Pixies' David Lovering talks reunion, his childhood dreams and how to become a magician ahead of their headline Birmingham Show

Pixies split in 1993 leaving the band to go their separate ways and indulge in their own personal hobbies, before reuniting in 2004. Twenty years since their formation, Pixies are touring their latest full length album Head Carrier across the UK with a date at Birmingham's O2 Academy. Drummer David Lovering tells us about his trepidation of touring the album:

"It's been a long time since we released and toured Indie Cindy and there is a lot of differences between the two albums.

"I found the audience seemed to like Head Carrier a lot more! Everything is going seamlessly, I couldn't be more pleased"

Sine re-uniting it's not just new music that has rejuvenated Pixies, line-up changes has brought about a brand new outlook and enthusiasm to the band:

"We're still doing what we love doing that has never changed. The main thing that has changed is that we're getting along so much better. One reason I say this is become we have Paz (Lenchantin) our new bassist.

"She's a joy to be around and she's a wonderful player. She's certainly made me play better as I don't want to be embarrassed around her!"

With a brand new outlook and music under their belt, Pixies took to the stage once more – but had the audience changed also?

"The audience is definitely the biggest difference since we've returned, back in the day we had a totally different audience consisting of people up to my age, we first got back onstage at Coachella in 2004 and all I could see was a sea of kids out there who knew all of the words to all of our songs.

"In 2014 we did Coachella and it was the same see of kids only not, because those kids had grown up and this was a new generation.

"It was amazing, the age of our audience is just all over the place, I always say we're like the Grateful Dead of alternative rock!"

Pixies have gone on a journey as a unit, but so have their members respectively and none more than David Lovering – achieving his childhood dreams, branching out musically and becoming a magician.

"When I was 18 I said I wanted to be a rock star, become an electrical engineer and tour with Rush.

"I've been in a rock band, a few actually; I became an electrical engineer when I graduated school. I joined Pixies and then after I joined a band called Cracked, who were asked by Rush to open up for them!

"Sadly we didn't do the gig, It was funny how close that predication got to becoming true, and then I became a magician

"I learnt a lot of what I know (about magic) from books, videos and other magicians. My stage show the Scientific Phenomenalist has taken a backseat at the moment because of focusing on the Pixies. I suppose being a magician isn't the wisest career choice afterall, but I still love it.

"For 13 years I've worked on my knowledge, I've put a lot of work and love into it. It may come back, I still have some great ideas.

"After the Pixies broke up, and I stopped playing drums because it just wasn't what I enjoyed anymore I wanted to branch out.

"I got involved with Cracked, The Martinis and others to do something different and just to have fun rather than work like I had been, and then the Pixies reformed and by that time my spark and passion for the drums had been re-ignited, everything just came full circle."

And now, they're returning to Birmingham once more, a town close to the band's hearts

"We've played Birmingham a bunch of times, we're always treated so well there.

"It's like our second home and we always know it's just going to be a great show there.

"This show in Birmingham will be our last show of the tour, we're going to have had a lot of practice by then so it's bound to be a big one."

-By Becci Stanley