Aug 202012
Andy Partridge himself brought this video to my attention today, via his Twitter account. (Yes, I agree; it’s a little confusing that the former frontman of XTC uses a Twitter account called “xtcfans.”) I actually remember watching this as a RealPlayer file when it came out around 1999. Anyway, it’s one of the more unique entries of the Apple Venus media blitz. See if you can detect any evidence of the looming Partridge and Moudling split. Enjoy!
I’m finally getting a chance to watch this. What I’m having trouble getting over is the barber using scissors on that little bit of hair that Partridge keeps. I’ve never had my hair anywhere that short. Does a barber actually use shears to do that? I would have thought that an electric razor is called in for that job. And why does his haircut take so long? I need a lot of help in understanding this stuff.
I’d love to know what the barbers are thinking while Andy yaps. I’d love to see E. Pluribus Gergely seated in a third chair. I wouldn’t have to guess what’s going through his mind.
This is the first time I’ve seen this. (…surprising since I was a pretty big fan of XTC. I have since grown a little tired of them…)
I imagine the electric clippers weren’t used to prolong the cut so the interview would last? Or maybe this was a “retro” barber that shunned modern hair cutting advances?
I couldn’t detect any specific tension between Colin and Andy. They both seem to be playing the “new album release” game.
That was fun to watch. I haven’t seen any other promo around that era of the XTC timeline. Colin seems happy. If anything, Andy seemed quite chummy with him.
Clearly Woodrow (thoughtfully included in the credits) is performing the barbering equivalent of a lip-synch to accompany Andy’s diatribe. BTW – did anybody notice that Colin’s hair doesn’t look any different after his “haircut”?
Could Colin Moulding look any more British? No, he could not!
Good points, and I think Colin badly needs a conditioner.
His teeth are certainly British.
Well now that we have moved from hair care to dental hygiene…I’m guessing mrclean is on target regarding the lack of impending doom…but I did read the other day that after leaving Virgin Andy and Colin both received significant settlements for unpaid royalties…another reason to be a bit upbeat for sure. In the video Colin even mentions “handling a lot of the legal work”.
Not to start a splinter thread…but does make we think about other bands that have had the kind of nightmarish legal and managerial problems experienced by XTC…for example, (and now to cross threads) the Beach Boys in their later years (ouch!).
I would be interested to have heard the conversation between the barbers after these guys left.