Tag: Skylarking

New releases: Echo & The Bunnymen, Joe Strummer, Pixies, House of Love, Nick Cave, XTC

New releases: Echo & The Bunnymen, Joe Strummer, Pixies, House of Love, Nick Cave, XTC

Record Rack: A round-up of the week’s new albums, expanded reissues and/or box sets, appearing each Monday on Slicing Up Eyeballs. All releases due out this Friday unless noted. (Since we missed last week’s round-up, this includes titles that came out this past Friday, too.)

XTC's 'Black Sea' being prepped for reissue with new stereo, surround mixes

XTC’s ‘Black Sea’ being prepped for reissue with new stereo, surround mixes

For the last few years, Andy Partridge has been overseeing audiophile reissues of XTC titles, releasing a series of albums — Nonsuch, Drums and Wires, Oranges and Lemons and Skylarking — with new stereo and 5.1 Surround mixes by Porcupine Tree frontman Steven Wilson. It appears Black Sea is next.

New releases: XTC's new 'Skylarking' on CD, plus Johnny Marr, The Fixx, The Godfathers

New releases: XTC’s new ‘Skylarking’ on CD, plus Johnny Marr, The Fixx, The Godfathers

This week’s new releases include XTC’s “corrected polarity” version of ‘Skylarking,’ finally arriving on CD, plus Johnny Marr’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2 soundtrack, a live set from The Fixx on CD and DVD, plus a reissue of The Godfathers’ 1993 self-titled album.

Reissue of XTC's 'Skylarking' with 'corrected polarity' finally coming to CD

Reissue of XTC’s ‘Skylarking’ with ‘corrected polarity’ finally coming to CD

Back in 2010, Andy Partridge announced that XTC’s 1986 album Skylarking was being reissued “as it was intended to sound, but never has due to human error” — a new double-vinyl pressing that corrected the sound polarity that had been reversed on all prior releases of the album.

Andy Partridge: New 5.1 Surround mix commissioned for XTC's 'Nonsuch' album

Andy Partridge: New 5.1 Surround mix commissioned for XTC’s ‘Nonsuch’ album

XTC mastermind Andy Partridge took to Twitter this morning to announce that the band’s 1992 album Nonsuch will receive a new 5.1 Surround mix by Steven Wilson, the frontman for prog-rock act Porcupine Tree who has worked on remasters for King Crimson, Emerson Lake and Palmer and Jethro Tull in recent years.

Andy Partridge prepping 'nice new vinyl cut' of XTC's 'Drums and Wires' for reissue

Andy Partridge prepping ‘nice new vinyl cut’ of XTC’s ‘Drums and Wires’ for reissue

The classic third album from XTC — 1979’s ‘Drums and Wires’ — appears to be next in line to receive an audiophile vinyl pressing following last year’s ‘Skylarking’ reissue, which was ‘corrected’ and re-released ‘as it was intended to sound, but never has.’

New releases: Orange Juice, XTC, Nine Inch Nails, Heaven 17, U2, Robyn Hitchcock

New releases: Orange Juice, XTC, Nine Inch Nails, Heaven 17, U2, Robyn Hitchcock

This week’s new CDs include a huge new box set from Orange Juice, plus reissues from XTC, Nine Inch Nails, Heaven 17, Robyn Hitchcock and The Fall, as well as the U.S. release of Killing Joke’s new album and a special U2 EP tied to Record Store Day.

XTC reveals 'banned' pubic-hair cover art for upcoming 'Skylarking' double-vinyl reissue

XTC reveals ‘banned’ pubic-hair cover art for upcoming ‘Skylarking’ double-vinyl reissue

Andy Partridge this week unveiled the restored cover art — featuring close-up photos of men’s and women’s flower-adorned pubic hair — planned for the forthcoming double-vinyl reissue of XTC’s 1986 album ‘Skylarking.’

Update: XTC’s ‘Skylarking’ vinyl reissue ‘30% better sounding,’ will restore original artwork

This afternoon, the Andy Partridge-run Ape House Records offered an update on the forthcoming double-vinyl reissue of XTC’s 1986 album ‘Skylarking,’ declaring the new corrected edition of the album ‘is about 30 percent better sounding than any previously heard.’

XTC reissuing 'Skylarking' on double vinyl 'as it was intended to sound, but never has'

XTC reissuing ‘Skylarking’ on double vinyl ‘as it was intended to sound, but never has’

XTC’s Andy Partridge today announced the band will reissue 1986’s ‘Skylarking’ on double vinyl ‘as it was intended to sound, but never has due to human error.’ No release date has been announced, nor plans for another CD reissue.