Is XTC too Competent to Be Cool?
Showtime's XTC: This Is Pop draws worthy attention to this underrated band. But does their music still hold up?
05 Mar 2018
Recent
A Partridge Compendium That Probes Some of the Best Parts of XTC's Rich Pageant
In lieu of an XTC biography or a Partridge memoir, we take a trip through the notebooks and brainwaves of the master.
13 Apr 2016
The 100 Greatest Alternative Singles of the '80s: Part 5: 20 - 1
Songs of anxiety, paranoia, freak-outs, chilling verses, feverish desire, harrowing lyrics -- they all make for damn good music.
01 Oct 2015
Counterbalance: XTC - Skylarking
You might not hear of bands talking about XTC as a big influence, but they were certainly in the mix that became the music that was to come.
24 Apr 2015
Prinzhorn Dance School: Clay Class
Somber, minimalist punk rockers from Britain serve up a solid sophomore effort, full of ominous bass lines and oblique lyrics.
11 Mar 2012
Jim Moray: A Beginners Guide
Whatever he might say to the contrary, Jim Moray has married into folk music. His excellent albums represent a series of innovatively renewed vows.
28 Jul 2010
Parcels from a Patchouli Past: An Interview with Andrew Partridge
With a newly remastered, limited edition presentation of the Dukes of Stratosphear's entire catalog just out, the guiding guru of XTC's alter-ego band discusses the past, the present, and a particularly severe case of 'bad vibes'.
14 Feb 2010
Andy Partridge: Monstrance
Now, as middle age meanders across Partridge's considered cult career, it's obvious he's looking for another, more solemn outlet for his talent.
18 Apr 2007
The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul
Having worked for years in a hinterland between obscurity and popularity, Andy Partridge has finally hit the fulcrum as he's gained his artistic freedom, and recognition of his band XTC's influence on pop history has suddenly blossomed.
26 Oct 2006
XTC: Skylarking
So, as an album, Skylarking is beautiful and whole and just shy of perfection enough that it doesn't come off as too clean.
20 Feb 2003
Andy Partridge: Fuzzy Warbles, Vol. 1 / Fuzzy Warbles, Vol. 2
For fans of Andy Partridge and his music, these first two Fuzzy Warbles are a wonderful way to pass the time until the next official XTC release.
Gary Glauber
Music
11 Feb 2003
XTC: A Coat of Many Cupboards
Cult status or no, XTC's raw deal at the hands of Virgin Records is slightly rectified herein, and helps repair a rift of under-representation that spanned decades and resulted in a bruising industry battle.
05 May 2002
XTC: Wasp Star (Apple Venus Volume 2)
Wasp Star is the kind of album that can reinvigorate the listener in the belief that pop music is wonderful and hasn't degenerated into carbon copy boy bands.
Patrick Schabe
Music
22 May 2000
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