XTC Song of the Day thread

Millions is one of those sleeper songs that I never think about when I think about XTC...yet when it comes on, I always enjoy it. The groove is catchy and draws you in; the band is tight; and there's a mysteriousness about the whole thing that never fails to make me sit up and pay attention ("He make you glowing/He beg you golden like the Yangtze mud?" No idea what that means, but I love it!).

Now that George Co-Stanza's mentioned it, I can see how Andy's vocals might come across as rough to some listeners, but they've never left that impression on me. The almost-neurotic edge to his voice fits the song perfectly, helping to break the tension set by the basic riff (though the chorus is what really gives a sense of relief).

It'll probably never be a song that I actively listen to in isolation, but it's one of those perfect little XTC tracks that makes its parent album all the more intoxicating (c.f. The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul).

 

Day In, Day Out was always one of the standout tracks on Drums and Wires for me. Twin guitar weaving, the groove with the bass and drums...great song.

 

Full admission - the first time I ever heard this song was in the movie Dumb And Dumber. Back then I hadn't heard of or started listening to XTC...funny how things come full circle! One of my favorite songs from Nonsuch.

 

And it's not even included on the US Epic LP. This song may be the most obvious example of the Beefheart influence on Andy and Dave's guitar weaving on the early albums.

 

Today's song is "Crowded Room"



Much of Go 2 is a blur for me, but I kind of like this one. It's weird and oddly catchy at the same time, and I like the power of the guitar riffing at times. There are times I think that Barry Andrews' keys sound totally out of place in this band and then are times where I think they fit well, and this song captures both of those sides for me. I just listened to it again and, yep, I like this one.

 

Crowded Room is another winner from the Barry Andrews era. In a way, it sort of sounds like a prelude to The Rhythm. Many of the musical ideas introduced in Crowded Room are resolved in its successor, which makes for a particularly satisfying conclusion to side 1 of Go 2.

It would be an interesting exercise to try to edit the two songs into one six-minute "epic."

 

Today's song is "I Can't Own Her"



Apple Venus is full of great songs, and this one is no exception. An absolutely gorgeous song, this is great to listen to in the dark. Just close your eyes in a dark room and let that music wash over you while Andy sings. It is quite the experience.

 

I Can't Own Her is one of Andy's many little masterpieces. I particularly love the way it seems to start in media res, like the first few moments of the song have been cut off. It makes the song more immediate, almost suggesting that we're eavesdropping on a very private conversation (perhaps we are). The song gets over the top in parts (you know what I mean..."like the swirling sky"), but that's part of its charm - Andy's letting his emotions loose, and doesn't care where it leads him.

It's not necessarily the greatest song on AV1, but it's certainly its emotional centerpiece.

 

This, I agree with.

 

Today's song is "Another Satellite"



This, for me, is another one of those album tracks that I never reach for on its own, but sounds really good within the context of the album when I listen to all of Skylarking. And it's another example of an XTC song where I listen and think, "I cannot think of another XTC song that sounds like this one." It's unique.

 

Off-Topic Dept.:
Andy's been putting some of his favorite NON-XTC songs up on his Twitter page!
Good stuff!
XTC (@xtcfans) | Twitter

 

Another Satellite is a favorite of mine. The minimalist arrangement evokes drifting in space -I actually included this song on a space rock mix I made for fun.

The lyrics are pretty direct and unflinching. I wonder at the reaction of the subject when she first heard the song? Pain, anger and other unpleasant feelings I expect.

The BBC and demo versions are also both enjoyable.

 

I love the sound of the first two chords in Another Satellite.

 

I think we already covered this one, but I'm OK with that, since it's a serious contender for my favourite XTC song. It's gorgeously atmospheric, and even outside of the album, it conjures up visions of watching (floating through?) the night sky. On the Skylarking version, the beauty of the music makes for an appealing contrast to Andy's bitter lyrics; on the BBC version, the slashing guitars make everything less subtle, but perhaps even more powerful.

Even though they're worlds apart sonically, The Big Express and Skylarking have quite a few similarities, what with the whole morning-to-night, birth-to-death themes and all. Both also have a trilogy of sequential love songs (perhaps "relationship songs" would be more accurate) that runs through a gamut of emotions. TBE has All You Pretty Girls/Shake You Donkey Up/Seagulls Screaming, Kiss Her, Kiss Her, and Skylarking has the first three songs of side B. The Skylarking sequence is particularly effective (at least on the US version) because it's where the album reaches the point of no return. Side A is more or less optimistic, with even the negative songs tempering their sentiments with youthful energy. But after the marriage in Big Day and the bitterness/anger/rejection in Another Satellite, everything comes tumbling down with regretful self-reflection, nihilistic existential musings, and, finally, death. Another Satellite is the song that sets it all in motion, and without it, Skylarking wouldn't be the masterpiece that it is.

