Episode 572 is XTC. As mentioned, I’ve enjoyed getting into the stuff that burst of the late-70s UK post-punk scene. Unlike others, XTC did not start out as a punk band, but they slid right into the emerging sound with an angular rhythmic attack and bouncy vocals. Their beats crept up to the edge of, but never got to, ska, giving echoes of Madness. At times their boisterous vocal style evokes Adam Ant, with a bit of Joe Jackson. Like contemporaries the Stranglers and Wire, XTC endured for years, creatively adapting their sound and style, while avoiding the sinkhole of 80s synths and gated drums. The early albums are their distinctive best, but my favorite thing they did was two records posing as a late-60s British psychedelic band, the Dukes of Stratosphear – spot-on homage to my most cherished of subgenres.
Favourite album (XTC): Black Sea
Favourite album overall: Chips from the Chocolate Fireball, the combined disc of the two Dukes of Stratosphear recordings
Favourite song: Generals and Majors
Song that is so familiar that I know from somewhere but I cannot remember where I know it from: Dear God
Compared to expectations: ↑
Recommendation: The Dukes albums for sure (that’s just me), but for the core sound, White Music, Drums and Wires, and Black Sea.
Opus Project 