Black’s early work recalls the Pixies Trompe Le Monde, offering the insight that he never really stopped being Pixie-like, he just got tired of working with Kim Deal, Dave Lovering, and Joey Santiago for a while. And yet, there is enough diversity in this compilation to engage an introductory listener and leave longtime fans of his band wondering, “what if?”
Cuts like the edgy, metallic “Los Angeles,” the Stooges-like “Ten Percenter” and dreamy-pop precision of “Headache” show Black at his best. Other lesser-known gems like “Robert Onion,” “I Want to Live on an Abstract Plain” (from the sublime Teenager of the Year) and “I Gotta Move” from the first Catholics album shows a mindful leaning toward more odd time signatures and garage punk. And “Western Star” from his album Pistolero? Well, it’s like icing on this alt-rock cake to this reviewer.
Make that a two-story cake: Black offers a second disc of live material with this release, offering minor set alterations to each depending which version you buy. In the end, this portion of the compilation proves that there’s plenty of new ground to cover and that Black hasn’t done all he’s intended to yet... with or without the other three Pixies, this iconoclast has a noise in his head that will always keep you guessing.
So what’s next? Beyond ten more years, it’s anyone’s guess.
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