A rather special one for me this one. Not because it's one of my favourite records, it's not, but because it's one of the first albums I bought. Back in 1980 when I was fifteen and searching around for an identity. I found myself at XTC from The Police, T.Rex and Split Enz and went from here to The Associates, The Teardrop Explodes, The Bunnymen, Aztec Camera and eventually R.E.M. and The Smiths.
XTC were a useful gateway to all of that. A good and occasionally great band, here at just about their commercial peak. This was certainly their big Pop moment. Five singles were culled from the album in all and plenty of the other songs on here wouldn't have been out of place as 45s.
The band were relentlessly provincial, from Swindon in Wiltshire, a town that's produced little else of note, at least to my knowledge. Black Sea is beautifully sleeved with a picture of the band posed as Nineteenth Century deep sea divers surrounded by incredibly detailed, loving, period design. Listening to it now, I'm struck by the way that they appear almost unembarrasable in their Power Pop stance. They never once try to be cool. Which may be why I didn't stick with them as I probably did want to be. Still, almost forty years on, it certainly sounds a pretty neat record. So here we go, song by song, what I thought of them and it then and now.
1. Respectable Street
One of the record's best songs to start with. A riff that Blur stole, (pure and simple), for Tracy Jacks. A track that just careers along from verse to chorus, starting with a vinyl crackle effect. Words charting the joys or otherwise of suburban living. I was tickled by the slight sexual innuendo of the lyric at the time. Now I just think it's a great tune. It was refused radio play and a shot at the singles chart not by that but ultimately for the reference to a Sony Entertainment Centre.
2. Generals and Majors
Andy Partridge, the band's nominal leader hands the baton over to Colin Moulding, XTC's bassist and second songwriter. By this point in the band's trajectory he was begin to assert himself, having written Making Plans For Nigel, the band's biggest hit a year previously. Generals and Majors is complete Pop, nowhere near Punk frankly. Taking its lead from Penny Lane, (The Beatles are the key influence on Black Sea), it's hardly social commentary, just a fine melody.
3. Living Through Another Cuba
Partridge again. Not for me this one, then or now frankly. Ludicrously fussy. A song about the Cuban Missile Crisis, wordy and frankly rather gormless and to my ears pointless. Full of sub-Police cod-reggae touches.the album's weakest though I get the sense that Partridge is rather proud of it.
4. Love at First Sight
Back to Moulding. Perfectly serviceable but hardly deserving of being a single which it was. A repeated backing chant of 'What they want is...' enhanced by basic studio effects indicate that the band were fans of even the Ringo sung songs on Beatles records.
5. Rocket From a Bottle
Now this is Partridge and XTC at their best. Once again unembarrasable in terms of it's lyrics, 'I've been set off by a pretty little girl. I'm like a rocket from a bottle shot free. I've been just explosive since you kissed me. I've been up with the larks. I've been shooting up sparks. And I'm feeling in love..' But the sheer momentum of the singing, playing and production never let up.
6. No Language in our Lungs
Probably not a song that did much for me in 1980. Taking its lead from later rather than Pop period Beatles and full of Harrison White Album touches and more wrought lyrics and vocals from Partridge than usual, it's impressive though not really affecting. Roland Orzabal of Tears For Fears, who praises the album to the high heavens here, cites the song as a key influence on The Hurting. Whether this is a good thing remains open to debate. Anyhow, No Language in our Lungs stands as evidence that this is all an act of album construction rather than something that's merely thrown together and ends the first side neatly.
Something worth noting is that XTC, particularly at this point in their career, came at things from an essentially humorous perspective. They are a comic band, in the way that Gang of Four are political and Siouxsie & the Banshees are Gothic. Even though they're broad ranging in terms of their themes, on Black Sea you get Capitalism, the Cuban missile crisis, the difficulty of relationships, the mundanity of suburban existence, the pointlessness of war, the psychogeography of urban environments, religion and nihilist dystopia they're all handled essentially playfully. They never forget that they're a Pop band and what the job of such a unit is.
Language in our Lungs by contrast is the one moment when they, and Partridge in particular, seem intent on looking you in the eye and allowing you to take a peek at some essential inner anguish. Which perhaps is why it's more for Orzabal than for me. Not that it's not a fine song, particularly in the context of the record where it comes as some surprise.
7. Towers of London
Towers of London, first track on Side Two just takes the biscuit. It's an absolutely wonderfully constructed song from start to finish, XTC at their absolute peak. The influence of Revolver era Beatles is clearly apparent here as well as Kinks lyrical concerns. At this point in time those were strangely quite unusual reference points for young guitar bands who had nothing to do with the Mod Revival and XTC were quite apart from that despite the way they dressed. but Towers of London clangs and chimes to wonderfully stirring effect.
The lyrics are a call to respect the history around you and Partridge understandably chooses London over Swindon as the better reference point. The band went to a country studio owned by label boss Richard Branson to try and get a matching sound for his vision. The event is documented by a fine BBC film from the time called At the Manor. XTC come across as gauche and goofy, Steve Lillywhite, who was pretty much the record producer of the time, and deserves great credit for the sound of the record which is wonderfully crisp and clear, distinctly plummy.
At the Manor is a great testament to how much work and thought goes into the making of a record but also proof of how much more rewarding the whole grind is than most nine to fives. The band sit around the studio and the estate's lake, working on getting the sound of the song absolutely right and though I think they succeed the resulting single failed to make the Top Thirty. It really should have done but the competition at that point in Pop History was fierce.
8. Paper and Iron
Due to an exhausting touring schedule XTC had become by now a highly muscular touring and recording machine. Black Sea documents the height of this process . Partridge describes them at this time as 'a well-oiled gleaming Moloch of two chopping guitars bass and drums'. It's an apt desciption of much of the record. Next track, Paper and Iron is further testament to this, it has a tick tock precision and full on momentum. Drummer Terry Chambers, who is always key to their artillery attack, (they were certainly never again the powerhouse they'd been after he left), pretty much owns this one.
9. Burning With Optimism's Flames
An album track. But every album except for Greatest Hits needs album tracks. Partridge veers slightly too much into Sting warbling territory again for my personal liking but the 'optimism' is clearly present, the band work, as all the best bands do, as a team. Four minutes pass in a flash and we're speeding towards album closure.
10. Sgt. Rock (Is Going To Help Me)
To the record's one sizeable hit single. It got to Number 16 in the charts. The band seemed to be on Top of the Pops every two weeks for a couple of months with performances of quite ridiculous energy and enthusiasm. Partridge doesn't like the song much now, but I'm not sure why. In many respects it epitomises the childlike attractions of the band. Comic strips, bottles of pop, fantasy.
11. Travels in Nihilon
The album's final track, all seven minutes of it, is like nothing else on the record, or frankly anything else XTC ever recorded. It's almost Prog in terms of its sensibility. Chambers fabulous drumming is once again the driving heart of things. But the band's essential Pop sensibilities are still evident, even though there are hardly verses and choruses. The song's title is taken from a dystopian Science Fiction novel by Alan Sillitoe, is full on from start to finish and doesn't seem nearly as long as it is. It probably had little effect on me when I first used to play it. Now I'd say it's one of the best things they ever did.
So, Black Sea, certainly a damn fine record, as I've learned to appreciate sitting and listening to while writing this today. English Settlement, their next record, ( a double), is probably their masterpiece. But I prefer this, for the sheer energy and power of the band, for it's Beatles meets Talking Heads sensibility, for documenting so much that is actually good about England, for its Pop grip and essential optimism. It stands up. I was right to buy it way back when!
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