Editor’s Note: The Albumism staff has selected what we believe to be the 100 Most Dynamic Debut Albums Ever Made, representing a varied cross-section of genres, styles and time periods. Click “Next Album” below to explore each album or view the full album index here.
PIXIES | Surfer Rosa
4AD (1988) | Listen Below
Selected by Brian Grosz
It’s a bold move to release your debut album with a half-naked woman on the cover, but I knew I had to have the album, because they were the most magnificent breasts I had/have ever seen. I still have a poster of that album cover hanging in my living room.
You can hear the walls of the recording room with every snare hit. Frank Black screams like an abuela with night terrors while Kim Deal manages to harmonize beautifully with him. Joey Santiago finds guitar lines that are both horrifically angular and magnificently simplistic while David Lovering whacks away with the brilliant simplicity of a Ringo.
Hell, my high school punk band wrote a song about Fabio that was a direct nod to “Tony’s Theme” and later in life, I covered “Cactus” as a solo artist. It’s an album of intense depth conveyed through filthy understatement.
There’s a reason why “Where is My Mind?” closes out the film Fight Club. As we watch the world crumble, it’s important to push air, make sound, and question our sanity.
LISTEN: