It’s been five years since the Pixies got back together, and despite various rumors and false starts, there’s still not a whole lot of hope they’ll put out their long-awaited fifth album anytime soon.

But fans still have a reason to be happy: they’ll soon be treated to a swagged-out box set (appropriately given the larger-than-life moniker Minotaur) that will contain the Pixies’ entire catalog (four albums and one EP), a book, a concert DVD that includes every music video, and more. But Pixies bassist (and frontwoman for the Breeders, whose Fate to Fatal EP dropped this week) Kim Deal tells the Music Mix that she doesn’t see Minotaur as a celebration of their music, necessarily. In fact, she says it’s not about the band at all. Minotaur is about one man, and one man only: Vaughan Oliver, the graphic designer behind the iconic album artwork for the Pixies and nearly every ’80′s release from the famed British indie label 4AD. Find out why — among many other things — in a somewhat wacky Q&A after the jump.

READ FULL STORY »

Unless and until the Pixies’ on-again/off-again reunion leads to any more new recordings, fans will have to content themselves with listening to the four awesome albums (and one awesome EP) that the alt-rock pioneers released between 1987 and 1991. At least we’ll have a new way to enjoy that catalog this June 15, when the Pixies release a comprehensive box set titled Minotaur. For $175, they’ll give you the Come On Pilgrim EP, Surfer Rosa, Doolittle, Bossanova, and Trompe le Monde, all with newly expanded artwork, plus a book and a DVD with a 1991 concert and all of the band’s videos. For $450, serious collectors can purchase a limited edition that includes all that as well as the five releases on audiophile-quality vinyl, a bigger book, more artwork, a Giclee print, and so on.

Both options sound very nice — though I’ll admit the prices feel a little steep for something that doesn’t involve any remastering or (so far) any confirmed bonus tracks. Still, visuals were such a critical part of those Pixies albums that it would be a mistake to underestimate how cool the new art could be. What do you say? Will you consider shelling out for either edition of Minotaur, or are you happy with that scratched-up CD you bought in 1990?

More from EW’s Music Mix:
What was the 1980s’ best year for music?
Will you buy the new Beatles remasters?
Neil Young Archives: They’re really coming this summer