Hello my friends! The Meista here with a pairing for you Pixies fans out there! In this late hour I'm pairing the Pixies' wonderful 1989 album, "Doolittle" and a Lagunitas India Pale Ale (IPA). Oh, and I'm throwing this one out to my buddy Jason Esplin... cheers my friend!
As you may have gathered, I'm into a lot of different musical styles, but the underlying theme is usually innovation and originality. In my senior year of high school a very eclectic, innovative, and original band released what I consider their best album... "Doolittle." Surrealistic, somewhat biblical, catastrophic, always sexy, and truly "alternative"... all characteristics of the beautifully insane "Doolittle" album by the Pixies (originally titled "Whore.") Black Francis was once quoted as stating, "I thought people were going to think I was some kind of anti-Catholic or that I'd been raised Catholic and trying to get into this Catholic naughty-boy stuff. [...] A monkey with a halo, calling it Whore, that would bring all kinds of shit that wouldn't be true. So I said I'd change the title." There are elements of 1950s rock and roll and do-wop as well as 1970s punk and New Wave. You can almost taste the Hüsker Dü-stylings in some of the songs. Opening track "Debaser" is musical perfection... fast, poppy, and wonderfully aggressive! The interplay between Black Francis' "harsh" vocals and Kim Deal's silky smooth and sexy voice is brilliant! And Deal's bass work is perfection! Joey Santiago is an incredibly underrated guitar player... innovative and intense. And David Lovering brings an honest anger to his overall drumming on the album, as well as his singing and bass work on "Silver." Deal played slide guitar on "Silver"... the only time she did to my recollection So many great songs on this album... "I Bleed" alone is pure genius! "Monkey Gone to Heaven" examines man's destruction of the world and his struggle to fit into his world's destruction. "Wave of Mutilation" deals with Japanese businessmen committing murder-suicide. And "Mr. Grieves" examines man's obsession with death and destruction. And how about "No. 13 Baby"? What a fantastic song!! Finale "Gouge Away" is dark perfection. PJ Harvey described "Doolittle" as "amazing." And I couldn't agree more!
Speaking of amazing... with such a sharp and poignant album as "Doolittle" you need an equally sharp beer... which of course means a very bitter and hoppy IPA in this man's book! Lagunitas IPA has a "raging hop character" that fits perfectly with the qualities of "Doolittle." With a nose as skunky as Kim Deal's water bong, Lagunitas IPA smacks you right in the face with its hop intensity. Poured in a "large mouth," Lagunitas' Mason jar, this IPA looks just like clover honey... golden perfection with a 1-finger head that shows strong and sustained lacing. The flavor is floral, bitter, and biting. It tastes just like "Doolittle" my friends... or at least like Santiago guitar work! You love it, but you know it is mocking you! There are notes of summer grass, pine resin, and bitter roots. I may be almost falling-down drunk, but this is a wonderful beer for a wonderful album. As the label on my bottle of Lagunitas IPA states, "Life is uncertain, Don't Sip!"
Cheers!!
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