XTC - Drums and Wires reissue - Spring 2014

He means that Oranges and Lemons was the release before Nonsuch so if Nonsuch is APEBD110 then OAL would be APEBD109. Using that scheme, English Settlement would be APEBD105

 

It would be disappointing indeed if Black Sea and English Settlement aren't given their due justice...two of my favorite albums. And can we get a reissue of Skylarking on Vinyl!??!?

 

Skylarking on vinyl already happened when they did the corrected polarity edition a few years back. Doubt they would revisit it so soon, but who knows? Prices are kind of ridiculous for it so maybe they would, but I have a feeling they'd rather focus on other albums first rather than one they did so recently.

 

Yeah I just keep kicking myself for not picking that up when it came out....

 

You and me both.

But really, I think if all of these releases had Virgin money behind them, it would have already happened. But it is Ape, and they are considerably shorter on cash, so I doubt we will see it soon at all.

 

Bravo, Steven Wilson. The new mix sounds fabulous to these ears but does not take so many liberties as to change the essence of the album.

 

I would actually be fine getting "just" a nicely remastered version of the original albums if it means we'll also get a Bluray packed to the gills with extras like Nonsuch and Drums And Wires. The alternative being not getting anything at all. Don't see that happening, really - I think most of us would be happy with the compromise and Andy must know it. These sets are likely the "last hurrah" of XTC on physical media. They're not going to leave a couple hanging just because the original master wasn't found.

 

Andy tweeted a while ago that there will be a reissue of the vinyl edition, but never said when it might happen.

 

On the Blu-Ray only 3 of 11 bonus tracks are included in their original mix. There are also 2 'long' versions. No word if they are flat transfers.

 

It is typical for multis to be kept in the studio archive. If the studio closes, then they get sent somewhere… or dumped (see Olympic studios infamous "The Who master tape fiasco").

 

Would like to get my hands on that edition of Skylarking...by the way, read Andy's tweets at your own risk....

 

Well those were the bonus tracks on the original CD.

 

Thanks

 

I played both videos last night and the lip-sync looked okay to me. This may be a player configuration issue. On most Blu-ray players, you can adjust the audio delay to compensate for this. Depending how you have your system configured, a good starting point can be anywhere from 60-120 ms. The Disney WOW disc comes with a calibration tool you can use to "see" the results of any adjustments as you make them. I have an OPPO BDP-103, Denon AVR-3313CI, and a Samsung PN64F8500, and like I say, playback looks and sounds normal to me.

 

Thanks for the info! I will have to check this out tonight!

 

I used to always buy 2 of the IDEA/Ape stuff, but couldn't swing the cash for 2 of the Skylarking LP at the time. And, I really wish I would have - not only because it's now so coveted, but one side of mine is pressed slightly off center...

 

Is there a complete list of the contents of this somewhere? Everything I have seen (e.g. at Andy's website) describes the album's content and the principal studio bonus tracks but then summarizes the rest as "demo sessions" or whatever.

 

Bring on "Apple Venus" & "Wasp Star".

 

2006 was the last "Apesploitation" of these titles with the 7" boxset, so in another year or so it should be about reasonably due... not that I wouldn't be purchasing it tomorrow if announced.

 

Wow! What a bummer for Black Sea and English Settlement. Both such great albums. But frankly, I think as far as remixes go, Oranges & Lemons and Skylarking need it more than any other XTC albums. Oh yeah and Mummer probably too.

 

on my 4th run through of the 5.1 and am really enjoying the instrument separation in the surround mix. a new way to enjoy the 2nd most played LP in my music listening history.

the extra stuff is great too. is there a comprehensive track list for this? heres what ive been able to discect:

'saucy plate session' = colin, barry + 2 others, redbrick studios, swindon. jan 1979. new to my ears. the version of 'life begins at the hop' is from an unknown session and it sounds like some dude *trying* to sound like colin. if you played this track for me a week ago i wouldve told you that is was a crap xtc cover band. that track seems to be xtc, though.

'swindon town hall 1 & 2' = these rehearsal tapes have been circulating from a tape dave gregory sent out a few times back in the early 80's. not much of a sonic upgrade, either.

'toots garage' = band recordings in a friend's garage. dec 1979. new to me. seems odd that a world touring band had to practice/demo in a garage. must've been ian reid's cousin's garage.

