Slay Tracks: 1933–1969

Slay Tracks: 1933–1969
EP by
ReleasedSummer 1989
RecordedJanuary 17, 1989
StudioLouder Than You Think Studios (Stockton, California)
Genre
Length14:02
LabelTreble Kicker
ProducerGary Young
Pavement chronology
Slay Tracks: 1933–1969
(1989)
Demolition Plot J-7
(1990)

Slay Tracks: 1933–1969 (usually referred to as Slay Tracks) is the debut EP by American indie rock band Pavement.

Pavement was then a duo of founding members Stephen Malkmus (guitar, vocals) and Scott Kannberg (guitar). They recorded Slay Tracks during a four hour session with producer Gary Young who played drums on the EP and later joined the band. Pavement self-released the EP as a 7" vinyl record in 1989 on the band's own record label Treble Kicker.

The music of Slay Tracks was influenced by indie and punk rock bands such as Swell Maps and The Fall, and many of the lyrics were inspired by life in the band's hometown of Stockton, California.

Although only 1,000 copies of Slay Tracks were pressed, the EP became an underground hit. Upon release, the EP was critically praised by independently produced zines. The EP managed to generate buzz for Pavement in the UK after The Wedding Present's cover of the song "Box Elder" received some airplay from the famous BBC host radio John Peel. The release and relative success of Slay Tracks was significant to Pavement's subsequent signing to Drag City, and later to Matador Records. The band's Westing (By Musket and Sextant) (1993) compiled the songs from the band's three EPs prior to their debut album Slanted and Enchanted: Slay Tracks, Demolition Plot J-7, and Perfect Sound Forever. The compilation allowed those songs to reach a wider audience than the EP's limited initial release.