Possibly My Favourite Options

[Andy Partridge]

How about you?

[Keltik]

Definitely.

[Mr Tein]

I am less and less inclined to measure musical works by album. I think the digitalisation of music has led me to appreciate tracks out of album context more readily. Thus I love Apple venus but some songs I admire more from other releases are missing from it and I could drop three or four songs in their place say, and add a Wrapped in Grey, Rook, Yacht dance and enjoy it more. The fact that you recorded them and released them at a point in time doesnt mean they need to be listened to the same way always.

I am inclined to make up play lists to change the context of songs. Eg Make a play list of just Colin songs, or as Xstatic did live in 2005, a playlist of just the opening tracks of all the albums or songs to keep you going while driving 250 miles to Manchester . And some songs seem to fit togther, to my ears, in a diferent layout than exists in the records.

In some ways keltics answer was soooo much better, wasnt it. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Mr Tein]

On a slightly different tack. had you release AB +WS as a double album then that would have been your best album.

[Jeff Truzzi]

I agree with both Mr Tein & Andy...if that's possible.

[Andy Partridge]

They will be released as separates again soon,if Colin agrees,and who knows if he and I can come to an agreement on the conditions for a 5.1 release,Wow! would love to achieve that.
A complete AV/WS is not out of the question though.

[Kendley]

Looking forward to that 5/1 and/or AV/WS package. Saving the pennies for a decent turntable to play this stuff in my old age.

AV is my favorite album, even though English Settlement will always hold a special place in my heart.

RedbrickDream (Kate from Chalkhills) and I discussed this once: Harvest Festival (Instruvenus version was the processional at her wedding!) vs. Easter Theatre. I'm still all about Easter Theatre for the sheer drama, even though I think Harvest Festival is one of the most beautiful things you've ever done.

I was still in Japan when Renée came home w/AV -- I didn't even know it was coming. I'll never forget that first droplet...

ploink

THUMMMMMMMMMM...

Still gives me chills sometimes.

This post has been edited by Kendley: Jul 26 2011, 03:22 PM

[spidermage]

Mine too.



Intellectually.


My head says AV, but my heart belongs to D&W.

[hummingbird]

Apple Venus is my favourite, very clear front runner! I have about a 4 way tie for second place though & WS isn't in the bunch.

[donavan]

Nonsuch by a country mile.

[Bimble]

Mine too.



Intellectually.


My head says AV, but my heart belongs to D&W.

Exactly.

[Mr Tein]

I never get why Wasp Star is so undervalued. Among my favourite ever XTC tracks I would include : "Playground", "Stupidly Happy", "I'm the Man Who Murdered Love", "We're All Light", "You and the Clouds Will Still be Beautiful", "Church of Women" & "The Wheel and the Maypole"

Glorious

[Keltik]

I never get why Wasp Star is so undervalued. Among my favourite ever XTC tracks I would include : "Playground", "Stupidly Happy", "I'm the Man Who Murdered Love", "We're All Light", "You and the Clouds Will Still be Beautiful", "Church of Women" & "The Wheel and the Maypole"

Glorious

I have to say that I don't tend to separate the two these days. I bought WS (from a store: AV wasn't on the shelves) and had the usual love affair with it, until I got AV via Idea Records. Then I got the box set wiv me own special feather. i tend to play both discs together now, as nature intended. Parts of them still make me weep, silly old sentimentalist that I am. And I still have to pick up a guitar and blunder along to Playground. I don't much listen to the older albums anymore, to be honest....I just seem to gravitate to those two last, magical, superlative works.

[Mr Tein]

and how come AV never got a sniff of the mercury's or is the entrance price too high?

[mark kirk]

Nonsuch by a country mile.

That's what I was going to say as well... I've probably listened to Nonsuch more than any other album I own.

