XTC – Got the 80s ready for a wild ride.

XTC for a Tuesday Lunch break – recorded at the legendary Hammersmith Palais in London on December 22, 1980 and broadcast by BBC Radio 1

Can’t imagine what the 80s would have sounded like had XTC not shown up. Punk attitude and razor-sharp wit combined with brilliant song writing. It was a move away from the three-chord bands that proliferated the late 70s Punk scene. By 1980 it was now settling in and was slowly evolving into New Wave while still maintaining the bite and social commentary Punk was so well known for. They weren’t a band you could pigeonhole because they had their fingers in a lot of genres – even to the point of masquerading as The Dukes Of Stratsophere in order to give the full nod to Psychedelia in the space of two albums a few years after this period (which yielded Drums and Wires and Black Sea; two albums which have proved essential over time).

XTC were not initially public with their influences due to the punk scene’s anathema toward stating one’s influences. Pitchfork writer Chris Dahlen characterized the band’s original sound as punk meets “Buddy Holly-on-amphetamines … danceable enough for the crowds at the clubs, and suspiciously poppy thanks to the catchy hooks and their trademark verse-chorus-verse-chorus-explode pattern.” Singer and co-founder Andy Partridge said that he adopted a vocal style out of “fear that we weren’t going to make another record … and people weren’t going to be left with any impression of the singer”. He described it as a “walrus” or “seal bark” that amalgamated Buddy Holly’s “hiccup”, Elvis Presley‘s vibrato, and “the howled mannerisms of Steve Harley.” In reference to the energy of the band’s performances (which drew comparisons with Talking Heads), Partridge remembered how they “used to fucking kill ourselves. I think it was fear. It was fear manifested in ludicrously high energy music. It was like 1000% whaaahh! All of the songs were run together and it was really uptempo stuff.” According to Colin Moulding (co-founder-co-writer and bass player), “any kinship [XTC had] with punk” was gone after 1979’s Motown-influenced “Life Begins at the Hop”.

For a blast of what they were up to in 1980 – crank this one up and try to stay seated. Betcha can’t.

Enjoy.