Reviews (page 2 of 8)
I got this on CD when I was 13 or 14 and it was one of my first loves in the genre. It is not though, the album that I revisit the most from the group. The energy is great and many of these songs showcase the greatness and creativity of the band, but some of the more directly punky tracks are just kinda annoying and this “traditional punk sound” doesn’t really come through, glad they went in a more unique direction generally. But it is in my opinion an iconic debut. 7.5/10
I don't even know how to describe this music, but I didn't really like it
The Fall are unique and you certainly should listen to them before you die. Whether they / Mark E. Smith are a genius, a mad alcoholic, a poet or a nutter you could find shouting at the pigeons on the high street can change by the album, song, lyrical moment. But they are certainly worth listening to and you never know you might even enjoy the experience.
Um punk classicão. Não é um estilo que eu curto muito, mas eu admirei do início ao fim. Não parecem ter traído o movimento. Foda é que tem muita parte fora de tom, mas é o punk né... Foda, não merecia 4, mas também não é genérico pra um 3.
I have so much respect for Mark E Smith and The Fall. I love all the bands adjacent to The Fall and I know that people with good taste listen to them. With respect, I found this incredibly difficult to get through. I can get into angular guitar and nonstandard drum parts when there’s some kind of driving hook or riff to latch onto but - respectfully - I had nothing exciting enough to hold onto here. And I can get into an obscure or very abstract political take but (with all due respect) the political message here seemed to be either so specific that 2 years after the album no one would follow it, or so inside and specific to the music industry that it was irrelevant to its listeners. Also his voice is just a John Lydon with less melody (much respect much respect). So thank you to the fall for being very good please don’t make me listen again.
oh great another one of those low energy low effort dissonant atonal albums, ft. some hipster soccer hooligan reciting slam poetry about nothing important. this album's saving grace is that it is not a minute longer. man I need a nap after this one.
Kuuntelin tätä kahden päivän ajan, lopun levyä sellaisen ihmisen kanssa saunassa, joka osasi kovastikin arvostaa tätä. Musta tuntuu, että tää olis ollu ihanaa kuunneltavaa aikansa huipulla sumuisessa savuisessa pubissa. Olisin heilunu ihan sekasin siel. Olisin nauttinut.
en jaksa. pliis. ei enempää renkutusta. en nuku. vaimoni on huolissaan. lapseni kyselevät missä äiti on. äiti on renkutusluolassa. päivä toisensa jälkeen. renkutusta. renkutusta. renkutusta.
Huikeen kovaa punkkipaahtoa ja ilmeisesti tää on heikommasta päästä The Fallin albumeista! Tykkäsin tän energiasta tosi paljon, eikä jääny kyllä esikuvat epäselväksi. Oon innoissaan että pääsee kuunteleen näiltä vielä paljon lisääkin levyjä! 🤓
Punk is punk is punk 🤷🏼 Ihan jees kohkaamista ja varmaan jossain hetkessä vois kolista oikein hyvinkin, mut nyt oli vähän työmaa. En kaivanu sitä Spotify-versiosta puuttunutta 11. biisiä. Et jos se ois ollu jotenkin käänteentekevä ni sit tässä nyt tapahtuu vähän vääryys, mut luulen että ei 😬
Jotenkin ensitahdeista tiesin, etten hirveesti välittäis tästä. Sellasta renkuttelua, joka ei jotenkin inspaa. En usko et tää on välttämättömyys ennen kuolemaa.
ihan vitun upeaa sekoilua XDXDXD
This album literally gave me a headache
Giving Blur with an undertone of anxiety and impending doom
Not great. The mix is terrible— drum machine(?)-forward. The singer can’t sing, and i tire of the punk attitude pretty quickly. A 2.
