Best song about a hangover ever?
Song: Feeling Numb
Album: Cerebral Caustic
Year: 1995
This one's great, Mark sounds like he is waking up all the way through this one, from the opening bits, talking about prozac and being numb post-festivities, Brix's beautiful chorus seems to get his interest and he sounds more and more sharp through the song. The lyrics are great, just general points about how he is feeling post-party I presume.
Brix's chorus is amazing, makes it sound equally 90s and 60s pop, Mark doesn't even ruin the choruses, even when he joins in. Just a good pop song.
Have to say this, the music reminds me of Elastica, which is obviously a band that The Fall are linked with, what with MES singing on a few songs and them being influenced by The Fall quite a bit. It's that trebly, yet still hefty guitar tone that does it, the drums also contribute to this, the clipped, staccato nature of it all is very britpop (I hated that term at the time, still do now). That said, parts of it sound a bit surf-rock and psychedelic, so it is probably another spongy, all-encompassing influence ball as usual.
Have to say, MES actually attempts some singing here and it actually sounds great, do any songs exist where he sings all the way through? Perhaps you can help me out Fall fans, I think he has a great voice when he tries, but wouldn't swap his vocal style ever.
Another highlight on this track.... the closing noise he makes... PUH.
Showing posts with label cerebral caustic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cerebral caustic. Show all posts
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Friday, 6 May 2011
Day 53: Don't mess with Brix.
A nice simple one today, one of the rare times Brix takes over on main vocals, I know this divides fans, it is a bit rough and ready.
Song: Don't Call Me Darling
Album: Cerebral Caustic
Year: 1995
So I can see why people might not like this one, Mark's vocals take a back seat here and the lyrics aren't that spectacular, they basically set the scene, which to me is to rally against macho knobheads in clubs, who may well use the old vernacular 'Darling'. I'm not sure anyone says the word quite like the British, cockneys, liverpudlians, yorkshire people, all have their own way of saying it, it is one of the most sarcastic words when said in a particular way, which can be equally offensive.
Brix's delivery is raging and almost like nails down a chalkboard for me, she has this raw gravelly aspect to her voice that suggests she really does mean what she's screaming, I'd just prefer to have had a bit more variety, this could have been a real spot to develop some lyrics on an excellent theme.
The music gathers pace, with some excellent keys underneath it all, like Peel said, the Fall are always different, always the same, the beat, riff and timing of the music could be from anywhere, but the dynamics and the fact it cuts out before Brix is done caterwauling is totally unique to the song.
I think this one really speaks for itself, so in a rare moment of clarity, I'm going to cut this one really short, what do people think of this particular track? Brilliant feminist Fall, or annoying, insistent growling?
Song: Don't Call Me Darling
Album: Cerebral Caustic
Year: 1995
So I can see why people might not like this one, Mark's vocals take a back seat here and the lyrics aren't that spectacular, they basically set the scene, which to me is to rally against macho knobheads in clubs, who may well use the old vernacular 'Darling'. I'm not sure anyone says the word quite like the British, cockneys, liverpudlians, yorkshire people, all have their own way of saying it, it is one of the most sarcastic words when said in a particular way, which can be equally offensive.
Brix's delivery is raging and almost like nails down a chalkboard for me, she has this raw gravelly aspect to her voice that suggests she really does mean what she's screaming, I'd just prefer to have had a bit more variety, this could have been a real spot to develop some lyrics on an excellent theme.
The music gathers pace, with some excellent keys underneath it all, like Peel said, the Fall are always different, always the same, the beat, riff and timing of the music could be from anywhere, but the dynamics and the fact it cuts out before Brix is done caterwauling is totally unique to the song.
I think this one really speaks for itself, so in a rare moment of clarity, I'm going to cut this one really short, what do people think of this particular track? Brilliant feminist Fall, or annoying, insistent growling?
Thursday, 5 May 2011
Day 52: The Fall are a joke?
Here's one that divides Fall fans as far as I can tell, it opens the difficult Cerebral Caustic, an album often cited as the worst Fall LP, but I quite like it, its unusual and has an overwhelming feel to it, like they threw everything they had into it without much in the way of plans.
