+RSS
 
 

XTC Nonsuch demos

Thursday, April 20, 2006

Apropos of nothing in particular, I make no bones about my undying affection to XTC, a band that I consider not only the best to emerge from the post-punk era (barely beating out the Fall), but also one of the two or three best bands of the past 30 years. One bit of evidence is 1992’s elegant and brilliant Nonsuch, one of Partridge/Moulding’s finest collections of songs and the late-period peak for the band—three years after psych-pop wonder Oranges and Lemons and the band’s last release for seven years until the arch, orchestral, and very adult-ish Apple Venus. Four of my favorite XTC songs are on Nonsuch–”The Disappointed” (maybe my favorite), “Crocodile”, “Holly Up on Poppy” and “Wrapped in Grey” (along with a few duds: “Omnibus” and “The Smartest Monkeys” can go bye-bye), three of which I’ll present for your consumption in demo form here today. Demos, as we’re all aware, are not by nature good, or necessarily even interesting. That accounts for the majority of the Nonsuch sessions, which I’ll keep away from you. Instead, here are my four favorites, stripped of studio polish, but still recognizable, just differently so:


“Dear Madam Barnum” (mp3)
“Crocodile” (mp3)
“Holly Up On Poppy” (mp3)
“War Dance” (Fast Version)” (mp3)

Buy Nonsuch here.

12 Comments

*
*