Pitchfork

Following the release of the Fuzzy Warbles Collector's Album box set, Andy Partridge is keeping busy, though the possibility of him releasing new music under the XTC moniker seems doubtful.

Partridge revealed the news to David Garland of WNYC's "Spinning on Air" for an episode of the radio show that will air this Sunday night, February 11, and Garland was nice enough to share a transcript of a piece of the interview with us.

Partridge says, "At the moment, XTC is well and truly in the fridge. Purely, really, for the reason that [partner] Colin [Moulding] doesn't want to write anymore. He's either taking a break, or that break could become permanently in place. He told me some months back that he's not interested in music anymore, and doesn't want to write, and basically said, 'Our paths will cross again or they'll be involved in some way.' And then he proceeded to move away from his house-- I have no idea where he's living right now, I have no idea what his phone number is, don't really know how to contact him, and so Colin is obviously wanting to leave the world to some extent. And I guess he's got the right to do that, so I'm not going to pester him and say, 'Come on, what's the matter with you, get it together.'

With the XTC name or not, however, Partridge is still writing and recording music. Or, in the case of his collaboration with former XTC keyboardist Barry Andrews and Andrews' Shriekback bandmate Martyn Baker, not writing. The trio will release Monstrance-- a double album of live improvisation sans overdubs-- via Ape House on April 3. Merv Carswell and Future Sound of London guitarist Stuart Rowe edited and mixed the eight hours' worth of material the trio accrued in three sessions together. And with songs like "Oodoo" and "Priapple", we're guessing none of that time was spent thinking of song titles.

Interview transcript:

Andy Partridge: At the moment, XTC is well and truly in the fridge. Purely, really, for the reason that Colin doesn't want to write anymore. He's either taking a break, or that break could become permanently in place. He told me some months back that he's not interested in music anymore, and doesn't want to write, and basically said, "Our paths will cross again or they'll be involved in some way." And then he proceeded to move away from his house-- I have no idea where he's living right now, I have no idea what his phone number is, don't really know how to contact him, and so Colin is obviously wanting to leave the world to some extent. And I guess he's got the right to do that, so I'm not going to pester him and say, "Come on, what's the matter with you, get it together."

David Garland: Well, even though you've been able to sort of make XTC be whatever you needed it to be as your songwriting has changed a bit over the years, is this maybe now a moment that you can be free of that category?

AP: Well, certainly it does seem a shame that I have to sort of, I suppose, legally wave goodbye to the name XTC. Because it was my name, and I've been working on making the XTC brand-- if you want to call it that-- a reliable, and sort of a quality brand. It's almost like: if it's an XTC record, you know it's going to be interesting, and it's going to take you places. It seems a shame that I have to sort of legally leave that name in the fridge. But I'm going to be working under my own name, I guess, and under projects like Monstrance and that sort of thing, for as long as I've got breath to draw. Yeah, I can't stop.
...
After "Monstrance", which is something of the nature of the music I've wanted to do for a long time-- which is get back to a freer, more spontaneous thing-- that's obviously going to inform how I'm going to work on music in the future. So right now I'm kind of scratching my head, thinking, "Hmm, where do I really want to go?" It's like I really have to converse with my heart at this point, and say, "How do I want the music to go from now on?"

DG: So we've sort of found you at a crossroads.

AP: Yeah, a very interesting one; also scary; and this is the first time since 1969 I've not been in a group. And, you know, musically I'm sure there's a lot more left in me, or I hope there is; I feel there is. But it's like: the direction I want to go in-- I'm wrestling a little internally at the moment.

DG: Well good luck with it. I think your experimentation has always paid off, so keep doing that.

AP: Thank you. I just hope with this wrestling I don't have to wear a mask. [laughter]

DG: If you want to scare yourself and intimidate yourself, that helps.

AP: Yeah, that's what you do, you do it with a mirror and a mask-- a badly made homemade mask!

Monstrance tracklist:

Disc 1:

01 I Lovely Cosmonaut
02 Winterwerk
03 Black Swan Black
04 Mig
05 Oodoo
06 Ur Tannoy
07 Little Field

Disc 2:

01 Pagoda Tailfin
02 Chain Gang
03 Torturetainment
04 The Floating World
05 Priapple