What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast

Nick Heyward first saw XTC at the Croydon Greyhound in 1978, two days after the release of White Music . The Haircut 100 frontman has been a fan ever since.   Thomas Walsh has written with Andy Partridge and collaborated with Dave Gregory. He also appeared on Colin Moulding's Say It.   The two musicians talk about meeting their heroes, the collaborations that nearly happened and those that might h...

After being delayed 18 months by the pandemic, Terry Chambers is finally out on the road, giving XTC classics the live airing they deserve with his new band EXTC. The drummer is our very special guest on this episode of What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast along with bandmate, frontman and all-round multitasker Steve Tilling .   We also hear from fans who caught the band's gig at the Wedge...

Headphones at the ready as audio-guru Steven Wilson talks to What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast about his stereo mixes and 5.1 surround versions of XTC classics.   Quizzed by three Marks – Fisher, Reed and Smotroff – the Porcupine Tree musician takes a deep dive into Drums and Wires, Black Sea, Skylarking, Oranges and Lemons and Nonsuch – not forgetting the Dukes of Stratosphear.   In a...

To mark the release of My Failed Songwriting Career Volume One, XTC's Andy Partridge talks about writing to order, the collaborations that work – and those that don't – and the perils of being a songwriter for hire. As well as sharing insights into the four songs on the first EP, the XTC frontman gives a sneak preview of the four that follow on Volume Two. Mark Fisher asks the questions and Rachel...

To mark the release of The Hardest Battle (2 July 2021), the mighty Colin Moulding talks about being true to himself, avoiding cliches and fighting off being beige.   The XTC bassist and songwriter reveals the inspiration behind his first solo single since 1980's Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen to Mark Fisher , Sarah Palmer and Peter Mills, who ask:   ·      Who are his favourite poets?  ·      What...

In this second deep dive into XTC's lyrical references, we talk about the flora and fauna of River of Orchids , the one-way traffic of English Roundabout and the coastal retreat of Bungalow . In a lively and, above all, morally uplifting discussion, we swing from the suburban angst of New Town Animal to the assembly-hall nostalgia of Harvest Festival . Comparing notes are Mark Fisher, Belinda Blan...

After enjoying a stateside hit with The Freshmen in 1997, Brian Vander Ark of the Verve Pipe got the chance to write with his hero Andy Partridge. His band had already recorded a cover of Wake Up (and an unreleased Blue Beret ) and now he'd fly to Swindon to co-write Blow You Away . It's a story he tells in Go Further: More Literary Appreciations of Power Pop (Rare Bird Lit, 2021), an anthology of...

With their allusions to town and country, chalkhills and steam trains, XTC have deep Swindon roots. But how well do their references travel?    In the first of two episodes exploring XTC's Wiltshire worldview, we look at the influence of British nursery rhymes on songs ranging from Ladybird to We're All Light, Ballet for a Rainy Day and Brainiac's Daughter .    Sharing their UK expertise are Belin...

"You think they're going to zig and they zag," says Ami Parkerson about XTC. In this multinational episode, our guest presenter introduces fellow fans Orit Friedland, Ondine PM, Ursula Marie and Leslie Randall to talk about Ladybird, Church of Women, Take This Town, The Last Balloon and The Mayor of Simpleton – not to mention The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets . Elsewhere, Cathy Forster...

Guest presenter Kevin Winser discovers XTC are as good to read about as they are to listen to as he chats to three of the authors who have put the band in print. This episode features Chris Twomey , author of XTC: Chalkhills and Children , "the definitive biography", Todd Bernhardt , co-author with Andy Partridge of Complicated Game: Inside the Songs of XTC , and Mark Fisher , editor of Limelight...

More than 40 years after its release, Making Plans for Nigel is still haunting the imagination. In this episode , Tom Clarke , formerly of The Enemy, explains why he has brought Colin Moulding's character into the 21st century on The Chronicles of Nigel . He's joined by Laurie Nankivell who talks about the influence of XTC on Squid, whose song Houseplants namechecks Making Plans for Nigel .   This...

The festive fun continues with the second Yuletide episode of What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast . The conversation continues as Andy Partridge and Chris Butler take us through some of their favourite seasonal songs.    Amid the sleigh bells and trumpets, you can hear about a Captain Beefheart song that never was, the secret of the Zippy zither and John Leckie's outrageous story about be...

