Chalkhills Digest Volume 1, Issue 303
Date: Thursday, 18 November 1993
                  Chalkhills, Number 303

                Thursday, 18 November 1993
Today's Topics:
          Re: In defense of _Explode Together_:
                   *More* Martin Newell
                   Re: Chalkhills #302
                       Introduction
                      XTC Biography
        XTC: "Wait 'til Your Boat Goes Down", etc.
                         New here
                   Re: Chalkhills #302
                    two note/questions
          Explode Together:  comments from Andy
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Date: Mon, 15 Nov 93 12:00:01 PST
From: "John Relph" <relph@presto.ig.com>
Subject: Re: In defense of _Explode Together_:

"Jamie in NYC" <MOWDER@acfcluster.nyu.edu> writes:
>
>        That being said, a lot of the "Homo Safari" series still leaves
>        me cold.

I really like the "Homo Safari" series, except for number four, "Mantis
on Parole".  That song sounds a little disorganized, unrehearsed, and
it suffers.  However, the remainder are quite good.  They do evolve
over the time of their recording: the first few are guitar songs, the
last two are very synthesized.  But they do evoke some kind of
atmosphere.  That is what I find important.  And they're fun, a little
time off from XTC's usual cerebral fare (I exaggerate to make a
point).

        -- John

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From: andyh@cogs.susx.ac.uk (Andy Holyer)
Subject: *More* Martin Newell
Date: Mon, 15 Nov 93 21:09:07 GMT

Recently, <chalkhills-request@chalkhills.org> said:
>
> From: andyh@cogs.susx.ac.uk (Andy Holyer)
>
> I owe Martin a  phone call.

...and I just phoned him. US release is due out in the next few days.
He doesn't remember the name of the label in the US, but he's signed
to the "Trident"(? - he didn't know for sure) group worldwide... Ring any
bells, anyone? Then Martin went on to tell me about himself as usual.
Trust me for ringing up a total bohemian :-)

--
&ndy Holyer, COGS, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.## PGP Key by finger. ##
"The English are the most tasteless nation on earth, which is why they
set such store by it" - Joe Orton

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From: Tim Szeliga <tim@snow.nohrsc.nws.gov>
Subject: Re: Chalkhills #302
Date: Mon, 15 Nov 93 15:27:33 CST

> From: valerianne@aol.com
>
> i'm a music journalist in nyc, and i have the opportunity to have lunch with
> and interview andy partridge later this week (11/17, i believe). xtc are in
> town recording a track for a "where in the world is carmen sandiego" kids
> album.
>
> anyway, i was wondering if anyone had any questions for him that they're
> dying to have answered. i promise to print all electronic queries and let him
> have a go at them.

Will they perform "Living Through Another Cuba"  and
"It's Nearly Africa"?
;^{

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Date: Mon, 15 Nov 1993 15:46:43 -0600 (CST)
From: "Jason S. Shapiro-1" <shap0007@gold.tc.umn.edu>
Subject: Introduction

Hello, a short introduction of who I am...
I am a composer/percussionist, primariliy interested in Experimental
compositions.  XTC, Philip Glass, early Floyd, My Bloody Valentine, David
Sylvian, Dalis Car, and Dead Can Dance are a few of my favorites (oh and I
can't forget John Cage).  I became interested in XTC about 8 years ago,
and have worn out many records of theirs since.  My favorite stuff of
theirs is probably Skylarking, and the Homo Safari Series.  I welcome
anyone and everyone to write me for any reason.  I do work in a record
store, so if the question of availability comes up, I will check all of my
resources.  Let me know...
Jason

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Subject: XTC Biography
Date: Mon, 15 Nov 93 16:37:45 CST
From: Vince Layton <vince@austin.ibm.com>

I noticed an XTC biography at the bookstore the other day. The
name escapes me though I think "chalkhills" was part of the
title. Has anyone read this? It looked rather new and I don't
remember seeing it discussed here(in other words, sorry if this
is a FAQ).

Vince Layton
vince@austin.ibm.com

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Date: Mon, 15 Nov 1993 17:38:37 EST
From: "John Ewan|Harnischfeger Engineers, Inc.|Milwaukee, WI
Subject: XTC: "Wait 'til Your Boat Goes Down", etc.

I saw in the last chalkhills that you were wondering about where you might
find the following tracks on CD:

  "Hang On To The Night"          - Geffen records CD of the "White Music"
                                    album, appears as one of the bonus tracks.

  "Wait 'til Your Boat Goes Down" - I've only seen this on the "Waxworks:
                                    Some Singles" collection.  Geffen has
                                    released Waxworks on CD.  I've seen
                                    Beeswax on CD too, but I can't remember
                                    if that was only available as an import.
                                    Check a recent Phonolog at your local
                                    record store to see if Geffen released
                                    Beeswax domestically as well.

