Chalkhills, Number 105

                Tuesday, 4 September 1990
Today's Topics:
             U.S. Fan Seeks XTC CDs in Trade
    "XTC Explode Together: The Dub Experiments 78-80"
               Not to Bragg, Bill, but ...
                     Verbal diarrhea
               Re: Holden Caulfield on KFJC

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Date: Tue, 21 Aug 90 05:19:04 PDT
From: wilson@psylo.enet.dec.com
Subject: U.S. Fan Seeks XTC CDs in Trade

I would like to correspond with anyone in the U.K. who is willing
to trade CDs with me. Specifically, I would like the _Explode Together:
The Dub Experiments ('79-'80)_ CD (this is "new" I believe?).

I would trade you for new CDs via Air Mail; you can send me a "wish
list" and we'd take it from there.

I have traded before this way a number of times and am familiar with
shipping overseas (customs ticket, packaging, etc.).

If interested, please write!

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Date: Tue, 21 Aug 90 08:20:15 EDT
From: lee@quincy.cs.umass.edu (Peter Lee)
Subject: "XTC Explode Together: The Dub Experiments 78-80"

Just a warning to those XTC fans who prefer the band's more melodic, 'poppy',
side (e.g. "Skylarking", most of "Oranges and Lemons", ...) -- this disc is
probably not for you.  "Go+" (an EP released with the first UK pressing of
"Go 2") and Mr. Partridge's "Take Away/The Lure of Salvage" are early studio
experiments by Andy (mostly) in which he took the master tapes from Go 2
("Go+") and "Drums and Wires" ("Take Away/Lure") and did odd things with them
in the studio, such as grafting together the drums from one track with the bass
line from another and the guitar from a third, backwards, and singing new
lyrics over the result.  The comparison to Dub Reggae is apt.  These records
have convinced many that Andy Partridge is one of the Residents, in fact.

If you are of a more open mind musically, and you like dub, etc, the CD is
great.  It's also invaluable to a completeist, since "Go+" is a bitch to get
ahold of (down goes the resale value of MY copy :-().

I can't wait to see what they put on "Rag 'N Bone Buffet"!

|-                       Peter E. Lee, Staff Assistant                       -|
|   Software Development Lab at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst    |
|         lee@cs.umass.edu or Fuligin@umass.bitnet or (413) 256-1329          |
"When you expect whistles, it's flutes.  When you expect flutes, it's whistles"

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Date: Wed, 22 Aug 90 11:43:58 EDT
From: Mike Godfrey <migod@csri.toronto.edu>
Subject: Not to Bragg, Bill, but ...

John Relph writes, summarizing a brochure:
> Subject: XTC Convention '90 News
>
> Canadian radio station CIUT will be present at the event in the form
> of DJ Dave Bookman who will be interviewing fans for his show back
> home.  Dave is an artist in his own right and may well perform for us.

No, Canadian radio stations are not country-wide.  CIUT is the (fairly)
new FM station run by the University of Toronto.

(I dunno who this Bookman fellow is.  My wife growls every time I threaten
to change the station on clock radio from CBC.)

Mike Godfrey
migod@csri.toronto.edu

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Date: Tue, 04 Sep 90 09:07:12 EST
From: "Loden,Tom , MIT Lincoln Lab, *8^)" <LODEN@ll.ll.mit.edu>
Subject: Verbal diarrhea

OKAY, OKAY! Awl right already. So I just recently purchased Black Sea. So what!
Is that a crime? Is there something wrong with that? So what if I thought that
having Waxworks (& Beeswax) was enough. Is that so bad? I mean, well, getting
Black Sea would mean I would have repeats since 3 songs on BS are on W. And
I have a live version of 'Respectable Street' off the 'Urggh' compilation. Who
cares about the other songs I was missing. So what if the rest of the album was
really good. Just because I'm an XTC fan doesn't mean I have to have EVERYTHING
they've ever done!

Give me a break! I don't have to ...

Well, I do enjoy the entire album as a whole. But that doesn't mean that ...

.. um .. and .. and I do enjoy the songs I didn't have before ..

... I ..., I ..., I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I was wrong. I know that now.
I realize the error of my ways, I should of bought the album years ago. It will
never happen again. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER. ( Except that I don't have White Music
yet, either - which means I just lied - but I'll get it soon - I promise )

Forgive me of my sin (of omission) for I know not what I was doing.

                                  -------

We last left our Great Album Debate discussing why some thought O&L sucked
and others didn't. My 2¢:

   1¢ : I kinda thought O&L was an attempt to get back on track. Not that I
        thought it was a wonderful album per se, but it sounded more 'XTC'-like
        (more similar to their older stuff) than Skylarking. O&L seems to have
        regained that 'XTC-punch' that I enjoy from them.

   2¢ : I still hate Skylarking : it's wimpy, it's lifeless, it's flaccid.
        (Of course, I have always, at first, hated the XTC albums I dearly
        love now so there might be some hope. But the more I listen to it,
        the less hope there is.)

                                  -------

> Date: Wed, 13 Jun 90 10:14:02 EDT
> From: nobody@kodak.com (John White (x37690)) (Chalkhills 97)
>
>    One of the things I like most about XTC is the volume and
> variety of material they have. You can make yourself sick of one album
> by having it glued to your turntable a bit too long and then wake up
> the next day and pull out one that you don't listen to much and
> rediscover them. Most of the albums have their own sound. I'm sure
> that having a different producer each time doesn't hurt.

I always just assumed the reason why people like XTC (well as least one reason)
was because of their diversity. I am fascinated how each album can sometimes
be completely different from the rest and still retain that 'XTC-ness', what
ever that is. (with only 1 exeption, see '1¢' above)

                                  -------

> Date: Thu, 21 Jun 90 14:27:17 PDT  (from Karl, Chalkhills 100)
>
   (from Joe Lynn, 6/19/90, Chalkhills 99)
>> If you were an exec at Virgin and you were assigned the task of
>> lining up a producer for the next XTC album, whom, if anyone,
>> would you hire?
>
>   Steve Albini.

Interesting. When Joe asked, Albini was the 1st name to come to mind. (mainly
because he's one of the only producers I know by name)

                                  -------

> From: stewarte@sco.com (Chalkhills 100)
> Date: Thu, 21 Jun 90 11:27:46 PDT
>
> (Geez, you mean somebody's archiving all this stuff?  I'd better stop
> spouting nonsense all the time, lest someone call me on it...)

You betcha. I personally have saved all of them (well most anyway)! In fact,
the first post I have is from you. Remember when you were at ucscc.ucsc.edu
and you said (4/20/89):

> Subject: Drummers for XTC
>
> John French is an interesting idea, but there's really only one choice to
> drum on XTC's next record:
>
> They should go to Australia, find Terry, and drag him by the hair back to
> Swindon.

So be careful. Email can be a dangerous thing.

                                  -------

Desperately in need of Kaopectate,
Tom.

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Date: Tue, 4 Sep 1990 11:04:12 PDT
From: John M. Relph <relph@presto.ig.com>
Subject: Re: Holden Caulfield on KFJC

dkletter@adobe.com (We let the weirdness in...) cries:
>
>what happened to Holden Caufield on KFJC!?!?!?! i miss my Monday
>morning fix of XTC...
>
><waaaaaaaaaaaaaa>

Yes, two or three weeks ago Holden had his last show at KFJC.  I
talked to him that day, as I happened to catch a bit of his show that
morning, and he said he was moving on, taking it easy for a while, no
particular new job in mind.

And by the way, that was "Monday morning *fit* of XTC".

	-- John

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---

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