Frank Black and the Catholics were a musical outfit led by Pixies frontman Charles Thompson ('Frank Black') following that band's initial demise. Between 1998-2003 they released six studio albums, but have since gone on apparent hiatus as Thompson has turned to focus on solo material (as Frank Black and, later, Black Francis) and the Pixies reunion. Using the "backing band" from his 1996 solo album, The Cult of Ray, Thompson dubbed his new band "Frank Black and the Catholics", and recorded their eponymous first album in 1997.