XTC—Black Sea

XTC—Black Sea

Black Sea—Recorded under the exact circumstances as their previous album, Drums and Wires (1979), it would be a mistake to say XTC's Black Sea was simply more of the same. It is unmistakably similar in all its superficial details—same band, producer (Steve Lillywhite), studio (Virgin's The Town House), respective recording date, and length (within two minutes)—but more importantly, it also shares its intelligence and musicality. Andy Partridge's brash, satisfying rocker "Respectable Street," which caused a minor controversy over banal concerns (passing mentions of abortion and contraception), criticizes haughty suburbanites. The inspiration came from a nagging, noise-sensitive neighbor of his near Bowood Road in Swindon, where "several of the houses had this very English thing: a caravan—a trailer—in the front garden. And I thought, 'I've never seen those move! They must be like status symbols, telling people 'We could go away, if we choose to'" (Andy discusses "Respectable Street," Todd Bernhardt, February 26, 2007). He explained that much of his material was written in this house during a break from touring the previous album, and despite the suggestion that Black Sea was hurried, the results were better than when Go 2 (1978) was churned out in the wake of White Music (1978).

Colin Moulding's "Generals and Majors," the lead single, is an amusing take on Oh, What a Lovely War! epitomizing thusly: "Generals and majors always/Seem so unhappy unless they've got a war." "Living through Another Cuba," one of Partridge's earliest rants, is a grower, at first sounding repetitive, but features great guitar work; he details the paranoia of living in the U.K. between Reagan's United States and Brezhnev's Soviet Union ("We're the bulldog on the fence/While others play their tennis overhead"). The bouncy "Love at First Sight," which Moulding introduces on BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert as being "about debauchery and things like that," pokes fun at promiscuous young people, complete with choruses of "duh." "Rocket from a Bottle" is Partridge's token earnest boyish-infatuation tune, and the swaying "No Language in Our Lungs" laments failures in communication (best line: "I would have made this instrumental/But the words got in the way").

The lumbering "Towers of London" ("about some masonry"), making use of found percussion, sentimentalizes London. "Paper and Iron (Notes and Coins)" attempts to balance the Christian ideal of simple living with the modern necessity of security in wealth. "Burning with Optimism's Flames" ("our rewrite of 'Joy to the World'") is a fun, jumping album cut, if nonsensical. "Sgt. Rock (Is Going to Help Me)," based around the comic book character (the first of three XTC DC Comics-inspired songs, followed by "That's Really Super, Supergirl" and "Brainiac's Daughter"), is a slightly amusing if ultimately contrived set of lyrics. The excellent, halfway-ironic heavy metal closer, "Travels in Nihilon," named after the book, interprets the title more literally.

Black Sea sometimes feels like the most perfunctory of XTC's early albums. It also features some of their least involved arrangements, but on the other hand, that makes it all the more bombastic. It's more confident than Drums and Wires, a bit smarter, and generally catchier, which are all things that should come from a band as they evolve.

More XTC reviews by The Old Noise:

White Music (1978)

Go 2 (1978)

Drums and Wires (1979)

Black Sea (1980)
English Settlement (1982)
Mummer (1983)
The Big Express (1984)
25 O'Clock (1985)
Skylarking (1986)
Psonic Psunspot (1987)
Oranges & Lemons (1989)Nonsuch (1992)Apple Venus Volume 1 (1999)
Wasp Star (Apple Venus Volume 2) (2000)