Review Revue: Dukes of Stratosphear - Psonic Psunspot

I guess this year I'm making up for the previous lack of XTC posts in this series. The Dukes of Stratosphear were XTC in all but name, working under a different moniker to crank out a couple albums of pop genius that heavily mined some of their favorite sounds of the '60s, from Barrett-era Pink Floyd to Beatles and Stones to The Beach Boys and beyond. As you can see below, despite being perhaps a bit tongue in cheek, it's an incredibly satisfying musical experience (but what else could we expect from Partridge and co.?). The DJs apparently got so bored agreeing with each other, they had to start correcting each other's spelling.

"No gatefold sleeve, no baby labels. Oh well... I think this record focuses more sharply on various psych phenomena. 'Pale and Precious' is strict Brian Wilson. Anyhow, the CD has 6 extra tracks (the '25 o'clock' EP)."

""Beatles meets Floyd (early) meets Stones. Love it!"

"This is great!"

"This is done incredibly well, not incredibly heart felt... I really like this a lot tho'. XTC's split personality the other half."

"Cool!"

"'Pale + Precious' sort of sounds like the Beach Boys during their association with Van Dyke Park [sic], i.e. 'Heros [sic] + Villans [sic].'"

"Does XTC really need an imitator?"

"SUPERB - This could replace all my '60s pop albums in itself."

"And 'Villains,' oh, never mind, Jim Berard."

"Do you feel better now?"

"His name is 'Parks.' Note the 'S' in his surname. 'Heros' (sic) should be 'Heroes.'"

"Check out the geetar solo on 'shiny cage'!"