[Jeff Truzzi]

I've had the great fortune to hear every XTC album since (and including) Drums & Wires hot off the presses, right as they was released. And I clearly and fondly remember the circumstances when first listening to each one. But this album has a particularly special place in all of those, because I'd heard about the 'strike' but had heard absolutely nothing about XTC since the mid 90s. And then one day in early 1999 I was browsing the bins at a CD store (an experience I'm sad our younger readers will never experience) and just happened to see this unfamiliar disc in the X section. Jesus it couldn't be...it IS...new XTC! I had NO warning whatsoever. I couldn't wait to hear it and had no CD player in the truck, and the studio was on my way home and there was no session that day, so I CRANKED it on the big monitors. The first thing I heard was water drops in reverb and this string orchestra pitz bass note followed by a faint touch of click leakage - the biggest issue recording strings, and showing how loudly and closely I was listening. It kept building and building, and then the brass came in, and then the vocals. By this time I was DANCING in the control room with my arms failing wildly and the biggest stupid grin imaginable SHOUTING out loud: "FUCK YEAH!!! XTC!!!" That was absolutely one of the best moments of my life, right up there with the best sex I've ever had and hearing XTC for the first time with Simp. (I'm SO glad nobody walked in on me, I would have been mortified!) I played that song 4 or 5 times before I even went on to "I'd Like That" which was totally different and totally cool and I loved as well. And then "Easter Theater" came on and completely blew me away again! I thought: Jesus, this is one of the best fucking songs ANYBODY has ever written. I played that a whole bunch of times too, and by then I was totally exhausted in the best way possible. I wanted to savor each song, so after over an hour I drove home having just listened to the first three songs, but knowing I had all the other ones to look forward to. I was the kid in the candy store.

A few days later a friend said they'd heard a new XTC song on the radio. I played "I'd Like That" and he said yup that was it, great isn't it? I said indeed it is - and there's even better ones on the album.

I played the first two AV songs blind to various people to get their impressions. Many were totally confused by "River of Orchids." Some thought it was the weirdest Sting song they'd ever heard. Most preferred "I'd Like That" saying it was the best new McCartney song they could remember. A few of the more sophisticated ones were intrigued enough to buy the album for themselves.

[bienenhonig]

Wow, cool story! There aren't many moments where music hits you that hard. So I really cherish them, too.

It's funny there are so many people raving about Easter Theater... and I even know and hear all the good things in this song... but I never FELT the same amount of emotion and fascination regarding this song, as otheres seem to do. Is it almost too perfect? I don't know.

This post has been edited by bienenhonig: Jul 27 2011, 04:03 PM

[Mr Tein]

My initial favourites on listening to AV were I Like that ( no 1) and then easter Theatre. later I cant own her became favourote. Now it is Rivcer Of orchids - bot with headphones. My sound system isnt up to jeffs big studio boomers!

[Mr Tein]

Sometimes you have to revisit things. Take a fresh look. Just played AV through and two things struck me why sometimes it doesnt hit home say like Black Sea. Firstly its a very meloncholic record - a record for a certain time of day or a certian mood. It also struck me its unique. I cant call to mind another album or band you could asnwer the question " So what does it sound like " to.

I think sometime we all get caught in cliches and the one that always reverberates around this album is PASTORAL. In fact I think this is misleading and in fact AV is one of the truly great Blues albums . This is more of the legacy of Billie Holiday than Moris dancing English Folk. When I think of it like that it takes a diffeernt course and immediatly becomes incorparrable to your other albums which exisit in other wildly varying genres.

[Jeff Truzzi]

They will be released as separates again soon,if Colin agrees,and who knows if he and I can come to an agreement on the conditions for a 5.1 release,Wow! would love to achieve that.
A complete AV/WS is not out of the question though.

A 5.1 mix would be SO killer!

Someone should poke a hot stick up Virgin's ass about doing that for the rest of the catalog.
Or at least be prepared for it by getting the masters together and copied.
Big record companies USED to be good at that kind of thing.