Debaser
{{Short description|1997 single by Pixies}}
{{for|another use|Debaser (rap group)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Debaser
| cover = Debaser (Pixies single - cover art).jpg
| alt =
| border = yes
| caption = Cover of the Debaser: Studio single.
| type = single
| artist = Pixies
| album = Doolittle
| A-side = Debaser
| B-side = "Bone Machine", "Gigantic", "Isla de Encanta"
| released = {{Start date|1997|07|21}}
| recorded =
| studio = Downtown Recorders (Boston, Massachusetts)
| genre = Alternative rock
| length = {{Duration|m=2|s=52}}
| label = Elektra
| writer = Black Francis
| producer = Gil Norton
| prev_title = Head On
| prev_year = 1991
| next_title = Bam Thwok
| next_year = 2004
| misc = {{Audio sample
| type = single
| file = Debaser.ogg
}}{{External music video|{{YouTube|PVyS9JwtFoQ|"Debaser"}}}}
}}
"Debaser" is a song by American alternative rock band Pixies, released in April 1989 as the opening track on their album Doolittle and later as a promotional single following the dissolution of the band.{{cite web |last=Franks |first=Alison |date=January 30, 2010 |title=Dusting 'Em Off: Pixies – Doolittle |url=https://consequence.net/2010/01/dusting-em-off-pixies-doolittle/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921205147/https://consequence.net/2010/01/dusting-em-off-pixies-doolittle/ |archive-date=September 21, 2022 |website=Consequence}}
Releases
The band's 1991 "Head On" single includes a live version of "Debaser" recorded in Chicago on August 9, 1989. The album version of the song was later released as a single in 1997 to promote the Death to the Pixies compilation. A live recording from December 16, 2004, in New York City appears on "Hey" – Live Pixies 2004–2005.
A version of this song was also used in the game DJ Hero 2, remixed with The Prodigy's song "Invaders Must Die"; this mix is available as downloadable content for the game.
Lyrics and meaning
The lyrics of "Debaser" are based on Un Chien Andalou, a 1929 short film by Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí. The film includes a scene in which a woman's eye is apparently cut open by a razor, which is referenced in the lyric "slicin' up eyeballs." According to frontman and songwriter Black Francis:{{cite web|url=http://dag.wieers.com/debaser/debaser.php|title=About Debaser|access-date=December 13, 2014}} – Black Francis, translated from a Spanish interview
{{blockquote|I wish Buñuel were still alive. He made this film about nothing in particular. The title itself is a nonsense. With my stupid, pseudo-scholar, naive, enthusiast, avant-garde-ish, amateurish way to watch Un chien andalou (twice), I thought: "Yeah, I will make a song about it." [He sings:] "Un chien andalou"... It sounds too French, so I will sing "un chien andalusia", it sounds good, no?}}
The title "Debaser" references the fact that Un Chien Andalou "debases" contemporary morality and standards of art: "I guess it means: one who debases. A debaser. It was an attempt to introduce a new word into the lexicon, but I don’t think it’s been successful, else I would have heard about it."{{cite web |last=Pelley |first=Rich |date=February 3, 2022 |title=Pixies frontman Black Francis: 'Kim Deal? We're always friends – but nothing is for ever' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/feb/03/pixies-frontman-black-francis-kim-deal-were-always-friends-but-nothing-is-for-ever |access-date=February 3, 2022 |work=The Guardian}}
In the earliest version of the song, the line "un chien andalusia" was originally "Shed, Apollonia!", a reference to a scene from Purple Rain.{{cite book|last=Sisario|first=Ben|author-link=Ben Sisario|title=Doolittle|publisher=Continuum|location=New York|isbn=0-8264-1774-4|series=33⅓|date=2006|page=80}}
Track listing
Debaser – Demo
- "Debaser" (Demo) – 2:59
- "No. 13 Baby" (Demo) – 3:10
Debaser – Live
- "Debaser" (Live in Chicago, August 10, 1989) – 2:44
- "Holiday Song" (Live in Chicago, August 10, 1989) – 2:10
- "Cactus" (Live in Chicago, August 10, 1989) – 2:27
- "Nimrod's Son" (Live in Chicago, August 10, 1989) – 3:08
Debaser – Studio
- "Debaser" – 2:52
- "Bone Machine" (Live in Netherlands, 1990) – 3:03
- "Gigantic" (Live in Netherlands, 1990) – 3:24
- "Isla de Encanta" (Live in Netherlands, 1990) – 1:44
Charts
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
!Chart (1997) !Peak |
| {{single chart|UKsinglesbyname|23|artist=Pixies|access-date=August 7, 2017}} |
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Pixies|title=Debaser|award=Silver|relyear=2004|certyear=2023|id=19332-1060-1|access-date=September 29, 2023}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|noshipments=true|streaming=true}}
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{Pixies}}
{{authority control}}
Category:Songs written by Black Francis
Category:Elektra Records singles