![]() Some of the XTC compilations pile on the home demos and other stuff that (even for me) really doesn’t seem that vital. If you’ve picked up all the albums but missed the b-sides, Beeswax is essential, not optional. I’d point XTC newbies to their later work, but if you’ve digested most of their later 80s and beyond work, then you’re ready to start with the formative years. Some of these songs are pushing 40, but they feel as fresh as they did when I discovered them in the late 80s. If you need a good wallow after a break-up, “Heaven is Paved with Broken Glass” is your buddy. I guess the primary difference between “single” and “b-side” is whether XTC has its serious face on or not. Both songs are about domestic squabbling, “Punch and Judy” has a slightly slower pace and a bit of fiddling on the guitar that’s pleasant. When I listen to “Tissue Tigers (The Arguers)” and “Punch and Judy” back to back I feel like somebody’s having a rough time at home. There’s a lot of punk sneer here, but also a slightly “plastic” aesthetic. Or, perhaps, where they’re spirits sitting on Andy Partridge’s shoulders and neither one quite has sway. “Science Friction” makes you wonder whether you’ve put on an album or set off an alarm, but that quickly resolves into a rough and discordant guitar bit, before settling into a fast-paced song that makes me think of an alternate reality where The Ramones and DEVO join forces. You’ll note that 1977-1982 corresponds with XTC’s touring years, before the band stopped touring and being constrained by playing songs live. “This album has 12 songs, but this one is the same price and it’s 25 songs! Score!” I’ve never really thought of side two as b-sides, probably because XTC’s b-sides were usually just as good as their singles – and certainly better than a lot of bands’ singles. However, I’m lumping them together because that’s how I first found them, as a long-play cassette from Virgin released in 1982.Īt 25 songs, it was one hell of a score when I still chose new music based on how much I could scrape together from part-time jobs. Officially Waxworks: Some Singles 1977–1982 and Beeswax: Some B-Sides 1977–1982 are separate albums. ![]() This pairing captures the very best of XTC’s early period, before they evolved into a more “pastoral” (and Beatlesque) sound on later albums. Waxworks and Beeswax are a double dose of angular, jumpy, frenetic pop from Swindon’s XTC. ^ " Certified Awards Search Archived at the Wayback Machine".Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. Top 100 (ARIA Chart) peaks from January 1990 to December 2010: Ryan, Gavin (2011).Oranges & Lemons (ARIA Chart) peak: "Chartifacts – Week Ending: (from The ARIA Report Issue No."Mayor of Simpleton" (ARIA Chart) peak: "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 12 September 2016".Top 50 ( ARIA Chart) peaks from 26 June 1988: " > XTC in Australian Charts".The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid 1983 and 19 June 1988. Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). Top 100 ( Kent Music Report) peaks to 19 June 1988: Kent, David (1993).This site displays 'uncompressed' (no exclusion rules applied) singles chart peaks between 76–200 for the period January 1995 to May 2001. Top 200 peaks from January 1995 to December 2010: "Chart Log UK 1994–2010 > Johnny X – Xzibit".This site displays 'compressed' (with exclusion rules applied) singles chart peaks between numbers 76–100. ![]() Top 100 peaks: "Official Charts: XTC".Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the '80s Underground."-" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. "Earn Enough for Us" (Australia and Canada-only release) " Thanks for Christmas" (as the Three Wise Men) "Love at First Sight" (Canada-only release) Transistor Blast: The Best of the BBC Sessions Rag and Bone Buffet: Rare Cuts and Leftoversĭrums and Wireless: BBC Radio Sessions 77–89 "-" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.Įxplode Together: The Dub Experiments 78-80 They signed to Cooking Vinyl for their final two albums in 19.Īlbums Studio albums Title XTC released 12 original albums and over 30 singles for Virgin Records, between 19.
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