Head Carrier
An orange-tinted photo of a fish
Studio album by
Pixies
ReleasedSeptember 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)
RecordedFebruary–March, 2016
StudioRAK Studios, London
Genre
Length33:48
Label
ProducerTom Dalgety
Pixies chronology
Indie Cindy
(2014)		 Head Carrier
(2016)		 Beneath the Eyrie
(2019)
Singles from Head Carrier
  1. "Um Chagga Lagga"
    Released: July 6, 2016
  2. "Tenement Song"
    Released: September 5, 2016
  3. "Classic Masher"
    Released: November 24, 2016
  4. "Bel Esprit"
    Released: March 17, 2017
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?5.9/10[1]
Metacritic64/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
The A.V. ClubC[4]
The Guardian[5]
The Independent[6]
Mojo[7]
NME4/5[8]
Pitchfork5.5/10[9]
Q[10]
Rolling Stone[11]
Uncut6/10[12]

Head Carrier is the sixth studio album by the American alternative rock band the Pixies, released on September 30, 2016 on Pixiesmusic and PIAS. Produced by Tom Dalgety, and recorded at RAK Studios in London, the album is the first to feature new band member Paz Lenchantin on bass guitar, who joined the band in 2014 to tour in support of its previous album, Indie Cindy.

The album's title references a cephalophore, a saint carrying his own head, more specifically St. Denis of Paris.

Background

Production started around late 2015 after finding a new producer, Tom Dalgety (replacing previous producer Gil Norton, who had worked on the Pixies last four albums). The band met with him as they were recording demos for the followup of their 2014 album Indie Cindy. Previously they had debuted a number of songs live that they were testing as potential tracks for their next album. Such tracks included "Super Lecker", "O' Little Cloud", and "Down to Tulom".[13]

This album marks the first full appearance of bassist Paz Lenchantin (formerly of A Perfect Circle and Zwan), after replacing previous bassist Kim Deal, who left the band in 2013. Lenchantin had previously been featured on the bonus track "Women of War" (a vinyl bonus track off of Indie Cindy), as well as live tracks for the deluxe edition of the same album. Lenchantin had previously been the touring bassist, but was promoted to full-time member starting with this album. She also has a writing credit and lead vocals for the song "All I Think About Now", which was written about Kim Deal and takes on the form of a thank-you letter.[14]

The album was officially announced on July 6, 2016 with the release of its first single "Um Chagga Lagga". This was followed up by a second single, "Talent", on August 17, 2016. The whole album was streamed on NPR starting on September 22, 2016.[15]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Black Francis,[16] except where noted

Head Carrier track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Head Carrier" 3:36
2."Classic Masher" 2:37
3."Baal's Back" 1:54
4."Might as Well Be Gone" 2:48
5."Oona" 3:38
6."Talent" 2:12
7."Tenement Song" 2:57
8."Bel Esprit" 3:12
9."All I Think About Now"Francis, Paz Lenchantin[14][17]3:07
10."Um Chagga Lagga" 3:00
11."Plaster of Paris" 2:06
12."All the Saints" 2:41
Total length:33:48

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[18]

Technical

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for Head Carrier
Chart (2016) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] 23
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[20] 37
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[21] 5
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[22] 14
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[23] 13
French Albums (SNEP)[24] 12
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[25] 32
Irish Albums (IRMA)[26] 31
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[27] 20
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[28] 21
Scottish Albums (OCC)[29] 5
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[30] 23
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[31] 32
UK Albums (OCC)[32] 7
US Billboard 200[33] 72

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for Head Carrier
Chart (2016) Position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[34] 135

References

  1. ↑ "Head Carrier by Pixies reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
  2. ↑ "Reviews for Head Carrier by Pixies". Metacritic. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  3. ↑ Phares, Heather. "Head Carrier – Pixies". AllMusic. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  4. ↑ Colburn, Randall (September 30, 2016). "Pixies sound confident on Head Carrier, but the music lacks personality". The A.V. Club. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  5. ↑ Mumford, Gwilym (September 29, 2016). "Pixies: Head Carrier review – indie-rock veterans fail to match past glories". The Guardian. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  6. ↑ Gill, Andy (September 28, 2016). "Album reviews: Drive-by Truckers, Van Morrison, Bon Iver, Pixies, Regina Spektor and more". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-05-09. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  7. ↑ Perry, Andrew (October 2016). "Capo di tutti". Mojo (275): 90.
  8. ↑ Beaumont, Mark (September 28, 2016). "Pixies – 'Head Carrier' Review". NME. Archived from the original on October 3, 2016. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  9. ↑ Berman, Stuart (October 6, 2016). "Pixies: Head Carrier". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  10. ↑ Doherty, Niall (November 2016). "Black Magic". Q (365): 109.
  11. ↑ Harris, Keith (September 30, 2016). "Review: Pixies' 'Head Carrier' Features New Bassist, Old Sound". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  12. ↑ Bonner, Michael (October 2016). "Pixies: Head Carrier". Uncut (233): 37.
  13. ↑ Grow, Kory (June 2, 2015). "See Pixies Play 'Planet of Sound,' New Song 'Um Chagga Lagga'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 10, 2016.
  14. 1 2 Hogan, Marc (August 4, 2016). "Pixies' Black Francis and Paz Lenchantin On Head Carrier and Replacing Kim Deal'". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 10, 2016.
  15. ↑ Heller, Jason (September 22, 2016). "First Listen: Pixies, 'Head Carrier'". NPR. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  16. ↑ "United States Copyright Office Public Catalog ". cocatalog.loc.gov. Retrieved on August 17, 2020.
  17. ↑ Lach, Stef (July 14, 2016). "Pixies' new album Head Carrier includes 'thank-you letter' to Kim Deal". Classic Rock. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Pixies: Head Carrier". Discogs.com. Retrieved on August 17, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Pixies – Head Carrier". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Pixies – Head Carrier" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Pixies – Head Carrier" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Pixies – Head Carrier" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
  23. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Pixies – Head Carrier" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
  24. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Pixies – Head Carrier". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  25. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Pixies – Head Carrier" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  26. ↑ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 41, 2016". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  27. ↑ "Charts.nz – Pixies – Head Carrier". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  28. ↑ "Portuguesecharts.com – Pixies – Head Carrier". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 18, 2016.
  29. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  30. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Pixies – Head Carrier". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  31. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Pixies – Head Carrier". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
  32. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
  33. ↑ "Pixies Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  34. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 2016 Albums". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
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