This came out in 1999 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
If — like me — you’ve been eagerly waiting for XTC to follow up this spring’s incredible comeback album Apple Venus Vol. 1, well, keep waiting: Rumour is the disc did so well that Andy Partridge and Colin Moulding haven’t had time to start Vol. 2.
Luckily, Homespun is a worthy stand-in. The title pretty much says it all — these are the pair’s original songwriting tapes, presented here in the same order as the finished album, along with lyrics and insightful, anecdotal liner notes on the inspiration and perspiration that went into these remarkable pop gems. What’s even more remarkable is how close these songs sound to the finished products. Clearly, for XTC, the bulk of the creative process is done in their heads, not in the studio. We can only hope they’ve already been thinking long and hard about Vol. 2.