The Fall is one of those bands that I haven't had the energy to fully and attentively check out yet. Something about the very dense spoken-word pieces of the infamous Mark E Smith has always felt daunting. I don't mind deeply abstract art-punk; I really enjoy the bands Wire and Minutemen for nearly that exact reason, but this album, and the Fall in general, has this super dry British feel to it that falls flat for me. And especially with the bland mix on this album, I found nothing really popped out. I did listen to this album a long time ago and had sort of mixed feelings on it. And I still do. I think the cutesey synth loop and sort of uncanny feeling of the opener 'Frightened' is where this album peaks. The rest is solid art-punk, but it's missing the personality and umph to make it anything truly special. Instrumentally, the basslines were the draw here, especially on 'Rebellious Jukebox' and 'Industrial Estate'. And the kooky and very dry synths were generally a nice addition; it's maybe this album's most distinguishing attribute. It adds some sarcastic colour to this album, especially on a song like 'Two Steps Back', which was pretty neat and jammy for the most part. I don't hate it; in fact, I can almost say I liked it, but I'd be lying if I said that Mark E. Smith's unpredictable vocals over these lifeless mixes didn't become grating far sooner than I would've hoped. A difficult album for sure, but I'm sure that's the draw.
Unremarkable
At least it's over quickly.
Too rough! I don’t like it.
2.9 2x
nope
Hit at precisely the right time driving my new rental car through Ballard feeling rogue
I think it's an album that the characters from Trainspotting would listen to
Trying to be objective, I'll give this a three. But I didn't really like it, and I don't know why so many albums from this band are on this list. Give me some Dead Milkmen! 3
I cannot believe this album made the list. Not because it's bad, but because The Fall is like the musical equivalent of ant spray, especially THIS era of The Fall. This album gets extra points for having one of its lyrics used as the source for the name of one of the greatest albums of all time (Frigid Stars by Codeine).
An interesting sensation was tickling my ears throughout this album, very disjointed and punk. I didn't love it, but I appreciate its gall.
Listening session: august 7th, while getting ready in the morning Listened to before: no Thoughts: this was not my vibe at all for today so I can’t rate this more than two stars Favourite track: Frightened
I’m not a huge fan of the fall and this did little to change my mind. He started sounding a lot better than I’m used to hearing him (probably from being younger) and I can see this would be hugely influential but I think I’d rather listen to the things it influenced.
Listened
Good post punk. I don’t have a favourite Fall album (yet) but this is quite easy listening for them imho
They sound like a band possessed. An amazing, exhausting, and often annoying album. I see their influence in lots of bands I liked back then and in bands today but I never really got into them. Glad to finally catch up with them now.
It didn’t take long for me to realize this album is not for me, super long and british. Every song feels the same when theres a British guy whining over every track.
bonus points for being 30 minutes
There are some good guitar riffs in a handful of these songs but most of these songs are just a bit too repetitive and lyrically bland in my opinion. It's just a decent album at best in my opinion.
I was ready to give a 1 to this album for being a live album. Instead, I gave it a 1 because it's awful.
I liked it more than I thought i would and I have added a song to my playlist. The album is bold and fun I like it.
Nah
A decently fun album. Not too long and still well developed. Good post punk sounds and still kinda folky and with some rythym and tone. Good lyrics and composition
Something about this album spoke to me! 4/5
The Fall - nie gehört! (Stimmt nicht, vor 1,5 Jahren hatte ich schon mal ein Album von denen). Punk, kann man aber anhören, schöne Bassläufe.
Se siente como post-punk, de hecho coincide con la época en la que masomenos empieza el auge del genero Mucha energía y versatilidad a lo largo del álbum Canción favorita fue la primera, pero se mantienen muy constantes a lo largo del álbum Recomendado y reescuchable
Brash I guess??? I felt it was a bit long, but I was also listening to the bonus tracks so maybe I wouldn't have felt that way about the original listing.
I am really starting to see this equation is really true Post punk > Hard rock
It's ok
eh
I really enjoyed this album. One of the better lesser known late 70's punk albums that I've listened to.
Didn't really connect with this one
Didnt hate this one, dragged on a bit but i like the style and attitude, especially out of the 70s. I feel like there are a lot of bands trying to make this sound today, and im a huge Geese fan so this is pretty cool.
*43 Ved ikke om det bare er mig, der ikke lige er i stemning, men det er sku bare lidt træls. Han virker rimelig twat-y.
