More than a decade ago, XTC was very much the challenging British New Wave band, making hyperactive, abrasive music – the group's 1978 debut LP was called, appropriately enough, White Music. On ingenious middle-period albums like Black Sea (1980) and English Settlement (1982), XTC metamorphosed into the quintessential quirky pop group, all the while fleshing out its sound as the group delved further and further into the possibilities of the recording studio – XTC's only forum since the band stopped touring in 1982. XTC's endlessly clever records and tight, self-contained singles won a following of fans and critics whose fanaticism almost made up for the band's
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lackluster sales figures.
On Skylarking (1986), Andy Partridge, the band's main lead singer and writer, let a more melodious streak – as well as a dash of sentimentality – come to the fore, which broadened XTC's audience. In the process, the band has accomplished the remarkable feat of pulling the kinks out of its music without sacrificing its peerless originality. The band members have become the deans of a group of artists who make what can only be described as unpopular pop music, placing a high premium on melody and solid if idiosyncratic songcraft. Throughout their long career, the members of XTC have made consistently excellent music, and Oranges and Lemons, happily, finds them at the height of their considerable powers.
Ambitious, and ultimately delightful, Oranges and Lemons is XTC's ninth album (tenth, if you count Psonic Psunspot, an affectionate psychedelic sendup the band recorded two years ago as the Dukes of Stratosphear, who also have an EP to their name). It's difficult to determine whether the beauty of this album stems from the exquisite construction of the songs, the indelible melodies or the relentlessly benevolent mood of the lyrics.
Oranges and Lemons is preoccupied with the joys and tribulations of fatherhood and the state of the world today's children are entering – Partridge is the father of two young children, ages three and one. When someone sings, "I love you," on this album, it's as likely to be directed at offspring as at a lover: "Garden of Earthly Delights," "Mayor of Simpleton," "Hold Me My Daddy," "Pink Thing" and "Chalkhills and Children" all hinge on parent-child relationships. But the music is far from treacly as it wanders through Peter Max rock ("Mayor of Simpleton"), McCartneyesque pop ("Pink Thing") and leisurely jazz fusion ("Miniature Sun").
Though it has always managed to steer clear of Beatlemania territory, XTC has become increasingly open about the Fab Four's influence, while still remaining very much its own band. Never mind the Yellow Submarine-like album cover – listen to the "Penny Lane" trumpets in "Merely a Man" and to "Here Comes President Kil Again," with its middle eight straight out of the White Album. In fact,
