December 19, 1990, was a night I will most probably, unless begged by
some random, catastrophic brain injury, never forget. On that precious
evening a friend and I attended a concert that, and I declare this with
the utmost sincerity, was nothing less than pure magic.
Kicking off the night was an almost unheard of band called Primus. They
were young, eccentric and so ridiculously talented and precise,
predictions of superstardom swept through the crowd. The closing act
was Jane's Addiction, a fierce beast of a band bent on
self-destruction. It was the infamous "Birkenstock" show that ended
about one-third of the way through their set because some overzealous
and inconsiderate attendee threw a sandal in the general vicinity of
Perry Farrell's head. Farrell's classic line "... the guy threw a
Birkenstock! I mean this guy is a real moron. He doesn't even
understand fashion," will forever be lodged in the rock 'n' roll
creases of my mind.
But it was another band on the verge of collapse, a band barely held
together by the unlikely bookends of Primus, and Jane's Addiction, that
truly took top honor that glorious evening at the Hollywood Palladium.
The Pixies put on a show that even today, nearly 18 years later, stands
up to the test of time.
The musical genius and founding member of the Pixies, Black Francis
(aka Frank Black) will grace the willing stage of Aspen's own Belly Up
on Monday, July 7.
Although he is known primarily for his work with the Pixies in the late
'80s and early '90s, he has performed steadily as a solo artist for
years. Born Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV, the singer has
recently decided to revert back to his Pixies-era stage name, Black
Francis. This change came after nearly a decade and a half where he was
only referred to as Frank Black.
Black has been a remarkably prolific solo artist since the Pixies
disbanded in 1993, releasing 16 albums. He also recorded another album
he titled "Sunday Sunny Mill Valley Groove Day," but it was never
released. If anybody out there has a bootleg copy, I know a certain
music columnist who would be very keen on borrowing it.
Currently, Black is touring in support of his latest effort, a mini-LP
called "SVN FNGRS," which boasts seven songs in a mere 20 minutes. The
strange format probably does not come as a surprise to his fans that
know him to be one of the more eccentric artists of the last two
decades.
"SVN FNGRS" is the follow-up to 2007's "Bluefinger," which was Black's
most outstanding release in a long time, probably since the 1994 album
"Teenager of the Year," which he put out with his solo band Frank Black
and the Catholics. Although you can never tell with an artist like
Black, Monday's show at Belly Up will probably consist of songs off his
last two discs along with a liberal dash of tunes he wrote with the
Pixies.
The current tour has Black opening for the newly reunited Stone Temple
Pilots (they played the Red Rocks Amphitheater on July 2), with only a
handful of headlining dates. Fortunately, Aspen is one, with Omaha,
Neb., and Oakland Calif., rounding out the list.
Onstage, Black is capable of anything from easy going, happy and
laidback to fiery and unpredictable. He puts on the kind of show that
makes the audience feel like they are witnessing something rare, like
they are somehow privileged. He doesn't stick to the gig guide either;
for example he once did a show where he performed a very different
version of the Pixies' "Wave of Mutilation" only to return for his
encore and play it again as it was heard on the record.
Brilliant, unique, beautiful and sometimes demented, the music of Black
Francis is, if it were possible, just like touching genius.
hood@aspendailynews.com
