xacto

XACTO – channelling the music of XTC

“Tribute act? We’re six mad XTC fans who love playing their songs.”

XACTO, a six-piece combo from the ACT, apply their extensive musical talents to the catalogue of influential British post-punk pop legends XTC.

XTC last toured Australia in 1980 and stopped touring altogether in 1982. Plenty of punters out there are keen to hear the band’s unparalleled originality live on stage.

Partridge and Moulding’s songs are simultaneously intricate and catchy. XACTO’s expansive lineup – three guitars, keyboards, bass and drums, shared lead and harmony vocals and an ever-growing percussion station – brings the best of XTC to life onstage in a big way.

Initially, with six on stage, XACTO feared the band might outnumber the audience. Instead, they struck a rich vein of musical appreciation, flushing out XTC superfans and their fellow travellers, and converting curious onlookers to the cause with onstage energy, flair and jangle. Before night’s end, audiences unfamiliar with XTC will join the regulars to sing raucously with the choruses of Are You Receiving Me, Making Plans for Nigel or Statue of Liberty; bounce along with Life Begins at the Hop, Mayor of Simpleton or Generals and Majors; or simply smile at the wonders of the world revealed by Senses Working Overtime.

In 2025, XACTO are venturing afield from their native Canberra. Gigs in Sydney already include a well-received support for the international Talking Heads tribute act Start Making Sense and a big sweaty night in the indie-rock heartland of Marrickville. Further shows this year are planned for Wollongong, Melbourne and beyond.

Whether you see XACTO sharing the limelight with tributes to XTC contemporaries like Devo, Violent Femmes, Pixies and Talking Heads, or holding their own at a long-form solo show, your senses will well and truly be working overtime!

“Energetic, fun and entertaining”
“My husband’s up dancing…”