PIXIES LEFT TO RIGHT: Kim Deal, David Lovering, Black Francis, Joey Santiago (Handout)

Breaking up might have been the best thing that happened to the Pixies.

"It was a blessing in disguise," claims guitarist Joey Santiago. "When we split in 1993, we ended with such a bang. We ended with an exclamation point, not a little comma.

"But that was the way it had to be. That's the way I figure it, anyway. If that hadn't happened then, this probably wouldn't be happening now. And now, things are good. So I can't complain."

Fair enough. Seven years after burying the hatchet, the 45-year-old Santiago and his bandmates -- frontman and chief songwriter Charles (Black Francis/Frank Black) Thompson, bassist-vocalist Kim Deal and drummer David Lovering -- still haven't worn out their welcome.

Although they've released just one new tune since reuniting, their Gen X fan base happily turns up to hear alt-rock staples like Debaser, Wave of Mutilation, Monkey Gone to Heaven and Here Comes Your Man.

Over the next month, faithful Canucks will hit the mother lode as the band crosses the country with its Doolittle theatre tour, playing their top-selling 1989 album from front to back -- and playing multiple shows in some cities due to demand. Before packing up his pedals for Canada, the low-key Santiago called up from L.A. to jaw about reworking the past, sharing a dressing room and baby-stepping toward new music.

This is kind of your 25th anniversary as a band -- and kind of not, since you were apart for 11 years. How do you think of it?

Is it 25 years? Wow. Well, time's flying, that's for sure. I just think it's amazing that people still find our music relevant. I feel lucky.

You've been together longer now than you were the first time around. How are things different?

We've all matured. We just know how to enjoy things now. The first time, we felt the pressure more. We recorded five albums in five years. That was pretty much breakneck speed. We could have taken more breaks, but we just kept going. This time, we're just touring, we aren't making any music. So there's more of a comfort zone.

Everybody is waiting for a new album. Isn't that a source of pressure?

Nah. That will happen when it happens. At this point, there's nothing planned, nothing solidified. I do think we're taking baby steps towards it. But I also think it requires one giant step. So who knows? It will definitely take a lot of work. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

How long you can go without new material before the band becomes stale?

I haven't really thought about that. And that's a scary thought. This is the bread and butter for me. It's my security blanket. I have to be kind of careful with it. It would be so hard for me to start a new band from scratch. That's something I don't look forward to at all.

Why play Doolittle in its entirety instead of one of the other albums?

It was a combination of a lot of things back in 2009. We noticed it was the 20th anniversary of the album. People still liked the music. And we haven't done a proper tour with our own production. We'd just played a bunch of festivals. So we thought, 'Let's get back into theatres and put on a show.' We just wanted to have a cool vibe and better sound.

Is Doolittle your favourite Pixies album?

You know, I have an affinity for Bossanova for some reason. It's got a warm, fuzzy sound. I thought it was a beautiful record. Really, all of them are good. But Doolittle was a landmark. And it was really a painless recording. We had already tested a lot of the songs on the road. So we just went into the studio and bashed it out in 10 days or so.

Are you playing the songs note-for-note or reworking them?

The only thing I do on my end is play with the sonics a little more -- put some fuzz here, a wah there, liven it up a bit. But as far as the parts are concerned, they're pretty much set in stone. People sing along with Charles and Kim, they're air drumming with Dave. So I can't disappoint them by messing with it.

You mentioned knowing how to enjoy things now. How do you all get along on the road? Do you share a dressing room?

We're pretty much all equals. Kim has her own dressing room, but the boys all share one because we like to pal around. Sometimes we hang out, you know -- Kim will rent a car and we'll go explore a city we're in. It's fun. Basically, people are just talking to each other more now.

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Canadian Doolittle Tour dates:

April 9 | Halifax | Metro Centre

April 10 | Moncton | Casino Moncton

April 12 | Quebec City | Salle Albert-Rousseau

April 13 & 14 | Montreal | Metropolis

April 16 | Ottawa | Civic Center

April 17 | Kitchener | Centre in the Square

April 18 & 19 | Toronto | Massey Hall

April 20 | Hamilton | Wentworth Room

April 26 & 27 | Winnipeg | Centennial Concert Hall

April 29 | Saskatoon | TCU Place

April 30 | Calgary | Jubilee Auditorium

May 1 | Edmonton | Shaw Conference Center

May 3 & 4 | Vancouver | Orpheum Theatre

May 5 | Victoria | Memorial Centre