Gjorde ikke noget særligt for mig
Overraskende fedt. Jeg har altid haft en forkærlighed for folk, der er vrede på England, og de lyder til at være meget vrede. Det er helt sikkert en rating, der vil stige, når jeg får lyttet mere til det. 3.5
Kan jo egentlig godt lide punk, og det her er bestemt interessant, men det er lige før det her bliver lidt for punket. fede momenter men også lidt vel rodet og skramlet
It does have some qualities (the bass, the overall punk atmosphere, the lack of will to make anything traditionnal) but it's also very boring sometimes.
Punch indie guitar riffs galore. Strong enjoy,
You’re outta your mind if you think I’m listening to 2.5 hours of a band I don’t know. Did the first 45 min and got a decent impression and thought it was alright
Then monotone droning pissed me off
Hey do you guys think the person who made this list is British? I can't tell
not too many strong feelings about this one. leans more into the punk influences of the time this came out, which i don't like as much as the weirdness in production on the other album we had from them from the 80s. but it wan't offensive, just not super interesting to me.
not bad but not interesting. took me ages to finish listening.
Parts of this album sounded like I was trying to play along with a boring punk band but my only instrument is my shitty Casio keyboard from 1999. Better than I was expecting but worse than it could have been.
not fo me
Not for me
bunch of buns
The Fall debuterer fully formed; åpningssporet Frightened er like definerende for bandets sound som noe fra Hex Induction Hour eller This Nation's Saving Grace. Det betyr ikke at det ikke er rom for å gro, Smith & co. holder et høyere niveau på senere skiver. Men alt er der: Smith's vitriolske vokaldelivery, off kilter låtskriving, og en bassgitar som slapper uforholdsmessig hardt.
Litt for lite post? Godt album, men This Nation's Saving Grace ftw
How did i miss this album back in 1979, damn? Happy that i did.
Classic British punk with a poppy flair. The opening song felt like an attempt at making punk more pop sounding but crashed hard. The simple repetitive monotoned keyboard chords were on the level of nails on a chalk board. In fact, the keyboardist brought great dissonance to the entire album. No better example than “No Xmas for John Quays.” “Mother-Sister” illustrated some really good driving punk rock beats and anarchist vibes, but not enough to drown out the album’s overwhelming 80s midi game keyboard sounds. Please make it stop. “ Live at the Witch Trials” and other songs had lyrics trying to send a message, but the punk approach to push away the masses, especially with the 80s experimental keyboard sound that countered any message that may have been received Without the keyboard, this may album may have shined, but with it, it’s just game over.
Before: Oh wow this is only 30 minutes? Thats a quick album. During: Holy harmonicas, is the half hour over yet?
The album was good but the bonus live tracks were borderline unlistenable
Poneeeele, bastante lindo pero olvidarle sera fácil Nota: 3.0
Frightened - 4/5 Crap Rap 2 / Like to Blow - 3.5/5 Rebellious Jukebox - 3.5/5 No Xmas for John Quays - 3/5 Mother-Sister! - 3/5 Industrial Estate - 3.5/5 Underground Medecin - 3.5/5 Two Steps Back - 3.5/5 Live at the Witch Trials - 3/5 Futures and Pasts - 3.5/5 Music Scene - 3.5/5 This is a bit more raw and disorderly (as weird as that can seem) to their later attempts, and I think some of it sticks the landing while the rest of it just falls into meh territory. It's by no means the worse thing in the world it's just I know that there is better offerings by both this band and the genre at large. Overall: 3/5 Favorites: Frightened
Decent post punk album.
Will definitely listen again
Pleasant surprise!!
I'm tired of getting bad albums on this site.
Didn't mind this but doubt I'd listen again
Raw and sometimes interesting, but meh, overall not very noteworthy. If I had to pick a favorite, it's Bingo-Master's Break-Out.
broke my brain a little bit. i like all the individual ingredients of this dour angsty post punk goulash, but when it comes out of the oven in one piece i suddenly lose my taste for it. it's kind of giving advanced cia interrogation techniques on some of the more repetitive tracks. the opener Frightened is my favorite, maybe the only song where the spell worked on me, but generally i fear i am not punk enough for this one. strong 2
Rating: 7/10 I'm sadly pretty ignorant when it comes to The Fall's work. Pretty cool stuff, it feels like ahead of it's time true punk that is made to be abrasive, challenging, and inaccessible that really feels influential based on its time of release. Despite that it has this fun catchiness in its rhythms that drives the record. It definitely has the feel of an artist making a strong and interesting debut in a burgeoning genre where they haven't quite perfected what they're going for, even though it already feels like they know exactly what that is they aim to achieve, so I would like to listen to the band's follow up to this one.
