Maps of Music

Doggerel (2022)

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

Pixies' eighth album was partly built at home: the pandemic interrupted the recording sessions, so band members worked on tracks in their own houses.

Key places

Where the album was recorded (2022)

Recording site Guilford Sound — The band recorded the album at Guilford Sound, an eco-friendly studio in Guilford, Vermont, with producer Tom Dalgety. The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted the sessions, so members also worked on tracks at home. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Doggerel is the eighth studio album by American alternative rock band Pixies
• Released September 30, 2022, by Infectious Music and BMG Rights Management
• Produced by Tom Dalgety
• Preceded by the singles 'There's a Moon On', 'Vault of Heaven' and 'Dregs of the Wine'
• Final album with bassist and backing vocalist Paz Lenchantin, who left the band in March 2024 after extensive touring in support of the album

Background

• Some tracks grew from a large number of demos Black Francis recorded after the band's previous album, Beneath the Eyrie (2019)
• Black Francis said the band were trying to do things that are very big, bold and orchestrated
• Joey Santiago said the band no longer write under two-minute songs and now use more conventional arrangements with their own twists
• First Pixies album with songwriting credits for Santiago: music for 'Dregs of the Wine' and lyrics for 'Pagan Man'
• 'Pagan Man' was the last song recorded for the album

Recording

• The band recorded the album at Guilford Sound, an eco-friendly studio in Guilford, Vermont, with producer Tom Dalgety
• The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted recording, so members worked on tracks at their homes
• The making of the album was filmed for a short documentary released in June 2022
• Dave Snyder and Matt Hall assisted with engineering; Robin Schmidt mastered the album

Cover

• Cover design by Chris Bigg; photography by Martin Masai Andersen

Sources: en.wikipedia.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

• Metacritic gave the album 73 out of 100 from twelve critics, indicating generally favorable reception
• The Skinny (Jamie Wilde): the band offer fans something more conventional, sophisticated and orchestrated than their late-1980s output
• The Skinny (Jamie Wilde): some choruses, such as on 'Vault of Heaven', verge on feeling bland, but Black Francis still has plenty to say
• The Line of Best Fit (Christopher Hamilton-Peach): the album has an abundance of riffs and rockabilly nods and brings back bittersweet peaks and ironic edge
• The Line of Best Fit (Christopher Hamilton-Peach): calls 'The Lord Has Come Back Today' an upbeat ditty
• Loud and Quiet (Ben Lynch): calls it the best Pixies record since they've reformed, with a range of styles from furious grunge to acoustic pop swoons
• Louder Than War (Iain Key): named it Album of the Week and called it an instant album that should please fans young and old
• Louder Than War (Iain Key): Dave Lovering's drumming stays taut and powerful, with Paz Lenchantin now established on bass
• Pitchfork (Stephen Thomas Erlewine): nothing about the album sounds youthful; the band relies on chops instead of accidents to thrill
• Pitchfork (Stephen Thomas Erlewine): the band is now built for comfort rather than speed
• PopMatters (Jay Honeycomb): a mixed review; the talent is audible but muted under a comfortable blanket of ennui
• Sonic Seducer: nine staff writers gave mixed results, with some calling the album fresh and others dull and monotonous
• Sonic Seducer (Kym Gnuch): complained that many songs sound like CCR, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and other 1970s blues rock legends

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The band's final album with Paz Lenchantin, who left in March 2024 after extensive touring in support of the album.
• The album marks the first time Joey Santiago received songwriting credits on a Pixies album.
• The making of the album was filmed for a short documentary released in June 2022.
• The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted recording, so members worked on tracks at their homes.
• German magazine Sonic Seducer published reviews from nine staff writers, with mixed results.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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