When I saw the line up for Siren Fest I was really only excited for Monotonix and Spankrock. The rest of the bands I had either not heard of, or didn’t want to see.  I was extremely pleasantly surprised when I found out that Grand Duchy was Frank Black’s new project with his wife Violet Clark.  Not only am I a big Pixies fan but ever since Teddy Blanks did his cover Frank Black’s song Headache I have been getting more into Black’s solo work.  I was actually really impressed with Grand Duchy.  I think it is easy to point at Violet Clark as a just replacement for Kim Deal and it seems Grand Duchy is a little bit of a return to the Pixies sound, I think she stands out as a very solid performer and their chemistry is great.  I also talked to her a bit back stage and she was super nice and I met one of their kids.  Who had just been propositioned by a kids modeling agent. They were all really cute together, as you can see. But for me Grand Duchy was the big surprise of the festival and they were fantastic.

Also on a personal note, I have to say that the Pixies were really a huge part of my musical development.  This neighbor of mine who was older than me and who I had the biggest crush on ever made me a tape of the Pixies Dolittle when I was in the 6th or 7th grade.  They quickly became one of my favorite bands and were really the first band I listened to that none of my friends knew about.  They aren’t exactly an underground band, but they seemed like it to me…

So click here to see all the Grand Duchy photos from the Siren Music Festival.

Also an added bonus; Teddy Blanks cover of Frank Black’s Headache.

Teddy Blanks – Headache (Frank Black)

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