  "Heaven is Paved With Broken    - I've only seen this on the "Rag and Bone
   Glass"                           Buffet" collection (available on CD in
                                    the US on Geffen records).  I don't know
                                    if this is the original version of the
                                    song though.  By the way, does anyone
                                    know if the notes which accompanied the
                                    Virgin Records release of "Rag..." were
                                    more extensive than the 2 pages that
                                    Geffen included?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
John Ewan                    |Milwaukee,|DownInChicagoNothin'ButAHassleLet's
Harnischfeger Engineers, Inc.|Wisconsin |GoToMarsToSeeTheCheeseCastleHouseOn
                             |USA       |TheRockCaveOfTheMoundsStopInTheDells
internet: jewan@hei.hii.com  |          |ForTheWaterskiin'Clowns -- J. Kruth

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From: Chuck Archer <carcher@char.vnet.net>
Subject: New here
Date: Mon, 15 Nov 1993 21:59:32 -0500 (EST)

Hi,

I've new to the internet, and I came across Chalkhills in a list of music
addresses.  I scrambled toward the end of the list, hoping I'd see XTC,
and there it was.
I'm a musician, and these guys just amaze me every time out.  Fresh and
original, and so far above the rest of the huge heap of funk pop a roll
that's out these days.  (Not to mention rap junk a droll).

Are there any recent video compilations out there?

Thanks, everybody!

Chuck

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Subject: Re: Chalkhills #302
Date: Tue, 16 Nov 93 09:27:55 -0500
From: silva@mond1.ccrc.uga.edu

> Are the albums 'Waxworks' and 'Beeswax' available on CD.

  HeY, is this "BeesWaX" CD a collection of B-sides, that's somehow
slipped past me. Any Info would be greatly appreciated and will
probably be converted into more cash in xTc's pocket (goTTa help keep
Colin and DavE out of the trucking pprofession...).

JoE

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Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1993 08:41:29 -0500 (EST)
From: CANEVIT@utkvx.utcc.utk.edu
Subject: two note/questions

        Hello!
        I was in a new-and-used cd store recently and noticed
two things:
        1). there seems to be a new "greatest of" cd from the
band, covering mostly recent hits (basically "Senses Working
Overtime" on through "Balland of Peter Pumpkinhead"). I missed
the title and whether the disc was American or an import. It
looks like a good "evangelical" album--give it to your friends
for Christmas, if you wouldn't simply give them _Black Sea_
or _Skylarking_. Has anybody seen/heard the album yet? Is there
anything special about it?
        2). I found and bought the DIY compilation "UK Pop
197(mumble) to 1979." It has liner notes that show high
adulation for XTC and one of my other favorite bands, Squeeze
(any other Squeeze fans out there?). The XTC song is apparently
the single version of "This Is Pop" (they include a question mark
after the title--how common is this?). The song differs from the
version on _White Music_ in a number of ways--there's a noticable
piano; there's an odd jump from a "this is!" to "yeah, yeah"
without a "pop" in between; Andy's vocals are, um, even *more
so*, if you know what I mean; and the ending differs.  Anyway,
is this version available on any other cd?
        Just thought someone might want to know.
        Craig "watching the silent film of melting miracle play"
        E. Canevit

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From: Stewart Evans <stewarte@sco.com>
Subject: Explode Together:  comments from Andy
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1993 18:51:12 -0800 (PST)

In the wake of the discussion of "Explode Together", I was motivated
to dig out my old Andy Partridge interview and transcribe the part
of it that deals with the dub experiments...in response to being
asked if "Go+" & "Take Away" were influenced by dub reggae:

AP: I thought it was great.  I was hearing a lot of black experiments
at the time, with reggae, and I could tell -- through my knowledge
of what the studio could do -- that they'd been not performed
like that, that they'd been specially electronically altered from the
master tape later.  And I thought that was really exciting, to
actually go back to what appears to be a finished thing, a finished
work of art or whatever -- art with a capital "f" -- and actually
kind of shatter it up and change it into something different, and
hopefully equally valid. It's a bit like somebody making a car -- you
make a car, say 'there we are, I've put all these parts together,
I've made a car.  That's what it's intended to be.  There it goes.
Doesn't it drive lovely.'  And then someone else coming along and
saying 'Yeah, well I'm going to take a welding device to it and cut
it open and I'm going to use some of those parts and I'm going to
make a house to live in, make it into something different.'  So I
thought it was an interesting experiment.

The "Go+" EP was the first time that we'd experimented with dub, and
later went on to sort of "dub plus additions" with the Take Away/Lure of
Salvage.  Incidentally, I heard a few years after doing "Go +" that
someone in New York put a ballet together to that EP.  So, if they
ever recovered, and give me the address of the hospital where I can
send the flowers to...I don't know if anyone ever saw that, but
that's what I heard.

Q: To use your own analogy, on "Go+" you can still see that it was a
car, wheras on "Take Away" you seem to have gone a little wilder
with the welding torch.

AP: Yeah, that had additions too.  Basically "Go+" was inventively
stripping things down, and I intended to carry the same feel of
experiments further with "Take Away", which was why it was initially
called "Take Away".  But I finished the album and thought, 'I've
actually put in as many alternate pieces, like bits of poetry or
just improvised...yelling...or noises with guitars and vocals and
things...I've put in as many things, I can't really call it Take
Away.'  So it had the alternate title of the Lure of Salvage, because
I was actually adding as many things as I was taking off.

-- Stewart
"All the wrong notes are right."
                               -- Charles Ives, to his music copyist

/* stewarte@sco.com is Stewart Evans in Santa Cruz, CA */

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