The West Country town of Swindon does not sound the most inspiring of places; famed for its Railway Museum, Diana Dors, Melinda Messenger and, erm, that's it really. Yet out of this urban mundanity sprang one of Britain's greatest ever pop groups - XTC. Formed in the mid-1970s, the initial line-up of Andy Partidge (guitar and vocals), Colin Moulding (bass and vocals), Barry Andrews (keyboards) and Terry Chambers (drums) were frowned at by both punks and the music press; the former believing them not to be 'authentic' (their songs were too intelligent and proficiently played), and the latter regarding them as too highbrow and 'artschool' to be part of the punk scene. The truth is that they had no desire to be part of punk anyway, as they were closer to the emerging crowd of quirky, acerbic songwriters such as Elvis Costello and Talking Heads, who were subsequently labelled 'New Wave'. The first two albums, "White Music" and "Go2" were fast, furiously inventive fare, with Barry Andrews' whirlwind keyboards firmly to the fore. Early singles such as 'Statue Of Liberty' and 'This Is Pop!' were both witty and infectious, yet didn't make an imprint on the top forty. After this period, the madcap Andrews decided to leave to pursue solo projects, later working with Robert Fripp and enjoying chart success with Shriekback. 1979 was XTC's breakthrough year - they acquired a second guitarist, Dave Gregory, who helped fill out their sound; and they released the storming 'Life Begins At The Hop' single which received music press plaudits and a fair amount of airplay. However it was the next 45, 'Making Plans For Nigel', that saw them hit the big time. Moulding's semi-autobiographical song about pushy parents mapping out their son's life crashed into the top twenty, and even featured as a finale on "Crackerjack" - fame or what?! The resulting album "Drums And Wires" was critically well received and sold decently, the vivid imagination behind songs such as 'Roads Girdle The Globe' and 'When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty' cementing the band's reputation as a unique musical force.

Just as it looked as if XTC were airborne, they were brought plummeting back to Earth with the flop single 'Wait 'Till Your Boat Goes Down', a bizarre and stubbornly uncommercial cod-reggae ditty. It looked as if the momentum had been lost, but the group bounced back with the 1980 album "Black Sea", a near-seamless combination of irresistible pop and avant-garde ideas, which spawned three top forty hits with the wickedly inistent whistling riff of 'Generals And Majors' being the pick of the bunch. Much of 1981 was taken up touring, but the following year the band returned to the studio to record their most artistically and commercially successful work yet - the double album "English Settlement". The breadth of musical styles was astonishing; folk on 'Yacht Dance', Eastern mysticism on 'Jason And The Argonauts', full-throttle thrash on 'No Thugs In Our House', and the self-explanatory 'It's Nearly Africa'. Also featured was their one and only top ten single, 'Senses Working OVertime', which encapsulated the diversity of the album perfectly with almost medieval sounding verses giving way to a wonderfully hook-laden chorus. Yet once more the group's fortunes nosedived. The touching, heartfelt single 'Ball And Chain' stalled at number 58, the singles compilation "Waxworks/Beeswax" stiffed, Terry Chambers picked up his sticks and left, and Andy Partridge suffered an onstage nervous breakdown, swearing never to perform live again.

This depressing state did nothing to help production of the band's next album, "Mummer", released in 1983. Recording was a torturous affair and it went through a plethora of producers and mixers, none of whom could save it from being a flat, hugely disappointing affair. The listless quality of "Mummer" was only emphasised by the fact that it followed "English Settlement", and the handful of decent tracks like 'Wonderland', 'Love On A Farmboy's Wages' and 'Funk Pop A Roll' struggle to be heard among the more mediocre material. Sales were deservedly poor, and the album failed to inspire a hit single. Andy Partridge's displeasure with the production staff was an early sign of what the others saw as an increasingly dictatorial approach to making records. This concern was exacerbated with the recording of 1984's "The Big Express", during which Partridge came close to ruining a great collection of songs by needlessly embellishing them with layer upon layer of instrumentation. While Moulding and Gregory were happy to keep things relatively simple, Partridge was the opposite and rifts were growing in the band. Regardless of the in-fighting, "The Big Express" is a fine album, a lot rockier and harsher than previous efforts, with the searing 'Wake Up', Britpop blueprint 'The Everyday Story Of Smalltown' and the tantalisingly nasty 'I Bought Myself A Liarbird' being standout tracks.

