The Pixies at Portland's Roseland Theater

The Pixies are out on tour. Yes, THOSE Pixies. The alt-rock band that started in the mid-80’s, that inspired bands such as A Perfect Circle, Nirvana, Radiohead, and more. Sure, they’ve changed bass players, but aside from that, it’s still vintage Pixies.

This monster tour, with dates well into the fall of 2018 is selling out nearly every venue that they roll into. In fact, The Pixies were originally scheduled to perform one show here at Portland’s Roseland Theater. They ended up selling out three nights in a row. And, I’m certain that they could have sold out several more given the way that the Portlanders rocked with them this last Friday night.

Opening up for The Pixies here in Portland was The Orwells, a punk band from Chicago. Frontman Mario Cuomo looked a little off-kilter through most of their set, at one point losing his balance and falling off the stage. He recovered nicely, leaping to the barrier where he decided to sit for a bit. Mario tried to get into it with one of the patrons up front, saying, “You bored? Well, you’re stuck with us. Enjoy the next fifteen minutes you fuckin’ asshole.” His antics didn’t end there. During their last song, he fell to the stage, then crawled a few steps before getting back to his feet and walking off the stage. His band kept playing, with bass player Grant Brinner taking over the vocals to finish out the set.

Perhaps it’s part of their persona. Perhaps it’s just a bad attitude. Regardless, it didn’t go over well with Portland.

When the Pixies came on, so did the energy. Portland’s Roseland Theater became a beacon for the punk faithful. Opening up for their set, they came out with all guns blazing, playing their quintessential jam, “Where Is My Mind?” In fact, their setlist was nearly 30 songs deep, rocking every man, woman, and child in the venue. The stage was set up with a unique panel of trusses and lights wrapping around the back, kind of like that lighting system the earthlings used to attempt to communicate with the aliens in Independence Day. Although things didn’t play out too well for the earthlings in the film, the lighting on stage was incredible, enhancing the music and giving a deeper dimension to the performance.

During the Pixies set, there were no “Hey, remember when” stories, or “Here’s the band members” introductions. Afterall, in order to squeeze in nearly 30 songs, you have got to keep things moving. And that’s what frontman Black Francis did. Oddly enough, I didn’t see a single set list taped to the stage. In fact, there was a moment when Black Francis, Joey Santiago, and Paz Lenchantin met in front of the kit to have a little pow-wow, seemingly discussing the next song to play.

But like a well-oiled piece of machinery, the show went on. Song after song, suggestive lyric after awkward topic, The Pixies rocked Portland. Be sure to catch them in a town near you, but bring your dancing shoes. You’ll need ’em.