Austinist Show Review: Frank Black at Waterloo Records

“This is the closest I’ll ever get to him,” remarked a fan as Frank Black waded his way through a gathering of collected faithful at Waterloo Records this rain hit Austin afternoon. The magic of in-store performances in the capitol has been evoked regularly by the city’s most visible record store, whether it be local icons like ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead or SxSW week imports like Doves. And, arguably, that fan was right, this is the closest the 100+ that crammed Waterloo Records would ever come to the Pixies legend. Starting off with Surfer Rosa classic, “Cactus,” Black treated the audience to a series of acoustic versions of his material, old and new, solo and not. Constantly stirring the crowd with questions and anecdotes, Black is promoting his new Americana tinged double disc, Fastman Raiderman. Soulful renditions of “I Burn Today” and (‘the song about’) “Manitoba” followed before Black truly appeased the crowd with “Where Is My Mind?” The short performance ended with some new tracks, including “Raiderman” and a plug for his evening performance at La Zona Rosa.

Photo by Freschwill on Flickr