The Pixies, an indie-rock band formed in 1986, has had their ups and downs. They broke up from 1993 to 2004 and recently lost their backbone and bass player, Kim Deal. Now the group is back with their newest EP, “EP1.”

Unlike its well-known predecessors, “Doolittle” and “Surfer Rosa,” which delighted fans with intense vocals and instruments, this EP is sure to disappoint longtime Pixies listeners because of the overly aggressive and generally hard-to-listen-to nature of the EP.

Opposed to the usual rhythmic, ’80s-style indie-rock found in The Pixies’ past albums, like “Trompe le Monde,” EP1’s songs “What Goes Boom” and “Another Toe in the Ocean” replace the band’s edginess and contort it into violent and unsettling guitar strums and siren-style rhythms.

The EP’s four songs all continue to uphold the dark and heavy themes the band is known for, which is explicit in the lyrics of “Indie Cindy.” Above the twangy, hypnotic guitar and drums, singer Black Francis declares, “No soul, my milk is curdled/ I’m the burgermeister of purgatory.” Joey Santiago’s guitar solo is the one high point of this song — and for that matter, this EP — with classic-rock sounds giving a welcome break from the dark nature of the album.

Unfortunately, this forceful EP is not a traditional Pixies album, which makes the record feel rushed and out of place from the group’s usual chaotic style.