by I’ve been a big fan of the English band XTC since 1980 when my best friend and neighbor Jeff brought over his older brother’s copy of Black Sea. We listened to the record non-stop for days, rocking out to hard driving songs like “Respectable Street,” “Generals and Majors,” and “Living Through Another Cuba.” I went on to work my way through their back catalog of records, and snapped up each new release of the band for the next two decades.
Sadly, in 1982, XTC stopped performing publicly after an onstage breakdown of the band’s frontman, Andy Partridge. The band continued to record albums up until 2000, but without the touring income, drummer Terry Chambers and guitarist Dave Gregory eventually moved on from the band, leaving bassist Colin Moulding (who with Partridge were the band’s songwriters) and Partridge as the only remaining members. While the band was never officially disbanded, after 2000 their primary activity was releasing re-mastered versions of their classic albums.
With touring off the table, my desire to see XTC perform live seemed to be destined to be only a pipe dream. But circumstances changed in 2017 when drummer Terry Chambers returned from Australia to England and reunited with bassist Colin Moulding. The pair went on to record a four-song EP entitled Great Aspirations under the moniker TC&I, with all songs written by Moulding, and performed six live concerts in 2018 in the band’s hometown of Swindon, England, during which the duo was joined by several other musicians to play both the songs from Great Aspirations as well hits from XTC’s catalog. These performances were recorded and a live album entitled Naked Flames was released in 2019. After this Moulding eased back into retirement, but for Chambers the experience re-ignited a spark.
Chambers gathered two guitarists and a bass player, and set out to recreate XTC’s magic with Moulding’s and Partridge’s blessings as EXTC. In 2023, the band embarked on a global tour, first playing Japan and then heading to North America, finding fans of XTC both old and young.
And in early April, EXTC reached the East Coast of the U.S., playing the Sellersville Theatre in Sellersville, PA–right in the path of our travels. Due to Jennifer’s excellent trip planning skills, she uncovered the performance in time for me to purchase a ticket (a singleton in the third row right in the center!), and we headed towards Sellersville where she happily canoodled with Mr. K. while I enjoyed the closest I might ever come to fulfilling my dream to see XTC live.
The performance was enthralling, and I couldn’t stop singing along with all of my favorite XTC hits. The band–Steve Hampton on guitar and Matt Hughes on bass–were tight and well-versed in XTC’s legacy of intricate beats and lyrics. And Mr. Chambers was the high-powered drumming master that he was on XTC’s recordings forty years ago. I’m grateful to have had the chance to catch EXTC live!
One thought on “EXTC Live: An Iconic English Band Revived”