Weird album to review - I do like how it technically sounds thanks to my weakness to English post-punk and booming drums and jangly guitar, but the album itself was kinda lame and just bad. If these guys locked in and tried to make good music it would be a sick album, but I'm going to guess that caring was an uncool thing to do at the time so instead we get to snack on Live At The Witch Trials 5.6/10
It's funny how much influence this band has had on other bands and how fresh this still feels weirdly- I feel like I hear Fontaines D.C and Alex Turner's voice on so much of this, something that came out in 1979 but could absolutely come out today it's fun to hear. Though the issue I have then is that I feel that many better albums in this genre were made afterwards and this is not the one I would gravitate to naturally. One of my pet peaves is with Reissues of albums goddam i want to listen to the original 11 tracks please why is there all of a sudden an additionnal 14 hours of songs added on with no distinction.
Their lyrics were awful. Would give zero stars if I could.
This was awful. It was such a slog from beginning to end. I'm so glad I only had to listen to one disc. It reminded me of a teenage garage band, Ross' sound from friends and my kids banging on the piano
This album feels like nonsense, but in an ok way. Feels totally forgettable.
Shorten the title to “Burned” because I thought an album on this list had to have redeeming value. Typical angry, snarling, monotonous punk. The raw production value is interesting, considering it was recorded in a single day and engineered the next. Unfortunately that doesn’t make it any more enjoyable. trunc[2.9]
Is this like, the forerunner to all punk? I'd like to crack a cheap beer with these guys in a London alley. But then go home after one cuz I'm sure I don't want to party as hard as they could. 3
You know what's a good word? Tedious. That's a good word. I say this for no reason, none whatsoever.
I kind of get it. There's a certain appeal in the rawness of it all but I'm not getting much of a talent vibe. 2.5/5
This sounds very of the decade, and nothing about it stands out from what I've heard from the late 70s.
Like if PiL were less shrill.
Kinda semi interesting punk. Occasionally good sometimes irritating
kinda experimental
Rambling punk poetry. It felt fresh and sounded like no punk album I’d heard before. Instant favourite.
Some interesting moments, but not enough to warrant this many tracks.
I've never heard of the Fall or this album, so this was all new to me. They are evidently a post-punk band, but it definitely has a lot of punk aspect to it. I like punk music, so this was something I enjoyed listening to. I thought it was a bit more unique than a lot of other punk bands. This is another one that since I really know nothing about the band, it's hard to judge whether it's good or not, but I enjoyed it.
господи, я устала от них
It was fine
Hell of an album to listen to on the 4th of July
Damn, this sounded super amateur. Shitty mix, janky guitar performance, indescribably awful vocals, lacks direction of any sort. This had no business getting produced, nevermind remastered. It's a "fuck no" from me, dawg.
altern. Rock, 1979 -> 2
3/10 - Not much to say. Boring album and very linear.
Ok
Not terrible..Just sounds mainly the same the whole time and it’s really long. Too long.
Not even at a witch trial
This just was not enjoyable
Really enjoyed it and very new for me.
I'd rather listen to Wire
The day I got this album, I listened through it and felt very little for it. I didn't hate it, but I certainly didn't like it, and it didn't stir any emotions in me. I listened back to the beginning, and found that I couldn't even remember it much. I wasn't sure how to proceed, so I hit "Didn't Listen" the next day and figured I'd come back to it later. The next day, I got the Clash's debut album. Now THAT'S a great punk album. That sealed the deal for me. "Live At The Witch Trials" doesn't even belong in the same category, and thus, it's getting 2 stars.
You can keep this one
It was alright but not the best album in the world
Again, a bit disappointed in this. It lacked his usual growl and not much depth to the songs.