Prepare for a feast of seasonal excess with the first of two festive episodes of What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast.    First up is Martin Newell talking about Christmas in Suburbia and his fantastic Flowers in December EP.    Then comes Chris Butler of the Waitresses talking about Christmas Wrapping to Andy Partridge who names the XTC song it influenced.   This episode also features a C...

Between 2002 and 2005, X-sTatiC performed 61 XTC songs in the course of eight gigs. Along the way, they picked up famous fans and paved the path for the Fuzzy Warblers and now Fossil Fools.    Now, for the first time in over ten years, Dan Barrow (guitar), Ed Percival (bass), Adrian Ogden (drums) and Mick Casey (guitar) come together to talk about being unofficial XTC ambassadors as they remember...

All the guests in this episode of What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast are in their 20s. None was even born when Nonsuch was released. Yet all talk with passion and insight about XTC's enduring legacy.    So what does XTC mean to a young generation of music lovers?   From England, Scotland, Wales and the US, Margaret Brown, Myles Parsons, Huw Thomas, Rachel Treffry and Laura Wade come toge...

What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast brings together fans and musicians alike to celebrate the enduring music of XTC. Every month, we take a fresh look at the band, from the singles to the albums, from the visuals to the personalities. It is witty, surprising and fun. In this podcast trailer, host Mark Fisher gives a flavour of the episodes as well as introducing  The XTC Bumper Book of Fu...

In this special edition of What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast , recorded live as part of the online XTC Convention on 19 September 2020, author Mark Fisher talks to leading stand-up comedians about their love of XTC. He also gets them to join in some games and make up some nonsense – or do they?   On the panel are:    ·      Joanna Neary , who once performed a pastiche XTC song called Hu...

"I still think XTC are one of the best bands ever," says Hugh Padgham – and he should know: he's worked with everyone from David Bowie to Brian Wilson, Kate Bush and The Police. Having enjoyed his earliest successes as sound engineer on Drums and Wires and Black Sea , and co-producer on English Settlement , he says XTC continue to hold a special place in his heart.   To celebrate the 40th annivers...

Illustrator and graphic designer Andrew Swainson has been collaborating with Andy Partridge for over 20 years. As well as working on XTC and Dukes of Stratosphear re-releases, such as Skylarking and The Complete and Utter Dukes , he helped create the distinctive look of records including: Powers, Partridge's tribute to abstract electronic artist Richard M Power, made to look like an early 60s pape...

Guitarist and keyboard player Dave Gregory talks about his contribution to the sound of XTC. In conversation with musician Hugh Nankivell, he reflects on the smell of guitars, playing an idolised instrument on Skylarking and the joy of making music with Colin Moulding and Andy Partridge. Recorded at home in Swindon in March 2018, the interview appears in full in What Do You Call That Noise? An XTC...

Jordan Cooper of Don't Let's Start: A Podcast About They Might Be Giants joins Mark Fisher, Mark Reed and David White to talk about the connections between XTC, TMBG and Adam and the Ants. In a freewheeling conversation, they explore the head versus the heart, intellect versus instinct, and content versus form. Along the way, Andy Partridge drops by to share his opinions about Adam and the Ants an...

To cheer us up during the Covid-19 lockdown, Andy Partridge pays a call to What Do You Call That Noise? The XTC Podcast with the promise that Everything'll Be Alright . He talks to author Mark Fisher with characteristic wit and candour about the power of XTC as a live band, the chords for Roads Girdle the Globe and how Yacht Dance was nearly a song about bees. Essential listening for every XTC fan...

Author Andrew M Stafford talks about Breathing the Same Air, his memoir of his time with XTC during the making of The Big Express at Crescent Studios in Bath. Belinda Blanchard , who had her own brush with XTC when she starred in the video for Dear God, previews her performance at the XTC Convention 2020. Mark Fisher, Mark Reed and David White join in the chat – and Andy Partridge supplies the jin...

Giving a first listen to Garden of Earthly Delights: An XTC Celebration (Futureman Records), XTC fans Mark Fisher, David White and Mark Reed talk about:  Don't Lose Your Temper covered by Derrick Anderson Your Dictionary covered by Mark McCrite Life Begins at the Hop covered by the Kickstand Band Seagulls Screaming Kiss Her Kiss Her covered by Casper Fandango & His Tiny Sick Tears Runaways cov...