "Blown Away" in Spain in early June 1989, and the song was recorded in Berlin after a June 19 concert.
• Radio X staff listed the album among the most disappointing follow-up albums in 2025.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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