'tudor barn rehearsal' = tudor studios, shaw ridge, wilts. june 10 - june 17, 1979. d&w tunes getting worked over. love this tape and it runs over an hour. fascinating band banter whilst fiddling about.

as far as the new stereo mix, i do hear some subtle changes that i enjoy, but to me it sounds like we've just backed up a tape generation or 2. like a small 'fog' has been lifted off of the mix. i dig it. i sure hope my neighbors do

i *think* i was quite a bit over 3hrs of continuous listening while still not getting to the new stereo mix either. a box set on one bluray disc.

are the 'original master' & ' original album extras' the same as the 2001 remaster? did notice a copyright date of '2001' of the set somewhere.

videos looked as out of sync as they always have. i have seen both the laser disc and the vhs of 'look look/best hits' and these at least look *way* better.

keep up the good work, mr wilson. now please see if you can find colin's bass when it comes time to do O&L.

 

My bluray arrived yesterday - D&W is my favourite XTC album and one of my favourite albums of all time. The love and care brought to this issue is beyond belief and hearing the album in 5.1 made it sound so fresh and new. Songs like Millions and That Is The Way, that I never rated as highly as the others, are now new and sparkly, jumping out of the speakers going - look at me now!

 

I'm new to XTC. I've been listening to the recently remastered 'Skylarking' CD a lot recently and absolutely love it. I was looking to get some more of their music and just came across this thread by accident. Now I don't have a 5.1 system so my questions are purely related to the stereo mixes. Firstly, how do these new versions of 'Drums and Wires' compare to the previous CDs? Has anyone compared the new stereo remix with the original mix on the blu ray? Are the differences night and day or are we talking about subtle changes that only people who've heard the album 100s of times will notice?

I know there have been lots of comments above but most are about the 5.1 mix so any comments about the stereo mixes would be greatly appreciated. Cheers!

 

I listened to the 2014 Stereo Mix (ripped lossless to my ipod) this morning - great sound - much more detailed separation, and completely trumps the last remasters. You would not be disappointed.

 

I made an Excel spreadsheet to try and figure out what is actually on the Blu-ray disc. Here's what I came up (I think it's correct).
2014 5.1 Mix
1 Making Plans For Nigel
2 Helicopter
3 Day In Day Out
4 When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty
5 Ten Feet Tall
6 Roads Girdle the Globe
7 Real By Reel
8 Millions
9 That Is The Way
10 Outside World
11 Scissor Man
12 Complicated Game

Additional 2014 5.1 Mixes
1 Life Begins at the Hop
2 Homo Safari
3 Chain of Command
4 Limelight
5 Bushman President
6 Pulsing Pulsing
7 Wait 'Til Your Boat Goes Down
8 Ten Feet Tall – electric version
9 Officer Blue
10 Over Rusty Water
11 Sleepyheads

2014 Stereo Mix
1 Making Plans For Nigel
2 Helicopter
3 Day In Day Out
4 When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty
5 Ten Feet Tall
6 Roads Girdle the Globe
7 Real By Reel
8 Millions
9 That Is The Way
10 Outside World
11 Scissor Man
12 Complicated Game

Additional 2014 Stereo Mixes
1 Life Begins at the Hop
2 Homo Safari
3 Chain of Command
4 Limelight
5 Bushman President
6 Pulsing Pulsing
7 Wait 'Til Your Boat Goes Down
8 Ten Feet Tall – electric version
9 Officer Blue
10 Over Rusty Water
11 Sleepyheads
Italics means the track is not included on the CD that came with the Blu-ray set.

Instrumental Mix
1 Making Plans For Nigel
2 Helicopter
3 Day In Day Out
4 When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty
5 Ten Feet Tall
6 Roads Girdle the Globe
7 Real By Reel
8 Millions
9 That Is The Way
10 Outside World
11 Scissor Man
12 Complicated Game
13 Chain of Command
14 Limelight
15 Pulsing Pulsing
16 Wait 'Til Your Boat Goes Down
17 Ten Feet Tall – electric version
18 Officer Blue
19 Sleepyheads

DJM Stereo Mixes
1 Helicopter
2 When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty
3 Real By Reel

Saucy Plate Session
1 The Beautiful People
2 Cheap Perfume
3 I feel Blue
4 Someone's Been in My Room
5 If I Had My Way

Unknown Session
1 Life Begins at the Hop

Swindon Town Hall 1
1 Life Begins at the Hop
2 When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty
3 Cheap Perfume
4 Outside World

Swindon Town Hall 2
1 Chain of Command
2 Ten Feet Tall
3 Helicopter
4 Making Plans For Nigel

Toots Garage
1 Officer Blue
2 Don't Lose Your Temper
3 I Overheard
4 Wait 'Til Your Boat Goes Down

Tudor Barn Album Rehearsal
20 tracks (I need to go through and listen to these to name them).

Original Album Extra Tracks
1 Chain of Commanda
2 Limelight
3 Life Begins at the Hop (Long Version)
4 That is the Way (Long Version)

And the original master is on here as well, but I did not make it part of my spreadsheet. It should be the same as the 2014 Stereo Mix.

I hope I got it right! First time poster, long time lurker.