[..and pretty much repeats previous review] I like The Fall, I do. But just not for a whole album, it’s too much. I’m happy with a play of ‘Mr Pharmacist’ and move on.
Meh
Five stars-ah, and not even the best Fall album-ah.
media darlings at the time looking for the next big thing, but less interesting with the passage of time
два панка подряд! не оценила такой стрик
The record should be called by the first word from the second song's name. It's a shame, because that the instrumentals are not that bad, even though they are not good either. The vocals ruin everything.
1.6 Noisy
Terrible album. Very disharmonious to me
I really don't enjoy avant-garde punk and i have no idea why this band has THREE albums on this list
Maso
Listened Before? N Another British post-punk album. These dudes have not one, not two but THREE albums on this list. That's excessive. This is a nice debut for them, but I don't feel like I needed to hear this one. Musically, it's pretty standard late-70s punk/post punk. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Rebellious Jukebox
Really liked this one
A band that all my favorite bands love. Loved the roughness and the style but nothing special.
Shrugs.
Meh
I haven't been the most enthusiastic post-punk listener, but this was fun. Loved some of the vocal deliveries on here, and this kept me pretty entertained. I also enjoyed how fast-paced this got... this was a cool listen! Favorites: Crap Rap 2like to Blow, Rebellious Jukebox, Underground Medecin
Never got into The Fall, although Mark E. Smith's (RIP) persona kind of loomed larger than the music, at least in my world. I'll always appreciate an unabashed pure hater, and boy was Mr. Smith ever a hater. This is some snotty, angry post punk, checks off all the post-punk signifiers I dig. Discordant, jabbing guitars, pummeling drums, snarling vocals, danceable but not in the pretty way. Ugly music... but purposefully so. I like it.
Sounds like inspo for Idles. But not my favorite style singing.
Live at the Witch Trials is a dope name for an album. That's almost all the good things I can say about it. It's scorching to listen and I feel that is on purpose. I didn't find beauty of lyrics, beautiful vocals, nice solos, neat production. It felt like a rushed wasteland, with thorns and thirst. And that felt on purpose. This is no place to look for beauty, nice, nor neat things. You come here to listen to a drunk ranting and wasting away. It is a compelling work of art in this regard: grim and ugly. There are some, few and far between, sparks of melody. Brief moments of joy that gave me some hope to hear something pleasing, but they never stay and in the end I need to rest on something: I don't really like to only be grim and ugly.
While Live at the Witch Trials firmly roots itself in punk, there’s a clear sense that something is missing. Maybe it’s because the album was recorded in a single day. Maybe it’s the odd inclusion of the Casio keyboard. Maybe it’s the lifeless rhythm guitar, endlessly cycling through the same three chords with no real direction. Or maybe it’s Mark E. Smith’s dull, nasal speak-singing. Take your pick. If there’s one thing this list has taught me, though, it’s that some recordings need time to breathe. Live at the Witch Trials had no such luxury, and it shows.
These guys wanted to be The Clash so badly. They did not succeed
This didn't make much of an impression on me. At least it was short.
Rv
you might think an unusual and unstable band like the Fall would need a few tries at recording to get something incredible, and you'd be wrong music: appreciated. (⌐■_■)
This is the good stuff. I’m so close to the end. It feels so rewarding to get killer over filler at this point. I can’t wait to click through and find out that today I’m listening to Orbital 3 or something.
A psychic hammering
Ok album. I wasn’t blown away. It’s kind of a miss for me, probably a 2.5. Very Sex Pistols influenced, kind of nasally British spoken delivery and such. Musically somewhat interesting. I’d check out further albums from this band as they apparently move away from this style and into more post punk/new wave territory.
icl it just hurts to listen to
Not sure if it was purely my mood or if it was something intrinsic to the album, but I think I rate this one higher than the last The Fall album. Hell, I loved it! even though I probably couldn’t tell the albums apart if you put a gun to my head.
I like The Fall. I do. However listening to entire Fall albums in the air conditioned office while writing my little reports can be a bit much.
