Sorry to all my readers, been away for the week, same next week, this weekend will see an update bonanza.
That's right, bonanza.
All hail the new puritan!
Friday, 10 June 2011
Sunday, 5 June 2011
Day 83: You shall feel the wrath of my bombast!
Bass-line a go-go.
Song: Bombast
Album: This Nation's Saving Grace
Year: 1985
Sounding for all the world like a robot issuing a firm threat at the start, this is MES puffing his chest out, it's good stuff, with an excellent S. Hanley bassline making everything else seem extraneous. Its a good example of a jam-like track becoming a studio one. This album is full of recording innovation and this song is one of those that seems as if it could last forever. The lyrics aren't much to shout about, but do keep up the whole energy of the track, joining in with all the strident guitar and bass that make this a real album highlight. In fact, scratch that, because every song on this album fits, this is a rare Fall album where everything just flows. Others I would argue that maintain this almost-seamless nature are YFOC, Fall Heads Roll and The Infotainment Scan, where songs seem to have a common theme or template, this song fits in perfectly with the amiable, wandering Paintwork and the straight-up confusion that is of Couldn't Get Ahead.
I often think this is one of the band's best moments, it's certainly an album I'd recommend musicians to listen to, it almost defines thinking outside the box, both with the aforementioned recording techniques, but also in terms of loose playing, the lack and ensuing musicality of the players styles on here defies an easy explanation, it just sounds right. Like a band in tune, not necessarily in the traditional sense, but in the artistic vision they share. I'd have been proud to come up with half of what the line-up on this album did, so inventive and free of genre constraints, it must be a hell of a lot of fun being in The Fall, no matter how brief your involvement.
Song: Bombast
Album: This Nation's Saving Grace
Year: 1985
Sounding for all the world like a robot issuing a firm threat at the start, this is MES puffing his chest out, it's good stuff, with an excellent S. Hanley bassline making everything else seem extraneous. Its a good example of a jam-like track becoming a studio one. This album is full of recording innovation and this song is one of those that seems as if it could last forever. The lyrics aren't much to shout about, but do keep up the whole energy of the track, joining in with all the strident guitar and bass that make this a real album highlight. In fact, scratch that, because every song on this album fits, this is a rare Fall album where everything just flows. Others I would argue that maintain this almost-seamless nature are YFOC, Fall Heads Roll and The Infotainment Scan, where songs seem to have a common theme or template, this song fits in perfectly with the amiable, wandering Paintwork and the straight-up confusion that is of Couldn't Get Ahead.
I often think this is one of the band's best moments, it's certainly an album I'd recommend musicians to listen to, it almost defines thinking outside the box, both with the aforementioned recording techniques, but also in terms of loose playing, the lack and ensuing musicality of the players styles on here defies an easy explanation, it just sounds right. Like a band in tune, not necessarily in the traditional sense, but in the artistic vision they share. I'd have been proud to come up with half of what the line-up on this album did, so inventive and free of genre constraints, it must be a hell of a lot of fun being in The Fall, no matter how brief your involvement.
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Day 82: I'm kinda two-tone...PUH!
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.
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.
Friday, 3 June 2011
Day 81: Hailing a cab to Edinburgh
I've decided to blog this album after saying I wouldn't until after I'd done the rest, there are some great songs on this, but it's still my least favourite as it is the soundtrack to a ballet and I imagine works better if you can see it with the performance, some of the tracks lack depth, which is a shame.
Song: Cab It Up!
Album: I am Kurious Oranj
Year: 1988
So yeah, this was one of the first songs written for this album, as I've said before, they opened a showcase gig at HMV in London with this song, when they were meant to be promoting the release of the same years' The Frenz Experiment, bloody awkward as usual.
It's quite repetitive, but not in a a usual way for the band, it feels to me like a lot of the songs on here are extended beyond their natural lifespans to create enough music for the soundtrack, remember they played live as Michael Clark and Company danced around them, so it needed to be of a decent length.
This song must be a contender for 'the title mentioned the most in song' in the Fall's canon and as you'll know there are some real doozies out there. That said, this one is likeable, the daft keyboard melody plinking all over the garage band sound the rest of the band are laying down sounds amazing and the drums sound excellent, there's some really complex fills curling out of the speakers here.
