11 September 2020

Band: XTC (Swindon, England)
Active: 1976-2005
Album: BLACK SEA – their 4th LP
Released: 12 September 1980 – 40 years ago

AllMusic/Chris Woodstra:: “XTC continue on with the big drum sound of Drums and Wires, adding more polish and an even heavier-hitting approach for Black Sea — their arrangements are fuller and they rock harder than ever before. Where Drums and Wires implied social commentary, Black Sea more directly addresses sociopolitical concerns, handling them not strictly in a theoretical sense, but rather showing a human response to the circumstances… ‘Black Sea’ is their most consistent album to date — and although XTC always operated on the fringes, the album is their most commercial-sounding, fitting in perfectly with the new wave of the late ’70s/early ’80s.” Full review here. Score: 4,5/5.

“We’re horribly mundane, aggressively mundane individuals. We’re
the ninjas of the mundane, you might say.” – Andy Partridge

TUTV! says: “Perfect pop rock record!”

Singles: Generals And Majors / Towers Of London /
Sgt. Rock (Is going To Help Me / Respectable Street

– GENERALS AND MAJORS –

– TOWERS OF LONDON –

– SGT. ROCK (IS GOING TO HELP ME) –

– RESPECTABLE STREET –
(live version)

Full album…

XTC: Facebook