In March, Pixies announced that Emma Richardson had joined the alt-rock outfit as their new bass guitar player following the departure of low-end stalwart Paz Lenchantin.
Since her appointment, the Band of Skulls bassist has performed numerous live shows with Pixies, and recently released her first single with the group – the AA-side single You’re So Impatient / Que Sera Sera.
Speaking in an upcoming interview with Bass Player and Guitar World – her first since joining Pixies – Richardson reflected on how she ended up landing the Pixies position, and revealed the significant technique tweak she had to adopt in order to prepare for the role.
“It was through a mutual friend of ours called [producer] Tom Dalgety, who I've worked with before in my previous band,” Richardson says of her recruitment. “He mentioned that they might be looking for someone.
“I ended up speaking with Charles [Black Francis] and their management. I was around and available to work with them. It was a nice connection to have a mutual friend and link between us.”
Before she could hit the ground running, though, Richardson had to re-evaluate her approach to playing. Specifically, she had to alter the way she actually played the bass guitar.
That alteration involved playing with a guitar pick. Previously, Richardson had been a traditionalist, using solely her fingers to pluck her bass strings. However, for the Pixies gig she was forced to pick up a pick, something she had rarely done before.
“One of the major things was switching from playing with my fingers to a pick,” she says. “I'd never played with a pick before, really, much at all. That was a big shift.”
The change-up led to some interesting sonic results, and now Richardson says she will employ both styles in future.
“I kind of love it. I wouldn't look back now,” she continues. “It's nice to be able to do both. You can get a really great sound with a pick, and you can play at speed. Obviously, the Pixies sound is iconic, so it's sticking true to that.”
Keep an eye on GuitarWorld.com for the full interview with Emma Richardson.
