"Debaser" is a song by American
alternative rock
Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
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.
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
''DJ Hero 2'' is a 2010 rhythm game developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision. It is the sequel to ''DJ Hero'' (2009), a spin-off (media), spin-off of the ''Guitar Hero'' series. The game was released worldwide in October 2010 for ...
'', remixed with
The Prodigy
The Prodigy are an English electronic music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboardist, and songwriter Liam Howlett. The original line-up also featured
Rapping, MC and vocalist Maxim (musician), Maxim, dancer and occasi ...
'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
Luis Buñuel Portolés (; 22 February 1900 – 29 July 1983) was a Spanish and Mexican filmmaker who worked in France, Mexico and Spain. He has been widely considered by many film critics, historians and directors to be one of the greatest and ...
and
Salvador Dalí
Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (11 May 190423 January 1989), known as Salvador Dalí ( ; ; ), was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, ...
. 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
Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV (born April 6, 1965), better known by the stage name Black Francis, is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He is the frontman of the alternative rock band Pixies. Following the band's break ...
:
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."
In the earliest version of the song, the line "''un chien andalusia''" was originally "Shed,
Apollonia!", a reference to a scene from ''
Purple Rain''.
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
A cactus (: cacti, cactuses, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae (), a family of the order Caryophyllales comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 known species. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, ...
" (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
Certifications
References
{{authority control
1997 singles
Pixies (band) songs
Songs written by Black Francis
Elektra Records singles
1989 songs
Song recordings produced by Gil Norton
Music based on films
Adaptations of works by Luis Buñuel