In an attempt to lighten up after the internal wranglings, the band decided to team up with producer John Leckie and make a 'quickie' album on a mere £5,000 - but not as XTC. Early rehearsal sessions had conjured up some psychedelic sounds, and it was agreed that the group would use the pseudonym The Dukes Of Stratosphear, with each member being given a new identity (the best of which was Dave Gregory's monicker, Lord Cornelius Plum!). Six amusing 1960s pastiches became the mini-album "25 O'Clock", and it was with some shock that the album unexpectedly took off, seeling more copies than "The Big Express" and being an integral influence on the sound that The Stone Roses were to develop (true!). Flushed by this surprise success the group reprised their Dukes roles two years later on "Psonic Psunspot" which, although enjoyable, lacked some of the spontaneity of its predecessor.

The biggest crisis in XTC's history occurred in 1986. Although the Dukes sessions had papered over cracks in the band, tensions caused by Partridge's domineering presence re-emerged during the recording of "Skylarking". Partridge, already annoyed by the rather slapdash technique that producer Todd Rundgren was using, further took out his frustration on Moulding. Matters came to a head with an argument over a bassline, and Moulding snapped and announced he was leaving the group. The loss of a co-vocalist and joint songwriter would have been irreplaceable: Moulding always had a more accessible edge to his compositions and a more finely honed pop sensibility, and added to his deftly melodic bass playing the band wouldn't have been able to continue in his absence. Moulding deliberated long and hard about his future, especially when Dave Gilmour invited him to play bass on Pink Floyd's 1987 world tour, but he returned to the fold after Partridge apologised, and "Skylarking" duly appeared. A lovely, almost pastoral album, it's the nearest XTC have ever got to a concept piece; there is a running theme of the stages of life in their myriad forms, and the album ends with a 'Sacrificial Bonfire' of a body. 'Summer's Cauldron' is exquisite, 'Ballet For A Rainy Day' is wondrous, and 'Season Cycle' is sublime. As has often happened in XTC's career, fate took an unexpected turn when US radio picked up on the b-side to the single 'Grass'. The song 'Dear God' was originally meant for "Skylarking", but Andy Partridge didn't think it was up to standard. The Americans, however, disagreed and made it a substantial Stateside hit. The song caused a great deal of controversy among religious groups, yet consolidated XTC's position in the States; with 'Dear God' tagged on, "Skylarking" sold a very respectable 500,000.

Following the aforementioned second Dukes of Stratosphear album, the group took a couple of years off before returning with one of the best albums ever recorded. "Oranges and Lemons" took the staggering eclecticism of "English Settlement" and the psychedelia of The Dukes, and then multiplied them both. Most bands would not be able to accomplish as many styles in their career, let alone in one album. The three Colin Moulding compositions alone stand as the best songs he has ever written, all world-weary cynicism and yet with a tiny glint of optimism that beautifully describes the human spirit. Andy Partridge too is on sensational form with the incisive irony of 'Scarecrow People', the primal cry for help 'Across This Antheap', the telling 'Chalkhills And Children' and the heart-wrenchingly poignant 'Hold Me My Daddy'. It would be another three years before "Nonsuch" appeared in 1992; whereas "Oranges And Lemons" contained a righteous anger that made it so thrilling, "Nonsuch" is a much more mellow and mature piece of work. Although not quite on a par with its predecessor, the album is still frequently glorious. 'Rook' is a stately, piano-led rumination on the impermanence of life, 'The Disappointed' a shrugged-shoulders approach to divorce, 'Bungalow' a supreme evocation of what it's like being old in a seaside town, and 'Wrapped In Grey' one of the most uplifting songs ever written.

Unfortunately, XTC were left feeling very dissatisfied with Virgin's handling of "Nonsuch", and announced their desire to leave the label. Virgin were understandably keen to hang on to an act with such a substantial Stateside fanbase, and a lengthy contractual dispute began which took nearly six years to resolve, during which time Dave Gregory decided to leave. Partridge and Moulding then hooked up with the more sympathetic Cooking Vinyl, and the freedom and encouragement that the new label gave the band allowed them to craft an album that came close to equalling "Oranges And Lemons". Released early in 1999, "Apple Venus Vol.1" contains some of XTC's finest songs. There are moments of heartache (the tearjerking 'I Can't Own Her'), moments of joy (the gloriously uplifting 'Harvest Festival', ending with one of the nicest sentiments ever heard in a pop song), and a brilliantly ominous closer in 'The Last Balloon'. But it's the breathtaking 'Easter Theatre', more of a symphony than a pop song, that really points the way forwards. With the soon-to-be-released "Apple Venus Vol.2", XTC will no doubt continue to carry the torch for literate, intelligent, original pop. Swindon can't be such a bad place after all.