Mark is still employing his early and now often talked-about squeal here, giving the word 'uptown' some added clarity, but I'm loathe to say there's not much else to recommend this song.
Sorry Oranj fans, this one's a bit flat for me.
Song: Cab It Up!
Album: I am Kurious Oranj
Year: 1988
So yeah, this was one of the first songs written for this album, as I've said before, they opened a showcase gig at HMV in London with this song, when they were meant to be promoting the release of the same years' The Frenz Experiment, bloody awkward as usual.
It's quite repetitive, but not in a a usual way for the band, it feels to me like a lot of the songs on here are extended beyond their natural lifespans to create enough music for the soundtrack, remember they played live as Michael Clark and Company danced around them, so it needed to be of a decent length.
This song must be a contender for 'the title mentioned the most in song' in the Fall's canon and as you'll know there are some real doozies out there. That said, this one is likeable, the daft keyboard melody plinking all over the garage band sound the rest of the band are laying down sounds amazing and the drums sound excellent, there's some really complex fills curling out of the speakers here.
Mark is still employing his early and now often talked-about squeal here, giving the word 'uptown' some added clarity, but I'm loathe to say there's not much else to recommend this song.
Sorry Oranj fans, this one's a bit flat for me.
Thursday, 2 June 2011
Day 80: See the people all in line.
A rollicking cover today, originally by The Move.
Song: I Can Hear The Grass Grow
Album: Fall Heads Roll
Year: 2005
This is actually a very faithful cover, down to the drum fills, I think I prefer the Fall version, a bit more post-punk venom adds a bit of rough to what was somewhat of a hippy track, I've included the original at the bottom of the post.
The lyrics are so 1960s it's unreal, 'I can hear the grass grow/I see rainbows in the evening' you can imagine this being parodied, the original sounds painfully close to Listen To The Flower People by Spinal Tap, but as ever, MES and co have transformed an old classic into their own devilish vision. This flows really well on what is one of my favourite Fall albums, the whole thing just has this driving energy to it, the drums sound massive, Mark's vocals are on top form and it's almost like a new Fall, they were hinting at this standard with previous albums, but from Fall Heads Roll onwards, they have outshone a raft of previous output. I do still hate comparing different eras of the band though, there's joys to be had on even the weirdest, most sketchy albums as well as the ones everyone agrees on.
I always end up having Fall lyrics in my head long after listening to them, for example, I was singing 'Get up, make a buck' all day in my head today, can't even remember what song that's from.
Think my mind is starting to crack, have a listen to the original below for comparison...
Song: I Can Hear The Grass Grow
Album: Fall Heads Roll
Year: 2005
This is actually a very faithful cover, down to the drum fills, I think I prefer the Fall version, a bit more post-punk venom adds a bit of rough to what was somewhat of a hippy track, I've included the original at the bottom of the post.
The lyrics are so 1960s it's unreal, 'I can hear the grass grow/I see rainbows in the evening' you can imagine this being parodied, the original sounds painfully close to Listen To The Flower People by Spinal Tap, but as ever, MES and co have transformed an old classic into their own devilish vision. This flows really well on what is one of my favourite Fall albums, the whole thing just has this driving energy to it, the drums sound massive, Mark's vocals are on top form and it's almost like a new Fall, they were hinting at this standard with previous albums, but from Fall Heads Roll onwards, they have outshone a raft of previous output. I do still hate comparing different eras of the band though, there's joys to be had on even the weirdest, most sketchy albums as well as the ones everyone agrees on.
I always end up having Fall lyrics in my head long after listening to them, for example, I was singing 'Get up, make a buck' all day in my head today, can't even remember what song that's from.
Think my mind is starting to crack, have a listen to the original below for comparison...
Wednesday, 1 June 2011
Day 79: Skyscraper tall.
Here's one off an album that people either love or hate, the title of the album makes no grammatical sense, doesn't annoy me, but felt it needed to be said...
Song: Crop Dust
Album: Are You Are Missing Winner
Year: 2001
This whole album sounds to me like one from the 90s, not 2001, but there we have it.
This one has an amazing eastern-sounding riff picked out that gives it an African/Arabian feel, really cool, but then the rest of the music is hard to pin down, sludgey and caustic, it scrapes along as if in a trance as Mark sounds like he is drunk and far too close to a nice expensive condensor mic. He growls and gives it some gusto, but underneath all this are some great lyrics as usual. It sounds like a drunk recollection, bit-parts sewn together through a Guinness-like haze, half-remembered sections of a night in dark and smelly boozers.
