XTC - English Settlement [Remastered] (CD 2001)

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Every generation has an XTC: a brilliant, intellectual, original band plowing their own furrow to general apathy amongst record labels, radio stations and the music buying public. Although it sold well, the Black Sea album which preceeded English Settlement hadn’t exactly hinted at what was to come, the quirky, angular new wave contours and throw away lyrics of Sgt.Rock hinting more at playful irony rather than a desire for social commentary.

It was with little relish then that Virgin released the single Senses Working Overtime in January ’82 into a musical world dominated by personality free synthesiser duos and pointless American soft rock and soul. Contrasting starkly with everything around it, Senses.. was unashamedly folk, Andy Partridge’s reedy vocals building to a glorious, table thumping chorus that screamed life affirmation. A hit despite itself, it spoke volumes for the body of work from which it came in terms of song writing quality and point of view. Partridge and creative partner Colin Moulding had taken the bold step of both politicising their music and broadening it’s scope exponentially, drawing in proto-electronica, percussive African rythms, psychedelia and adding the aforementioned traditional folk motifs. The project was also lyrically ambitious too; Runaways dealt with domestic violence, No Thugs in our House of suburban parental denial, Ball and Chain the insensitivity of urban planning whilst Melt The Guns was a more than credible entry for the best anti-war song of all time. Virtually filler free (Although All Of A Sudden and Yacht Dance probably deserve a sideways look) English Settlement is as inventive, diverse, challenging and brave british record as any in the first five years of the 1980’s. The next time a tourist approaches you in the street and asks you to point them towards some faceless landmark as a means of gaining an understanding of the true spirit of this sceptered islands mongrel culture, tell them instead to go home and download this album. As quintessentially british as Chaucer, English Settlement should be on any cultural sub-curriculum in every school in every corner of this country.