 

Yep probably wouldn't just pick the lp up and put the needle on Another Satellite but you can't listen to Skylarking without it

 

Do you happen to still have the tracklist? I always wanted to make a "songs that feel like floating through space" mixtape, but when I actually tried to compile it, I had to settle for an "otherworldly/nocturnal" theme instead.

A quote from Andy: "Oh how I wish I hadn't written this song. Trying to put into words a gentle rebuff to Erica's persistent and obviously romantic intentions, I came up with something too hurtful that wounded her terribly. It was so difficult. Here I was, a married man, but pulled so fiercely by the gravity of her vivacious being. She was my new moon but how guilty I felt. At the time of writing this I had no idea that the stage name she used for her musical ‘happenings’ was Luna."

 

I no longer have the mix cd I created, but I remember several songs that were included:

Please excuse the thread drift,

Another Satellite (XTC)
Out and In (The Moody Blues)
2000 Light Years From Home (The Rolling Stones)
Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun (Pink Floyd, UmmaGumma live version)
You Know You're Only Dreaming (Hawkwind, 1999 Party)
A Sprinkling of Clouds (Gong, You)
Lunar Sea (Camel)
Leylines to Glassdom (Steve Hillage)

 

Today's second song is "My Land Is Burning"



This demo from the Fuzzy Warbles set is quite the revelation. Who knew Andy Patridge had that kind of guitar solo in him?? I won't overstate it and say that it is one of the best solos I've ever heard, but it is very tasty, and considering I think XTC has moments where I think they could have stretched out a bit instrumentally but chose instead to keep this song or that song more compact and concise, to hear a solo that is this much of a slow burn in an Andy song was so cool to hear. I dig it.

 

Swing and a miss with the demo...lol

Okay, we move on. Today's song is "You're My Drug"



What a fun little song. Sure, that can be said about most of the songs the Dukes did, but this one in particular kind of has that effortless (in a good way) feel to it, like they just showed up and came up with this song on the fly as they started playing it; that is the vibe I get from it. Sweet bass line by The Red Curtain.

 

Psonic Psunspot is full of songs like You're My Drug - fun but rather self conscious in design and execution. A reason why I think the EP trumps the LP. The EP sounds effortless, the LP you can hear the effort, the sweat, as it were. When everyone is already in on the joke, it is always less funny.

Still love The Dukes, but You're My Drug is a classic example of how PP falters here and there...

 

Oops i've missed quite a few, so i'll just talk about the last two. Not much needs to be said about the likes of 'I Can't Own Her' and 'Another Satellite' anyway, masterpieces!

'My Land Is Burning' is a definite highlight of the Fuzzy Warbles series, it would have fit perfectly on one of the Apple Venus volumes. My only complaint? Imo it goes on a minute or two longer than it needs. Of course that's not an entirely fair complaint seeing as how it's a demo. But on the other hand Andy's demo's sound better than a lot of people's finished products!

'You're My Drug' is a perfect pastiche, Colin's bass really drives this song, but the whole sound just works for me. Got to love John Leckie's production, if only he'd worked on Oranges & Lemons.

Damn, with all of those B-sides, demos and rarities Dukes material, ect. this thread could go on for a very long time, and I couldn't be happier about that.

Will we be able to maybe do a few songs from TC&I's EP maybe? Scatter Me is great, and it's really nice to have Colin and Terry playing and touring music together again. Now if only someone can coax Andy and Dave to both release something!

 

Today's song is "War Dance"



Seems like I see this song get criticized everywhere, but I like it. Okay, it's not a standout track, and the vast majority of songs on Nonsuch are certainly better, but it's got a cool little vibe and works as a deep album cut within the flow of the record. I have said before that I believe this album could have been much greater overall by eliminating 3-4 songs from it, but this is not one I would cut, although it certainly would not be one I consider an absolute keeper.

 

Not much that I can say about My Land Is Burning or You're My Drug, other than that despite hearing the former a handful of times and the latter at least a dozen, I don't remember a single thing about them, other than that I don't enjoy them when they're playing!

War Dance is one of the best tracks on Nonsuch to my ears, simply because it has an attractive melody and doesn't overstay its welcome. This was during Colin's heavy-handed lyrical phase, but interestingly, despite the subject matter, it doesn't seem as overwrought as, say, The Smartest Monkeys. It's also one of the few songs on Nonsuch that sounds at least somewhat dynamic. For the most part, the album is pretty flat. Ironically, I suspect that they didn't overwork War Dance for the simple reason that it's self-evidently not a "great" song, and why waste precious studio time on such a track?

 

Didn't one of them complain rather loudly about the clarinet on this song, years after the fact? It's a Colin song, but I seem to remember Andy saying the clarinet ruined it? I rather like the clarinet, it creates an interesting mood.

 

I'd say the clarinet is the only memorable thing about "War Dance"