When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty - XTC, Partridge, Andy
Ten Feet Tall - XTC, Moulding, Colin
Roads Girdle the Globe - XTC, Partridge, Andy
Life Begins at the Hop - XTC, Moulding, Colin
Chain of Command - XTC, Partridge, Andy
Limelight - XTC, Moulding, Colin
Real by Reel - XTC, Partridge, Andy
Millions - XTC, Partridge, Andy
That Is the Way - XTC, Moulding, Colin
Outside World - XTC, Partridge, Andy
Scissor Man - XTC, Partridge, Andy
Complicated Game - XTC, Partridge, Andy
Most Americans' first taste of XTC came from this CD, originally released in 1979. The band's first full-length without cofounder Barry Andrews, it was a cavalcade of Andy Partridge's neuroses and paranoias. Although it co... more »ntained two quirky bona fide pop songs--the calling card "Making Plans for Nigel" and the breezy "Life Begins at the Hop"--the music as a whole was as jagged as Partridge's attitude. "Complicated Game" and "Scissor Man" have the singer's haunting howl echoing and whispering throughout like a Fun House operator gone mad, while "Real by Reel," another pop standout, might be the most conventional song on the CD. Drums and Wires is a must-have for anybody who is only discovering the band. Skylarking and the collected singles are the only other releases that come close to capturing the band's early and earnest dementia. --Steve Gdula« less
Most Americans' first taste of XTC came from this CD, originally released in 1979. The band's first full-length without cofounder Barry Andrews, it was a cavalcade of Andy Partridge's neuroses and paranoias. Although it contained two quirky bona fide pop songs--the calling card "Making Plans for Nigel" and the breezy "Life Begins at the Hop"--the music as a whole was as jagged as Partridge's attitude. "Complicated Game" and "Scissor Man" have the singer's haunting howl echoing and whispering throughout like a Fun House operator gone mad, while "Real by Reel," another pop standout, might be the most conventional song on the CD. Drums and Wires is a must-have for anybody who is only discovering the band. Skylarking and the collected singles are the only other releases that come close to capturing the band's early and earnest dementia. --Steve Gdula
"It's the summer of 1979. You've just graduated high school. You're eighteen and know everything about EVERYTHING, especially music. Then one day, quite by accident, you discover you don't know ANYTHING. It seems that somewhere in merry old England (the armpit of Swindon, I believe) a group of four very sharp young men have created something unlike anything you've ever heard before. Each cut on the album proves to be stranger, fresher, and more glorious than the last. In Roads Girdle the Globe, the guitars sound like steamrollers, the drums like jackhammers. In Millions, the band transports you to the exotic far East, dips you in the Yangtze, rinses years of radio pablum from your spongey little brain. All with guitars ad drums... like the Beatles' loopy cousins sending messages from a parallel universe... Drums and Wires is a freaking revelation. And you know what? Twenty-plus years later, it's still as fresh as the day it was released. It still beats the hell out of anything being recorded today. Drums and Wires is pure XTC. Buy this album, and play it LOUD."
The blossoming of XTC
Nathan M DeHoff | Absurd City | 05/24/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Sometimes, when I haven't listened to this album in a while, I forget how great it is. This is often regarded as the first "true" XTC album, as it begins to create the "Beatle-based pop" sound for which the band is now (somewhat) famous, rather than the organ-heavy pseudo-punk of the first two albums (which are also good, by the way). It kicks off with XTC's first hit single, "Making Plans For Nigel," followed by the frantic "Helicopter." Other highlights include the tongue-twisting "Outside World" (about not wanting to know what depressing things are going on in the world, a subject with which I can often identify), the cautionary fantasy (or mockery thereof, perhaps) of "Scissor Man," and the world-weary "Complicated Game." There are also odes to the overwhelming feeling of being in love ("When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty" and "Ten Feet Tall"), and social commentaries on such issues as factory work ("Day In Day Out"), lack of privacy ("Real By Reel"), and devotion to the automobile ("Roads Girdle The Globe"). A great aspect of this album is the way that the music fits the mood of each song. "Making Plans For Nigel" is mechanical; the whirring sounds of "Helicopter" bring an actual helicopter to mind; "Roads Girdle The Globe" is noisy and droning; and "Complicated Game" is delightfully paranoid. I wouldn't say this is XTC's best work (that would be Skylarking), but it is an all-around wonderful album."
This is where it started for me
Carl Mack | Palm Springs, CA United States | 05/17/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This was the first effort I ever heard by XTC. A local new-wave station was playing "Helicopter" and "Making Plans For Nigel" and I just had to have this. I was in no way disappointed. Still sounds fresh to me today. To me this was thier first great effort, with many more classics to come."
Songwriting skills develop
Rich Bunnell | 03/28/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
""Go 2" showed a band with an increased focus; "Drums & Wires" showed the band backing up that focus with songwriting. It's about the same quality level because about the same number of songs hit, but this is the first XTC album where you can actually pick out distinct, fully-developed songs which in a weird universe might actually come close to being on the radio. I'm speaking of "Making Plans For Nigel," "Ten Feet Tall," and "Life Begins At The Hop," three sublime tracks which showed that Colin Moulding had actually developed talent beyond his superb bass skills. The addition of second guitarist Dave Gregory also helped the band discover a more full, meaty sound than before (Steve Lillywhite's production is also to thank for this) which helped toughen up the material. Only a few duff songs and a surprising lack of energy throughout (very noticeable compared to the last two albums) keeps this from achieving pure greatness. Buy it anyway; it takes a few listens to sink in yet it's very rewarding if you give it time."