Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Blender
Chicago Tribune
Entertainment Weekly	A−
Los Angeles Times
NME	9/10
Pitchfork Media	9.1/10
Q
Rolling Stone
The Village Voice	A

Bossanova is the third studio album by the American rock band Pixies. It was released in August 13, 1990 on the English independent record label 4AD in the United Kingdom and by Elektra Records in the United States. All of Bossanova's original material was written by the band's frontman Black Francis; this was a first for a Pixies album, but he has written all of their songs since. The album's sound, inspired by surf rock and space rock, complements its lyrical focus on outer space, which references subjects such as aliens and unidentified flying objects.

Because of 4AD's independent status, major label Elektra Records handled distribution in the United States; Bossanova reached number 70 on the Billboard 200. The album peaked at number three in the UK Albums Chart. Two singles were released from Bossanova, "Velouria" and "Dig for Fire"; both charted on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart, at #4 and #11, respectively.

After Pixies finished touring obligations for their second album Doolittle (1989) in January 1990, band members Black Francis, Joey Santiago, and David Lovering moved from Boston to Los Angeles. Bassist Kim Deal meanwhile stayed in the UK to record the first Breeders album during January with producer Steve Albini. Deal ultimately decided to travel out to Los Angeles with the rest of the group. Lovering stated that he, Santiago, and Black Francis moved to Los Angeles because that's where they intended to record. The three band members lived in the Oakwood apartments, along with comic Garrett Morris and members of the band White Lion. Producer Gil Norton also moved into the apartment complex.

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Wikipedia