XTC : Classic or Dud.

Mummer was the album that turned me from being a huge XTC fan into not wanting to listen to them for over a decade. Can't recall a similar allergic reaction to a formerly adored band, apart from 10cc's Dreadlock Holiday.

The pastoral gubbins really wasn't what this Drums and Wires & Black Sea supporter was looking for as a callow youth, and Partridge's hectoring vocals on 'Funk Pop a Roll', 'Human Alchemy' et al. were a major turn-off. Might be fun to listen to Mummer again with fresh ears and see if my perspective has changed.

The first side of Mummer's fine, I'd pluck "Ladybird" from the B.

Oh, god, I had completely forgotten about “Funk Pop a Roll.” Their worst song ever?

It and "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead" can scratch each other's eyes out.

I’ve got a soft spot for Peter Pumpkinhead, but I get where you’re coming from.

Andy Partridge has written quite a few annoying songs tbf.

After prodding a younger music writer to check out their first eight albums, he texted me something like, "Remind me why we still talk to each other."

Was it a “you had to be there” thing, then?

Weirdly, The Big Express isn’t on Spotify (Canada). I wonder what gives.

Andy Partridge has written quite a few annoying songs tbf.

its kind of his calling card. imo that's the most endearing part of Big Express; who else would write so many obnoxious vocal lines?? "a train running low on soul coal...AIII-EEEE!!"

I once tweeted something about Side A of Mummer being great and that it was disappointing that Side B was so mediocre in comparison.
Someone I don't know randomly popped up with a "Are you sure you've listened to it enough? Cos It's great" reply.

At this point I doubt anyone is going to change their minds about this band. I'm in the "I love Andy's eccentricities" camp, his goofy vocal lines, his heart-on-his-sleeve lyrics, and the brilliant failures some of his songs can be (like the aforementioned "Human Alchemy" and "Train Running Low On Soul Coal").

My issue with "Mummer" at the time was that I was a callow youth and wanted everything spiky and upbeat. I have long since embraced the pastoral and gentle.

Andy is putting out new material at long last, though to be honest I listened to his latest EP twice and it didn't linger in my mind.

I love “Soul Coal” FWIW.

xps: I suffered permanent psychic damage when I discovered the people in the YouTube comments of "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead" saying the song's hero reminded them of Donald J. Trump

No discussion of the Andy Partridge EP? The songs sound like they could have been on Wasp Star - nothing as good as the best tracks on that but definitely pleasant and hooky. My favorite was "Maid of Stars" which sounds a bit more like Apple Venus. Would have been nice to hear with real strings

This is an Extc setlist from Tuesday in DC, interesting setlist, perhaps kinda fishy how many Colin songs there are, I mean, Standing In For Joe? gtfo

This Is Pop
Statue Of Liberty
No Language In Our Lungs
Towers Of London
Wonderland
Scatter Me
Sacrificial Bonfire
Big Day
No Thugs In Our House
Standing In For Joe
Ball & Chain
The Ballad Of Peter Pumpkinhead
-
Dear God
King For A Day
Earn Enough For Us
The Mayor Of Simpleton
Where Did The Ordinary People Go
Grass
The Meeting Place
Sgt. Rock (Is Going To Help Me)
Respectable Street
Generals And Majors
Making Plans For Nigel
-
Senses Working Overtime
Stupidly Happy
Life Begins At The Hop

'Standing in for Joe' sounds a lot like Steely Dan's 'Barrytown', so perhaps they thought it would go down well with an American audience.

Saw them tonight in Boston. I have nothing critical to say, just really thrilled to hear these songs live at all! Super fun to be part of a crowd where everyone knows every lyric.

Colin was involved at first, but didn't want to become a touring group

wait XTC are touring? without Colin?!

It’s “exTC” with Terry Chambers. I had to check too.

Love XTC but without Colin and Andy it’s a cover band.

No Colin OR Andy? That’s ridiculous.

Love XTC but without Colin and Andy it’s a cover band.

It’s literally a cover band

Tribute bands featuring original members

Hold on a minute, no Dave Gregory either! WTF!

It's a cover band for sure, but the lead singer is from Swindon and sounds a lot like Colin. We'd never get to hear these songs live any other way so - why not?

that gets a big all caps NAH from me

I was assuming no former members, so one is a nice bonus?

I wouldn't see em myself, but I get why you might

I think seeing them would make me sad.

It’s funny, I always thought there’d be an outside chance somewhere down the road that I’d get to see XTC, but I never thought there’d be an opportunity to see Terry Chambers in any capacity, ever. He was a significant contributor to their earlyish greatness, so I’d definitely be interested in hearing him live…though hearing him on, say, Skylarking tracks would feel odd-to-unnerving.

But he’s in his mid-‘60s and wants to play. What better way to do that than to mine your past for audiences who never heard those songs live before?

I might go if they were coming through my town, but it’s not something I’d get massively excited about. Probably the best part would be finding out who all the local XTC nerds are & making some connections.

Def would love to see TC on the tubs. Wouldn’t really care whether he was playing 25 O’clock or 5 O’clock World.

Hold on a minute, no Dave Gregory either! WTF!

He’s in Ex-DG, but it doesn’t work as well written down.

Lol

Coming soon:

Ex-Box: Uriah Heep cover band featuring Mick Box
Ex-LaX: Rachel Stevens cover band featuring Tina Barrett
Ex-NTrix: cover band playing the theme music to BBC TV crime series 'New Tricks', featuring Dennis Waterman

Ex Lion Tamer featuring...

Uriah Heep cover band featuring Mick Box

Otherwise known as Uriah Heep

EXTC are a tribute band who have Terry Chambers in them, they have no pretension of being anything beyond that

also they are great

I get why some people may roll their eyes at this but XTC themselves haven’t performed in 40 years so hell yeah I would see this

I definitely see the point in this, the same way I saw the point in From the Jam.

Also it's kinda ace seeing TC play stuff like Peter Pumpkinhead

I would definitely go see them if I could. Just seems like these songs deserve to be played live by somebody, TC being involved is a bonus. I imagine he'd do a great "Peter Pumpkinhead" if he still plays like he used to

I did go and see the Magic Band - though I got a free ticket - and they only had Drumbo... and he was singing (mostly).

Everyone on the band (incl. the session pros, obviously) is ridiculously talented. XTC is one of those bands that often gets slotted with plenty of prog bands despite its Beatles pop leanings, which is to say in its own way it has a surprising amount in common with '80s and '90s King Crimson (and not just longtime KC drummer Pat Mastelotto, who plays on Oranges and Lemons).

I sometimes think of Oranges & Lemons as Pat Mastelotto's first King Crimson album.

I passed on seeing Ex-TC last fall, but now I'm looking at that setlist and kinda kicking myself. My deciding factor was not wanting to hear Andy songs yelped by someone other than Andy.

But I'm going to see Jerry Harrison and Adrian Belew perform Remin in Light tonight, so obviously I have no hard fast rules on this stuff.

I saw Ex-TC's final show (though sadly had to miss the end due to trains) and it was incredible. They did over half of Mummer. The drums on Beating of Hearts sounded startingly like the record.

new partridge project called the 3 clubmen came out with a new song called "aviatrix." weird, but i'm digging it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ILqSjlpe7M

Fantastic, hardly "weird". Bring on more!

the laurie anderson-esque multi-tracked, affected vocals are def not what i was expecting. agreed that it's great tho. fun to hear partridge-esque melodic tics come from other voices.