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Now, as far as I'm concerned, because even XTC fans dislike this album, I must say that it is definitely their most underappreciated album. I can only assume that because the lads incorporated new styles this time around (a preview of things to come) this has made some uncomfortable. XTC has always been evolving, from their Go 2 days, to Drums & Wires and Black Sea, to ...Settlement, and now this. Why are XTC fans so shocked about their evolving sound? They probably don't like "This World Over" (a poignant song showing maturity and Andy's never-ending stabs at global machinations). They might hate "Youre the Wish..", and "I Remember the Sun" (too much jazz...XTC doesn't play jazz). BTW, "I Remember the Sun" has the most chilling lyrics in any of Colin's compositions.

I'm glad that XTC doesn't listen to anyone other than their own collective conscious when they compose. If they listened to some fans, they would have made 12 "English Settlement" albums, or 12 "Black Sea" albums. And that's why XTC is a great band. Because Andy and Colin are polished composers who aren't afraid of stepping outside what people expect. You can't predict what they'll sound like next and that is where genius begins.

You do what you want to do...I'm gonna give "The Big Express" another listen!


Is it noisy rubbish? Or a noisy masterpiece?   January 4, 2005
 7 out of 7 found this review helpful

"If Mummer was a gentle chug through the countryside, then The Big Express is a loco derailing itself in the rusty goods yard. An altogether more industrial affair. Slashing electric guitars, sheets of steel bass and diesel oil drums. An iron opera, steam powered and brick encased."
(Andy Partridge)

That description couldn't be more perfect, actually. Thanks Andy! Now, the songs:

"Wake Up" is a fantastic opener (love the syncopated riff); part of it wants to chop yer ears off, part of it wants you to dance.

"Shake You Donkey Up" is a raucous hoe-down; like three brits in overalls, drenched in pig slop. Country-Blues guitar riffs, loud "yeee-hawww"'s, and even a fiddle! What more could you ask for?

Other highlights on the first side include the bubblegum sea chanty "All You Pretty Girls", the poignant post-nuclear holocaust ballad "This World Over", and "Seagulls Screaming Kiss Her, Kiss Her", a sort of seafoam-molasses psychedelic reggae shuffle (loaded with lots of eerie synthesizer effects and great lyrics)

Side B opens with the insanely catchy "Small Town", pure brit-pop, ten years before Blur made it popular again.

Then, there's "I Bought Myself a Liarbird" (a nice little slam-dunk to a greedy manager), "Reign of Blows" (an awesome caterwauling mess of blues, pop, and rock with tons of reverb and other cool effects), "You're the Wish You Are I Had" (cocktail jazz + dream pop chorus), "I Remember the Sun" (wistful, Steely Dan like jazz rock), and the deranged, tempo-shifting closer "Train Running Low on Soul Coal".

There's also a few bonus songs at the end (or, in the middle if you have the earlier version). "Red Brick Dream" is the best of the crop - a hazy brew of pea-soup thick dreamy psychedelia.

Don't give up after one listen. It's loud, yes. But there's lots of great hooks buried in this thing. One of XTC's most rewarding and best albums.

Best Songs: Seagulls Screaming.., I Bought Myself a Liarbird, Reign of Blows, You're the Wish You Are I Had, Train Running Low on Soul Coal.


XTC masters the studio sound   June 4, 2000
 5 out of 5 found this review helpful

...sort of. They haven't progressed to making the shiny, flawless pop that would be shown on their later albums, but instead pounded out an abrasive, messy album that brings to mind a studio-based version of "Black Sea". And it RULES. The singles "Wake Up" and the gorgeous "This World Over" are two of my favorite XTC songs, and there's also some clunky, kickbutt material in "Seagulls Screaming," "Shake You Donkey Up," and the magnificent closer "Train Running Low On Soul Coal." The bonus tracks this time around are pretty weak, and most of the album doesn't gel at all, but I don't really care, because it RULES. Out of the 11 songs that make up the actual album, not one is a duffer, and all are nearly perfect. Buy it, even though no one else seems to like this one as much as I do.


A nearly perfect album   December 19, 1998
 5 out of 5 found this review helpful

The fact that this album ranks 11,565 on the Amazon list is a crime. Although the album has a couple of minor flaws, THE BIG EXPRESS is a snapshot of the band at their prime. The irony was, no one was listening, or buying their albums. This album bears the same relationship to SKYLARKING as RUBBER SOUL does to REVOLVER: the great building was complete, but here some of the scaffolding and tools were still visible.

Both Partridge and Moulding demonstrate a boundless creative ability on this disc. David Lord's production(finished by the band when the production schedule was exceeded)is nearly flawless. One of the few producers who understood the XTC universe(along with Lilywhite & Rundgren), Lord provides a solid classical anchor so that Partridge and Moulding can frolic in the musicial water without fear of losing sight of the boat.

Highly underrated and misunderstood, THE BIG EXPRESS captured the elements that made early XTC so stellar and became a roadmap for the band's excursions to other vistas.


im constantly amazed at   January 20, 2002
 5 out of 6 found this review helpful

how drastically my opinions about xtc clash with everyone elses. ive been a musician/composer for 12 years, maybe thats why. if youre a serious musician too maybe this will help you out. for one thing disregard 98% of the reviews above us here. in my opinion this is their best record. if not their best(which is a pretty ridiculous statement i guess)its as good as whatever your favorite is right now, be it skylarking, black sea, whatever. i detest drum machines and im telling you, you will not notice synthetic drums on this record unless you go out of your way to. it does not affect the brilliance of these songs at all(im having a hard time sympathizing with these people saying the drums 'swallow the songs whole'). as far as the bonus tunes, theyre the highlights for me. and just to make the old school fans really disregard my opinion-blue overall is the best song on the album. thats right. it rocks beyond belief, its odd meter, and andy screams alot. thats enough for me. i love the pretty stuff, but theres not enough straight up rocking on the next generation of albums(i.e. ugly underneath, no language in our lungs, etc.)and it abounds here. the perfect mix of kickass rock and the beautiful/strange stuff that xtc are masters of. also it opens with colins best song ever(well, tied with the world is full of angry young men). there you have it. if youre unable to choose between english settlement and this, make the smart decision and buy english settlement later.