I like the lines towards the end about world war one soldiers, joined by a drunk singer from Manchester, the way he says in the 1990s is amazing, sounds very hazy. It reminds me of some of the vocal performances on Your Future Our Clutter, the mumbled grumble he has is masterly, nobody else sounds like this, good thing too?
Apparently this whole song is influenced by 60s band The Troggs, with a particular song I Just Sing, I can see some overall resemblances, the riff that kicks off the Fall song sounds the same, its more of a blueprint than a cover, good stuff again, MES borrowing parts of pop culture again, naughty naughty. Included the Troggs song for clarity below...
Song: Crop Dust
Album: Are You Are Missing Winner
Year: 2001
This whole album sounds to me like one from the 90s, not 2001, but there we have it.
This one has an amazing eastern-sounding riff picked out that gives it an African/Arabian feel, really cool, but then the rest of the music is hard to pin down, sludgey and caustic, it scrapes along as if in a trance as Mark sounds like he is drunk and far too close to a nice expensive condensor mic. He growls and gives it some gusto, but underneath all this are some great lyrics as usual. It sounds like a drunk recollection, bit-parts sewn together through a Guinness-like haze, half-remembered sections of a night in dark and smelly boozers.
I like the lines towards the end about world war one soldiers, joined by a drunk singer from Manchester, the way he says in the 1990s is amazing, sounds very hazy. It reminds me of some of the vocal performances on Your Future Our Clutter, the mumbled grumble he has is masterly, nobody else sounds like this, good thing too?
Apparently this whole song is influenced by 60s band The Troggs, with a particular song I Just Sing, I can see some overall resemblances, the riff that kicks off the Fall song sounds the same, its more of a blueprint than a cover, good stuff again, MES borrowing parts of pop culture again, naughty naughty. Included the Troggs song for clarity below...
Day 78: Gert's motor car.
Oh my God, this one is amazing.
Song: Athlete Cured
Album: The Frenz Experiment
Year: 1988
Just when I think I've heard it all, something else leaps out at me by this incredible band, someone actually asked me today, what I had been listening to, all I could say was ....erm.... The Fall? I have a problem.
This one is amazing, has actually made me laugh out loud like an idiot, this story, vividly told for once, is about an athlete whose brother is making him ill through revving his car in the drive and making the fumes enter his bedroom, there's some fantastic imagery here, the brother, Gert, parking his volkswagon on the driveway 'willy-nilly' and the like, really funny. Mark's vocals are again like a narrator on some b-movie film noir epic, but you can't take it seriously, the story is just so ridiculous.
I like the way he stutters lines sometimes, if you are reading through the lyrics with the songs as I sometimes do with blogging them every day, he often stops short of a word or two and messes up the timing, I think on purpose, it works really well, gives the impression he is reading notes he's found on a park bench or something, brilliant.
There's an often-quoted rumour that the riff in this is actually Tonight I'm Going To Rock You Tonight by Spinal Tap, I'm inclined to agree, I've included it below, see what you think!
Song: Athlete Cured
Album: The Frenz Experiment
Year: 1988
Just when I think I've heard it all, something else leaps out at me by this incredible band, someone actually asked me today, what I had been listening to, all I could say was ....erm.... The Fall? I have a problem.
This one is amazing, has actually made me laugh out loud like an idiot, this story, vividly told for once, is about an athlete whose brother is making him ill through revving his car in the drive and making the fumes enter his bedroom, there's some fantastic imagery here, the brother, Gert, parking his volkswagon on the driveway 'willy-nilly' and the like, really funny. Mark's vocals are again like a narrator on some b-movie film noir epic, but you can't take it seriously, the story is just so ridiculous.
I like the way he stutters lines sometimes, if you are reading through the lyrics with the songs as I sometimes do with blogging them every day, he often stops short of a word or two and messes up the timing, I think on purpose, it works really well, gives the impression he is reading notes he's found on a park bench or something, brilliant.
There's an often-quoted rumour that the riff in this is actually Tonight I'm Going To Rock You Tonight by Spinal Tap, I'm inclined to agree, I've included it below, see what you think!
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