The Dukes Of Stratosphear: 25' O' Clock 1985 + Psonic Psunspot 1987

 

The Dukes of Stratosphear were an English rock band formed in 1984 by Andy Partridge, Colin

Moulding, Dave Gregory, and Ian Gregory. Modelled after psychedelic pop groups from the 1960s, the Dukes were initially publicised by Virgin Records as a mysterious new act, but were actually an XTC spin-off band. They recorded only two albums: 25 O'Clock (1985) and Psonic Psunspot (1987). In the UK, the records outsold XTC's then-current albums The Big Express (1984) and Skylarking (1986).
                            

In 1985, the British pop band XTC recorded an EP of affectionate parodies of '60s psychedelia and

guitar pop called 25 O'Clock. Instead of releasing the EP under their own name, they released the record under a new moniker: the Dukes of Stratosphear. Working with producer John Leckie, all three members of the group adopted pseudonyms -- Andy Partridge was Sir John Johns, Colin Moulding was the Red Curtain, and David Gregory was Lord Cornelius Plum.
                           

For this one project, Gregory's brother Ian joined the band under the name E.I.E.I. Owen. The EP was

released without mention of XTC's name anywhere on the record, and the group members claimed they had nothing to do with the project. Two years after the appearance of 25 O'Clock, the Dukes of Stratosphear released a full album, Psonic Psunspot. By the time Psonic Psunspot appeared in 1987, XTC had begun to admit in interviews that they were indeed the Dukes of Stratosphear. Later in 1987, both the EP and album were released on a single compact disc, Chips from the Chocolate Fireball.
                   

XTC then resumed working under their regular name, issuing new material throughout the '90s and

early 2000s before splitting up in 2005. Four years later, expanded versions of Psonic Psunspot and 25 O'Clock appeared on Partridge's own label, Ape House Records. In 2019, the Dukes' catalog was reissued as Psurroundabout Ride, It contains 5.1 remixes of their music supervised by Steven Wilson. The Blu-ray also featured demos and instrumental versions of their songs.
                       

As a teenager listening to psychedelic records, XTC leader Andy Partridge was particularly fond of Pink Floyd's "See Emily Play" (1967), Tomorrow's "My White Bicycle" (1967), and the Moles' "We

Are the Moles" (1968).Partridge viewed psychedelic music as a "grown-up" version of children's novelty records, believing that many acts were trying to emulate those records that they grew up with: "They use exactly the same techniques—sped-up bits, slowed-down bits, too much echo, too much reverb, that bit goes backwards. ... There was no transition to be made. You go from things like 'Flying Purple People Eater' to 'I Am the Walrus'.
                 

They go hand-in-hand." He also held a preference for British psychedelia rather than its American

variant: "In the States, it was all about reaction to the Vietnam War. The music was dark and brooding, filled with angry distortion." In 1975, he considered renaming his fledgling band the Helium Kidz to "the Dukes of Stratosphear", but he thought "it was too flowery and people would think we were a psychedelic group. ... We needed a fast inventive name."
                      

The Dukes of Stratosphear anticipated and were celebrated by retro-minded movements such as the

Paisley Underground. In 2003, they reunited to record one song commissioned by the MS Society, and in 2008, Partridge recorded two tracks credited to "the Dukes" as part of a commission for Eurostar. These songs were included as bonuses on reissues of the Dukes albums.
                            

THE DUKES OF STRATOSPHEAR  - 25 O' CLOCK 1985

                 

XTC spent the first half of the '80s dropping out of the new wave rat race in favor of cultivating an

eccentric English garden. It was a move that mirrored the Kinks ignoring psychedelia for songs about subdivisions and afternoon tea, but when XTC decided to cut loose, they did so by adopting alter egos to create a riotous tribute to the very psychedelia the Kinks shunned. They turned into the Dukes of Stratosphear and cut the EP 25 O'Clock, a brilliant, clever distillation of the sounds of 1967, filled with knowing allusions and outright thievery from psychedelic classics both popular and well-known. For those well-versed in '60s rock, it's irresistible to draw parallels to the Beatles, the Yardbirds, the Move,

and Pink Floyd, but 25 O'Clock practically begs listeners to connect the dots through its swirling kaleidoscope of phased tapes, fuzz guitars, murmured voices, and burbling Mellotrons -- and that's not even taking into account lyrical allusions, like how "Bike Ride to the Moon" twists around Tomorrow's "My White Bicycle." All this makes 25 O'Clock something closer to pop art than mere homage, but what makes it enduring -- even strangely timeless -- pop music is how XTC's reinvigorated creativity extends far beyond the mere form to the songs themselves.
                          

