Artist....: XTC
Title.....: Drums and Wires
Rel. Date.: 1979
Type/Genre: New wave
Size......: 127mb
Format....: mp3
Bitrate...: 320

1. "Making Plans for Nigel" - 04:13
2. "Helicopter" - 03:54
3. "Day in Day Out" - 03:08
4. "When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty" - 03:22
5. "Ten Feet Tall" - 03:16
6. "Roads Girdle the Globe" - 04:50
7. "Real by Reel" - 03:47
8. "Millions" - 05:39
9. "That is the Way" - 02:56
10. "Outside World" - 02:41
11. "Scissor Man" - 04:00
12. "Complicated Game" - 05:04
13. "Life Begins at the Hop" - 03:49
14. "Chain of Command" - 02:33
15. "Limelight" - 02:26

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 paranoia. 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, sounding 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.

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