Photographed for SPIN in Eugene, Oregon, February 28, 2009

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About Our Hosts With ve kids between them, it’s a wonder that Charles Thompson (a.k.a. Black Francis) and his wife, Violet Clark, found the time to create Petit Fours (Cooking Vinyl), their playful, synth-drenched Grand Duchy debut. “We write in the car on the way to the studio,” he admits. Their domestic bliss has mellowed the Pixies frontman, 44, and helped him come to terms with his legacy. “When I met him, it was the ‘P-word,’ ” says Clark, 36. “But we’ve come a long way. We’re all friends on Facebook now.”

SPIN.COM LOVES YOU FOR WHO YOU ARE JUNE 2009 39