XTC As The Dukes Of Stratosphear – 25 O'Clock
Label: Ape House – APECD023
Format: CD, Enhanced, Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered Apr 14, 2009
Country: UK
Released: 1985
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock

TRACKS

                  

01. 25 O'Clock    5:02
02. Bike Ride To The Moon    2:23
03. My Love Explodes    3:48
04. What In The World ??...    5:00
05. Your Gold Dress    4:41
06. The Mole From The Ministry    5:49

Demos:    

             

07. 25 O'Clock [Demo Version]    2:25
08. Bike Ride To The Moon [Demo Version]    1:30
09. My Love Explodes [Demo Version]    1:54
10. What In The World??... [Demo Version]    3:40
11. Nicely Nicely Jane [Demo Version]    1:17
12. Susan Revolving [Demo Version]    1:24

Extra Recordings:

    
13. Black Jewelled Serpent Of Sound [Radio Caroline Edit]    2:17
14. Open A Can Of Human Beans    4:44
15. Tin Toy Clockwork Train    3:15

LINE - UP

                        

Drums – E.I.E.I. Owen
Electric Bass, Other [Song Stuff] – The Red Curtain
Mellotron, Piano, Organ, Guitar [Fuzz Tone Guitar] – Lord Cornelius Plum
Vocals, Guitar, Other [Brain Buds] – Sir John Johns
Written-By – Sir John Johns (Andy Partridge) (tracks: 1 to 3, 5 to 15), The Red Curtain (Colin Moulding) (tracks: 4, 10)

NOTES

             

Limited digitally remastered and expanded edition of this 1985 mini album from The Dukes Of Stratosphear, the '60s-obsessed alter-ego of XTC.

Flac Size: 318 MB

THE DUKES OF STRATOSPHEAR - PSONIC PSUNSPOT 1987

                   

"Pale and Precious" is an unapologetic Beach Boys patchwork; "Have You Seen Jackie" is another

salute to Syd Barrett; and Colin Moulding's "Vanishing Girl," arguably the best song here, refers to the Hollies -- but the album feels less like an homage and more like XTC playing heavily to their pop side, tossing off little sparkling gems like "Little Lighthouse," "Collideascope," and "Brainiac's Daughter"

(although the single and standout "You're a Good Man Albert Brown [Curse You Red Barrel]" is unmistakably a music hall romp that fits the '60s concept). And whenever XTC play to their pop side, the results tend to be pretty hard to resist and that's the case here -- maybe it's not quite as epochal as 25 O'Clock, but it's a fine companion all the same.
                   

XTC As The Dukes Of Stratosphear – Psonic Psunspot
Label: Ape House – APECD024
Format: CD, Enhanced, Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered Apr 20, 2009
Country: UK
Released:
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock

TRACKS

                  

01. Vanishing Girl    3:00
02. Have You Seen Jackie?    3:20
03. Little Lighthouse    4:30
04. You're A Good Man Albert Brown (Curse You Red Barrel)    3:37
05. Collideascope    3:22
06. You're My Drug    3:17
07. Shiny Cage    3:16
08. Braniac's Daughter    3:58
09. The Affiliated    2:30
10. Pale And Precious    4:55

DEMOS            

                

11. No One At Home (Vanishing Girl)    2:51
12. Little Lighthouse    5:19
13. Collideascope    3:05
14. Shiny Cage    3:13
15. Braniac's Daughter    1:50
16. The Affiliated    2:28

LINE - UP

                 

Performer – E.I.E.I. Owen
Lord Cornelius Plum
Sir John Johns
The Red Curtain

Written-By – Sir John Johns (Andy Partridge) (tracks: 2 to 6, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15), The Red Curtain (Colin Moulding) (tracks: 1, 7, 9, 11, 14, 16)

Flac Size: 348 MB