Defining a place in a band as celebrated as the Pixies may seem a near-impossible task, especially given that her predecessors included the likes of co-founder Kim Deal, but bassist Paz Lenchantin was up to the challenge.
For 10 years she held down the bass chair with the alt-rock icons before a seemingly acrimonious split in 2024 saw Lenchantin take her leave in order to concentrate on her own projects.
Her debut album, Triste – featuring former A Perfect Circle bandmates Troy Van Leeuwen and Josh Freese – has now been released on her own label, Hideous Human Records.
“To me this album follows a thread of all the different bands I’ve been in,” says Lenchantin. “People might only know me as the bass player in the Pixies, but my background is really diverse, so it’s like a tip of the hat to where I’ve come from.”
“After my separation from the Pixies, or whatever you want to call it – I had no idea the Hollywood Bowl show would be my last. The whole thing felt like a divorce. But when you feel broken like that the only person that's going to get you back up is yourself. That's how you build confidence.
“So I went to my studio, which I guess was more like a jam room at the time. It’s actually a beautiful recording studio, but it had been used by so many people over the years that by the time I got there everything was tangled up. I just wasn’t familiar with it as a creative space.
“I had no future plans at that point, so I kind of undid everything and put it back together again. I just got reconnected with it.”
How were the studio sessions for the album?
“I had so many song ideas stored in my phone, so I just started scrolling until I found something that I liked. My next plan was to get the piano sounding beautiful, and then I added some strings. I’m a terrible drummer, but I ended up playing some drums. Songwriting is really a science. It’s not emotional at all.”
How so?
“It can be emotional when you listen back, but when you're writing I think emotion blocks you from the truth. If you’re doing something practical like driving to work, that’s when you might stumble upon an idea that can make you start to cry. You can't summon that on demand, so when I’m in the studio I like to start with something practical.”
Can you give me an example?
“I might have a theme for every song and a word associated with it. It could be the word ‘snake’ or something that’s quite symbolic. It would also be a simple word that you can instantly start rhyming with. It’s quite a David Bowie-esque approach to songwriting, but that’s kind of how I work.”
What made you decide to start your own label?
“I couldn’t begin to imagine taking this album to another person and be like, ‘Hey, are you interested in my songs?’ That thought was making me want to quit music altogether. It just felt too vulnerable. So then I thought, ‘How about if I don't ask anybody what they think of my music? And I just do it myself?’
“Creating a label actually led to one of my proudest accomplishments in building my own website. It might not be that good, but I still can’t believe I did it. At this point in my career the music had better be fucking good, but whenever someone’s complimentary about one of my songs, I’m now sat thinking, ‘That's great, but did you check out my website!?’”
Did you feel any pressure to stretch your style?
“I don’t really feel pressure like that from other people, but there’s a fear of letting people down. Luckily, I have so much material that if one song doesn’t quite work then it gives me an opportunity to bring out another one. I love taking songs out of that initial idea phase, so failure can often create something else.”
What’s your studio bass setup? Are you still using your vintage P-Bass?
“Yes. I never would have got that bass had it not been for Billy Corgan. Once I left A Perfect Circle, I joined Zwan with Billy. I had a Fender active P-Bass at the time, but Billy told me to go out and look for something else. He just didn’t think it was the right fit. So I found this old ’70s P-Bass, which I later found out was from 1965, and I just fell in love with it.”
What advice would you give someone who's just starting out?
“As much as we like to criticize these iPhones or smartphones, they can be so good for musicians. We can capture our ideas wherever we go. It’s not like we have to quickly grab a pencil and some paper to write down an idea.
“I’m not saying everyone should start hoarding songs because it’s also knowing how to tighten things up and keep your room clean. I definitely have too many ideas, but I always like to have an abundance of something.”
What’s next for you?
“I've been wanting to put out a record of ballads. You could look at any band from Aerosmith to Black Sabbath and make the argument that it was their ballads that made them so successful. There’s something about the wonder, the intent and the melodrama that’s in those melodies.
“The challenge is really committing to that one emotion. Eventually, I’d just want to move on to a punk song or whatever.”
- Triste is out now.
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