I hate to say this but this project is also teaching me how much I don't really like punk. I like pop punk from the 90s but that's not punk that's capitalism. Turns out it was capitalism that I liked all along
I wanted to like this more. Punk rock...but it kinda meandered.
I wanted to like it more. I deeply respect all DIY dreamers who just do it, so I wanted them to win me over, but the music never got me over the line.
Not for me. Droning, off key singing over drums and guitar.
Kraut rock influence for sure. I was thinking songs were a bit long and repetitive, then a song came up about their tendency to do that which is cool in my book
This album is so whacky and wicked. Shockingly good and a pleasant surprise. Creative, catchy, fun, wild, weird, and sassy
Hell yea Mark E Smith!! This isn't my fave Fall record but it's got the ingredients. The funny thing about the fall is I cannot explain their appeal AT ALL but I am simply drawn to it.
Great title. Simple music upon which (witch) to chuck your verbal vomit. The smell might be better than the sound...
Marginally more enjoyable than Dinosaur Jr. But not enough so to warrant two stars instead of one.
love the vocals: the extra accents, interpretations of the sounds and meanings of the words. erratic. reverent & irreverent. sick bass. some songs feature 8-bit-video-game-esque intros/outros/elements. live section of album - awesome drums. favorite song: frightened.
I generally like punk, or punk-adjacent, music. l didn't like this at all.
The fall are my favourite band. Why would you not like them?
Sorry I hardly even listened to this it's crap
This band pushes the classic 70s jangly oversaturated chorus laden guitars with no other sound other than thin cacophony. An annoying keyboard that cuts through all other sounds as an overbearing drone. Simply rough.
2.5/5
Excellent
Fav song: Frightened
Went into this pessimistically but didn't dislike it as much as I expected. That said this album brought me to the conclusion that my taste in punk is irrationally picky. I don't know why I don't like this but I do like Ramones or Dead Kennedys, but this feels half baked or maybe just too early on for me to fully enjoy. 2.5 rounded down bc j won't pick it back up.
Nothing for me here, 1 star
The drummer is the most interesting thing going on here. The vocalist is terrible. The guitarist has occasional flashes of playing something interesting. Those few bright points are so few and far between that I can't get the score up to 2 stars. 1 star.
A lot of noise pretending to be music
Meh.
I'm sure this was influential on the punk scene at the time, but to my ears it's just meh.
Really good album. But for a man that didn't like the pretence and bollocks of rock and roll, that E in the middle of his name always struck me as a bit pretentious
pretty nice
This was an ok listen and I actually enjoyed it at moments
Det va ikke helt min greie, men det va på ingen måte dårlig, og æ kan skjønne koffor Knut Sigurd like det, tror æ. Alt vel!
I was relieved to discover it wasn't a live album. I thought it was a pretty decent album overall
Aaaa
I have to start by acknowledging the last album by this band I received from this list was “this nations saving grace” and I didn’t love that album, I gave it a 2, but I honestly just felt like it wasn’t for me or maybe there was something I was missing. Now that I’ve heard their debut album I have a new perspective, which is this is the most over rated punk band ever. They are so boring and the production isn’t interesting, there no variety in sound, and worst of all, I don’t understand why it’s even on this list!!! There is ALOT of great music that didn’t make the cut so to think that this made it over ANY Primus album is legitimately insulting. This album as a whole is a massive skip!!
Что такое осень?
I love the Fall. Not their best, but they're excellent even before they peaked.
I went into this album thinking that i didn’t like The Fall, and I was right. Tuneless accompaniment to a man who cant sing. “Make music for itself” Mark E sings, if only he’d taken that advice.
My nervous system, indeed. Absolute tripe that I can’t imagine I would have enjoyed at the time and which, lyrically, has aged appallingly.
I do not like The Fall. That was going to be my whole review, but I'm going to add, Rebellious Jukebox was really shit, and then it was followed by No Xmas for John Quays which was worse. I only listened to the original 11 tracks because I don't need that kind of negativity in my life. To end on a positive note, I do find calling a studio album "Live at...." mildly amusing. 1/5 (I'm sorry, Marc Riley, if you ever read this. Your 10pm BBC Radio1 show with the boy Lard, genuinely influenced my teenage musical tastes more than pretty much anything else..... but your band were shite.)
