“Mr. Grieves” by the Pixies, has everything that a song should, but is still able to confine itself within a two minute time span.
The song begins with echoing percussion and singular guitar notes, plucked and then quickly abandoned. Frank Black comes in singing, “Hope everything is alright…” in a manner that I only accept from the Pixies: conveying emotional depth, yet they refrain from being overbearing.
Then Black sings two lines, “What’s the floating in the water? Old Neptuna’s only daughter.” The visual is unsettling. It conjures the imagery of a mythological god’s child who has died and been left floating to wherever the sea will take her.
Then the drums perk up. They sound like a surf pop beat from the early 60s, leaving you wondering what just happened.
The lyrics and pacing of the rest of the song vary, including a “la la la” section, more questions, bass scales, changing drums, etc. The confusion I first experienced when listening to this song, and continue to experience, is why I enjoy it. Not all of the lyrical or compositional choices make sense to me, but that’s what I like about it. If I can predict the next lyric, line or note the first time I hear a song, there’s no purpose in listening. I still feel like something might surprise me between the first and last notes of “Mr. Grieves” and that is ultimately why it is my favorite song ever, this week.
