AV PICK * Friday, March 7

THE BREEDERS

It’s been a long time. Way too long. It was in 1988 that the Pixies’ Kim Deal and Throwing Muses’ Tanya Donelly first collaborated while on tour together (the Muses opening for the Pixies, post-Surfer Rosa). What came out of that was the idea for a reincarnation of the Breeders, a band Kim and her twin sister Kelly Deal formed in Dayton, Ohio, before Kim came into Pixies fame. The Breeders evolved to include both the Deal sisters and Donelly, with Josephine Wiggs of the Perfect Disaster and Slint drummer Britt Walford (playing under an assumed name). This foursome—with the addition of violinist Carrie Bradley—recorded the Breeders’ first release, Pod, in 1990. After Pod was released the Pixies broke up (for a while), Tanya Donelly left to front the band Belly and Walford quit too. This left Kim and Kelly, with Josephine Wiggs on bass and the addition of drummer Jim MacPherson, and it was with this lineup that the Breeders struck gold. The album Last Splash was released in 1993, and its accompanying hit “Cannonball” shot the Breeders straight to the top of the charts. It remains as one of the defining songs of 90s alternative rock. (Chances are, if you’re reading this, the opening bass line is already playing in your head, where it’s likely to remain for the rest of the day). After making a big splash with Last Splash, the Breeders toured with Nirvana, sold a couple million records and released another album, Title TK, in 2002. Then they broke up. Kim went on to front the Amps with MacPherson—a good band, too, but not one that saw anywhere near the same level of success. And that was that, until this year, which marks the 20th anniversary of the Breeders and the release of Mountain Battles, a 4AD set featuring original members Kim and Kelly, and the sound we’ve been missing for so, so long.

—k. o’day

7pm (doors). Club Infinity, 8166 Main St., Williamsville (565-0110/clubinfinitylive.com). $20 advance (box office, Macy’s, Ticketmaster) or $22 day of show