Song: The Joke
Album: Cerebral Caustic
Year: 1995
So this cuts in with some detuned guitar and then the drums, vocals, bass and electronics cut in, to me it could almost sound like a new york hardcore song if performed in the same way by a heavier band, the lyrics cut through the heavy sound really well, I like his clipped delivery of the line 'Go back, go back/To your diseased hut!' the lyrics seems to be addressing someone, not sure if it would be the soft target of Riley again, but it could be, lines like 'Five years of PC camp' could refer to anything, but could be to do with Riley's work on Radio 1 or the band he formed after leaving The Fall, who knows? I like the production on his voice in this one, it's almost like he's barking these lines down a telephone or through a megaphone, they are direct, clipped and obvious this time, not much in the way of open interpretation.
I always like it when MES conjures up an image, whether its a man carrying plastic bags around to secrete everywhere, a man shooting the corner off a tomb or here, just a mention of 'coloured sweets' its great, there's a whole world of insane images contained within the Fall's back catalogue, I get frustrated when people don't understand their charm, it's so easy these days to dismiss things quickly, so going back through about 30 years of music is a real eye-opener for me. People say that this album was a disappointment, quite how I'm not sure, maybe it isn't that obviously a catchy or clever piece of work, it doesn't showcase itself very well, the production sits on just the right side of irritating, but therein lies the appeal, Dave Bush's electronics underpin this track in particular, combining with the traditional garage-band drums to create a modern-sounding song. It reminds me of bands that were around and doing that sort of digital mess underneath, showing MES again had his finger on the pulse of surrounding influences, the clicking and pulsing electronics could be taken from bands like Pitchshifter, Mad Capsule Markets or Atari Teenage Riot. I'm surprised MES never cottoned on to that digital hardcore sound more fully, their vocals are very MES, almost unintelligible screams and mutterings through battered digital boxes over a soundtrack of distorted guitars and digital ephemera. Now there aren't that many digital influences in The Fall's sound these days I doubt we will hear stuff like this again, shame!
Song: The Joke
Album: Cerebral Caustic
Year: 1995
So this cuts in with some detuned guitar and then the drums, vocals, bass and electronics cut in, to me it could almost sound like a new york hardcore song if performed in the same way by a heavier band, the lyrics cut through the heavy sound really well, I like his clipped delivery of the line 'Go back, go back/To your diseased hut!' the lyrics seems to be addressing someone, not sure if it would be the soft target of Riley again, but it could be, lines like 'Five years of PC camp' could refer to anything, but could be to do with Riley's work on Radio 1 or the band he formed after leaving The Fall, who knows? I like the production on his voice in this one, it's almost like he's barking these lines down a telephone or through a megaphone, they are direct, clipped and obvious this time, not much in the way of open interpretation.
I always like it when MES conjures up an image, whether its a man carrying plastic bags around to secrete everywhere, a man shooting the corner off a tomb or here, just a mention of 'coloured sweets' its great, there's a whole world of insane images contained within the Fall's back catalogue, I get frustrated when people don't understand their charm, it's so easy these days to dismiss things quickly, so going back through about 30 years of music is a real eye-opener for me. People say that this album was a disappointment, quite how I'm not sure, maybe it isn't that obviously a catchy or clever piece of work, it doesn't showcase itself very well, the production sits on just the right side of irritating, but therein lies the appeal, Dave Bush's electronics underpin this track in particular, combining with the traditional garage-band drums to create a modern-sounding song. It reminds me of bands that were around and doing that sort of digital mess underneath, showing MES again had his finger on the pulse of surrounding influences, the clicking and pulsing electronics could be taken from bands like Pitchshifter, Mad Capsule Markets or Atari Teenage Riot. I'm surprised MES never cottoned on to that digital hardcore sound more fully, their vocals are very MES, almost unintelligible screams and mutterings through battered digital boxes over a soundtrack of distorted guitars and digital ephemera. Now there aren't that many digital influences in The Fall's sound these days I doubt we will hear stuff like this again, shame!
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