The Fall… on a Saturday afternoon!

Of course you’ve heard of The Fall. They are from Manchester have been around since 1976 and still continue to make prolific music, not really changing their sound dramatically. Well, I don’t know how they COULD change their sound. It is such a varying degree of madness, led by Mark E. Smith (the odd looking old man up front). But though he may be an odd looking old man, Mark E. Smith still has the proper energy to lift things up into a frenzy! I am just mentioning Smith because there have been a countless number of lineups. Most have deemed Smith as quite impossible to work with. Recently, his whole lineup left him on tour! That is all right though, as a lot of brilliant ones seem to be that way, don’t they? Known as one of the best live bands (still to this day), The Fall’s songs are full of energy, experiments, and chaos!

Here are seven songs collected from my three favorite Fall albums – This Nation’s Saving Grace, The Marshall Suite, and Hex Enduction Hour. A few of the most popular songs from The Fall are ‘Spoilt Victorian Child’ and ‘I Am Damo Suzuki’, both taking pokes at societal classes and governmental affairs. Those songs and ‘Paint Work’ are off of This Nation’s Saving Grace, also one of their most popular albums. Check out the fun drum and bass interaction in ‘Paint Work’, along with those random vocal distortions, showcasing some classic Fall ingenuity. Some may be surprised at why I included This Marshall Suite on here, as it is one of the lesser known Fall albums. Simply, it is one of my favorites because of the different direction and risks they took. They added a bit of dark synths and ambient effects, as showcased in the catchy songs ‘Shake-Off’ and ‘(Jung Nev’s) Antidotes’. Hex Enduction Hour has many songs in the same style as This Nation’s Saving Grace, though the lyrics are more straightforward, risky, and often they are funny and witty as hell. Take ‘Who Makes The Nazis?’, where Smith’s half-drunk vocals deliver a bunch of slurs that are irresistable. ‘Jawbone and the Air-Rifle’ is just as fun, except with a more aggressive guitar tone complimentary of most early British punk. Actually, it seems even most of the titles off of that album are particulary fun. Well, all Fall songs are fun… and these are only three albums from their collection of over thirty albums!

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The Fall – Spoilt Victorian Child

[audio:https://obscuresound.com/mp3/fall/fal-spo.mp3]

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The Fall – I Am Damo Suzuki

[audio:https://obscuresound.com/mp3/fall/fal-iam.mp3]

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The Fall – Paint Work

[audio:https://obscuresound.com/mp3/fall/fal-pai.mp3]

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The Fall – Shake-Off

[audio:https://obscuresound.com/mp3/fall/fal-sha.mp3]

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The Fall – (Jung Nev’s) Antidotes

[audio:https://obscuresound.com/mp3/fall/fal-jun.mp3]

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The Fall – Who Makes The Nazis?

[audio:https://obscuresound.com/mp3/fall/fal-who.mp3]

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The Fall – Jawbone and the Air-Rifle

[audio:https://obscuresound.com/mp3/fall/fal-jaw.mp3]

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BUY

Mike Mineo

I'm the founder/editor of Obscure Sound, which was formed in 2006. Previously, I wrote for PopMatters and Stylus Magazine.

Send your music to [email protected].

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