I'll admit it. I'm not cool. I discovered the Pixies back in '99, six years after their breakup. Their most famous song, "Where is My Mind", soundtracked the climax in Fight Club. The song was so otherworldly, so magnetically creepy that I bought all their albums, including a collection of rarities. When I discovered that Frank Black and Co. covered the theme song from a relatively obscure NES game from my childhood, my inner music geek and inner video game dork gave each other an epic high five.
The original theme tune was written by Brian Schmidt, who has also composed music for several dozen pinball games. "Theme from Narc" was released as a B-side to "Planet of Sound", which was also included on the Trompe le Monde full length. The song comprehensively illustrates why the Pixies the Best Band Ever: simple, metronomic drumming, schizophrenic guitar flourishes, relentless bass riffs, and a quirky sense of humor.
"Theme From NARC doesn't really have a chorus. I thought it was pretty cool, because the chord progression in it is completely fucked up. It isn't standard rock n roll progression." - Black Francis in Rock A My Soul fanzine #2
Awesome. Here's the original version. Just watch the first few minutes.
During my search for the original song, I found this amazing vintage ad. Can you imagine it running today?