1. Various
Times
Some months later I made an acquaintance with a guy who owned the album Extricate. I shall not discuss this revelation in any detail here, suffice to say that I soon began to amass Fall records at quite a rate. I
turned my attention first to the tapes that immediately proceeded it: Shift-Work,
Code: Selfish and The Infotainment Scan. I then worked
backwards: The Frenz Experiment, Bend Sinister, The Wonderful
and Frightening World Of... and This Nation’s Saving Grace
(disregarding I Am Kurious Oranj). I purchased Middle Class Revolt
on its release in May ’94 and also picked up copies of Live at the Witch Trials, Hip Priest and Kamerads and a 12” version of
the single 'Hey! Luciani'.
A small alteration of the past can turn time into space. If I hadn’t bought
Live at the Witch Trials I would have doubtless continued with my
excavation of The Fall’s back catalogue. As it was, the crisp production that
permeates the group’s first LP did not appeal, and I desisted. This was a
mistake because The Fall’s early ‘80s output is equal to their best – maybe is
their best.
It was after being gifted The Complete Peel Sessions 1978–2004 for
my 30th birthday that my enthusiasm for The Fall was revitalised. Deprived
of the means by which to play them, I initially set about replacing my existing
cassettes with CDs. The reason why I was buying CDs as opposed to records was
to enable the transfer of content onto an MP3 player by way of a computer. My aim
was not to upload whole albums but to assemble an anthology. When it came to
it, the playlist I devised was too long, and rather than edit it down I
divided it into two. By the time I’d added Perverted by Language, Grotesque
(After the Gramme), Slates and Hex Enduction Hour to my collection I
was faced with the same problem, and so ended up splitting it three ways.
Live at the Witch Trials is not a bad record but
neither is it indicative of the canon. Within the context of post-punk, there’s
not much that sets it apart musically from what was going on at that time. Mark
E Smith’s verse obviously raises an eyebrow, but this is not enough – The Fall
are more than merely Smith’s vocal intonation.
I like my anthologies to chart a band’s progress from its beginnings, and
to do so chronologically. Fortunately, The Fall put out two records prior to Witch
Trials: the EP Bingo-Master's Break-Out! in August 1978 and the
single 'It's the New Thing' a few months after. Among of all this is the
first indicator of a distinctive sound that is unmistakably The Fall, and it is
the B-side to the single, entitled 'Various Times'.
The lo-fi production manifest on 'Various Times' resurfaces on The
Fall’s second album, Dragnet. Dragnet sees Mark E Smith literally
finding his voice, but there are significant developments throughout. 'A
Figure Walks' offers particular surprises: the drums, played by Mike Leigh,
are looser than we would come to expect – tom-toms and crashing cymbals – and
the guitar is let off on an unusually long and psychedelic leash. 'Printhead'
is less transgressive, although no worse for it, whereas 'Flat of Angles' is
comprised of odd, jerky rhythms fused with guitar licks reminiscent of the
Faces.
The Fall followed Dragnet with four singles – 'Rowche Rumble', 'Fiery Jack', 'How I Wrote ‘Elastic Man’' and 'Totally Wired' – all
released within a year of each other. 'How I Wrote ‘Elastic Man’' and 'Totally
Wired' are overrated, 'Rowche Rumble' and 'Fiery Jack' are not.
Only 'Fiery Jack' features here, providing a satisfying bridge between 'Flat
of Angles' and 'New Face in Hell'.
The Fall in New York (courtesy thefall.org)
Second, on 'New Face in Hell', Mark E Smith hones his talent for
telling stories, depicting the plight of an unfortunate ‘wireless enthusiast’ framed
for the murder of his neighbour. (Smith would apply this third-person narrative
technique only sporadically – 'Spectre Vs Rector', 'Jawbone and the
Air-Rifle', 'Wings' – and seemed to give up on it entirely after 1988’s 'Athlete
Cured'.)
In 1981 The Fall released the EP Slates, which in many respects carries on where Grotesque left off. At same time, it’s more accessible. Where
previously repetition had been the order of the day, 'Fit and Working Again'
and 'Leave the Capitol', for want of a better word, rock. The single 'Lie
Dream of a Casino Soul' moves in the same direction, demonstrating that The
Fall developed a pop sensibility way before Brix came along, while the B-side, 'Fantastic
Life', sounds like something off of The Wonderful and Frightening
World Of... or This Nation’s Saving Grace.
The received
wisdom is that Hex Enduction Hour is The Fall’s best work, but for me
its highlight is the track least typical of it: 'Just
Step S’ways'. The strength of this tune is derived in part from the
pulsating dual-drummer line-up of Karl Burns and Paul Hanley, as well as the
riff itself. It’s also very funny. Hex is a gloomy record generally, yet
it’s not without humour, which is something Mark E Smith isn’t always given
credit for.
In any case, the decision I was faced with when putting this playlist
together was not which tracks to include but which versions: the original
takes or the Peel sessions? While either version of Winter will do –
I’ve gone with the abbreviated 'Hostel-Maxi' – the Peel rendition of 'Who Makes the Nazis?' probably edges it. ['Hip Priest' will be conspicuous by its
absence to anyone familiar with The Fall, its omission based upon the fact
that I need to be in the mood for it.]
'I’m into C.B.!' and 'Hard Life in Country' appear on Hip
Priest and Kamerads, which is a great compilation for anyone tying up loose
ends. 'I’m into C.B.!' is the B-side to the single 'Look, Know', a
song that had been recorded in Iceland along with a few others that ended up on
Hex but didn’t make the cut. 'Hard Life in Country' is taken from
the album Room to Live, and describes a parochial
nightmare. As is the 'Sister Ray' inflected 'Solicitor in Studio', which is the other high point on an otherwise patchy album.
'The Man Whose
Head Expanded' was released in 1983. Another single, 'Kicker Conspiracy',
ensued, which wasn’t as good (file alongside 'How I Wrote ‘Elastic Man’'
and 'Totally Wired'). 'The Man Whose Head Expanded' is the primary
exponent of the ‘song within a song’ scheme, giving way to one of
Scanlon/Hanley’s finest grooves. The B-side to 'Kicker Conspiracy' is even
better. Everything about 'Wings' is perfect: the drums, the bassline, the
guitar, Mark’s enunciation, the subject, the video. If the group had seen fit
to break with tradition and include these two tunes on their forthcoming LP
then Perverted by Language would be my favourite Fall album (although
they were included on the remastered, expanded editions).
With or without them, whether this record constitutes The Fall’s first
phase is debatable. Brix, who joined the band that year, would certainly have
an effect on The Fall sound but most of the album had been recorded before her
impact could be felt ('Hotel Bloedel' being the obvious, and gratifying,
exception). 'Eat Y’self Fitter' is classic, repetitive Fall, whereas 'I Feel
Voxish' follows in the vein of up-tempo grooves like 'Leave the Capitol'
and 'Just Step S’ways'. Conversely, there’s a heavier sound to the tracks 'Smile' and 'Tempo House' that seems to anticipate what was to come.
