Paper and Iron

Okay, Capitalism, let's see what you've got for me this week. Happy Monday to wage slaves everywhere.

Drums and Wires

One of the interesting things about working with quite a few people who are around half my age is the lack of overlap on musical tastes. I have discovered many new artists by being around them, and they have endured a bunch of mostly old stuff at my hands - some of which they have genuinely enjoyed. Works that figure prominently on the musical landscape of my peers and other old gits like me are completely unknown to many of them. For example, I whipped out this gem one day, and they immediately liked it. One person even asked if it was a Franz Ferdinand album they hadn't heard before, as proof positive that these young men from Swindon were making the music of the future. The looks of shock and disbelief which crossed their faces when I told them it was recorded in 1979 were priceless. But the magic lives on - I get at least one request per week for "Nigel," as the yoof refer to it.

Towers of London

Well, I thought we had pretty much exhausted the XTC-related content a while ago, but how wrong I was, and how pleased I am to be so. This extraordinary documentary from 1980 gives the fan a lot of insight into the people and process (including an impossibly young and chain-smoking Steve Lilywhite) behind the music, and also a great view of what constituted "state of the art" recording at the time of the "Black Sea" album. It's all great, apart from the desire to punch Branson any time he makes an appearance, but I reckon that's just a sign of being a normal human being.

Working Overtime

I have emerged from the XTC wormhole clutching a handful of strange gems. Firstly, via my old friend and band mate, Jones Rutledge, three long interviews with each of Andy Partridge, Colin Moulding and Dave Gregory, from 2008 on Rundgren Radio. (Runt produced "Skylarking," dontcha know.) And secondly, a 70-minute set from February, 1982, just two days before the release of their breakthrough, "English Settlement," and a matter of weeks before it all came crashing down.

Andy Partridge

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Colin Moulding

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Dave Gregory

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Live on "Rockpalast," German TV, February 10, 1982

XTC on Dutch TV 1980

I passed through the less-than aesthetically blessed Swindon the other day on the train, and it sent me down an XTC rabbit hole, once again, as I recalled that they hailed from that town. This band was a huge presence on my turntable and in my imagination for a number of years during its prime, and I always vaguely thought Swindon must be some sort of really special place. I still have no proof that this is the case, though I am open to persuasion. On the other hand, this clip provides definite proof that they were probably one of the tightest and most musically adventurous live acts of their age, not long before it all went wrong for Andy Partridge and they were exiled to the strange realm of "studio bands who never play live."