The Fall are so revered. I didn't like them as a teenager, in the 80s - MES's vocals were so annoying, and came across, to me, as trying too hard to be edgy and different. I did try this. I still don't like them.
Stop. Just stop. All of the talent of the Sex Pistols and none of the rythm or energy.
Not the worst punk you would hear in a day.
Too post-music for me, with this counter-culture post-punk singing.
Singer’s voice doesn’t do it for me. Neither does the music.
Tough listen
**An ok album
Vroege punk invloeden wel heeeeel hoorbaar, net iets te vroeg voor mijn smaak
Si tengo ganas le puedo volver a dar pero no me gustó nada
I like the instrumentals more than the lyrics. Mark E. Smith's vocals are just weird enough to give the delivery a sense of charm, but the writing of the lyrics themselves just don't really click for me. Perhaps I'd like other The Fall albums, but this one was just alright for me.
5/10 - Not bad, just not an album I would come back to. It’s not a bad debut album.
I like Mark E Smith's vocal style and the songs are interesting. This album is more punk than some of their later work that I like more. Nevertheless it is a good debut. 7/10
Different, but I can’t say I enjoyed it.
This the 3rd one from these guys on the list, and is it deserved? Definitely not. I can see one album being included due to influence on other bands. But three? C’mon man. The only thing really keeping this one out of bottom ranking is the fact that they recorded it all in a single-day session, which is pretty impressive. But I will never get past the vocal delivery from the lead singer.
I just need some more low end and umpf in my guitars. And the voice is so British whiney. Could not listen to much of this.
I can't fathom why we need three albums from these guys... and I feel the exact same way about this one: decent music and crap vocals. 2.5/5
This is a band I used to hear a lot about back in the 80s when I was into Husker Du et al but I don't think I ever actually listened to one of their albums. Not too far from what I was expecting. Pretty decent, definitely sounds like some of the other stuff I liked at the time.
Very much not my jam
Quizá no estaba en la sintonía de la banda hoy, pero no quiere decir que no me gustará. Fue más un no conectar con el grupo hoy.
I really debated on whether this was a three or a four star album. Eventually I came to understand this flavor of punk, that of an almost jazz-like improvisational style. A lot of the instrumentals hold up in the modern day, pretty impressive stuff.
I've been meaning to listen to the fall for ages so I was glad this popped up. I liked it, it's intense and deep. I like the 8 bit sounds throughout. It's definitely not background music, needs to be listened to with concentration. I'll delve deeper for sure
They sound like a less distorted/pouty Oasis.
Great punk album that felt ahead of its time.
Feel nuffin
Not a great listen but more musicianship than I was expecting.
Sure, was OK. Not sure this style of punk is quite my vibe.
Nope. I’ve encountered quite a few references to The Fall lately so interest piqued but this was rubbish.
About a strange of an album on this list so far Best Song: Mother Sister Rating: 4.5/10 Stars: 3
ya son demasiados discos de The Fall en este listado. A mi, este por ejemplo no me aporta gran cosa, prefiero otros: This nation... por ejemplo.
Kinda awful, mostly bad
Got two out three the Fall albums in a month, which is a bit of a bummer - I was looking forward to revisiting them a few months down the line
Has punk charm, but sounds more like a garage band rehearsal session.
"Recorded in one day" - yeah buddy we can tell
In modern post apocalyptic TV shows they usually focus on two specific groups. One who tries to rebuild society on lines of liberty and democracy, and a group usually led by a semi religious figure who builds society on fear and power. This is the album the second group would make- stream of consciousness that veers from the deeply profound to shouting about industrial estates. Musically its 60’s pop bent insanely out of shape. Very close to 4 stars but one too many forays into man shouting on bus territory
2,5
Look, I like punk. The vocals were awful omg
This sounds like something in a show/movie where a character would go "Let's go to the concert tonight, I'm trying to get ccccrrrraaaazzzzyyyy!" So the writers have some type of music in the background to make it authentic, so they play this
Listened to the studio section but not all of the live tracks. Got the idea
Mark E. Smith is a God. This is a stunning debut, even if I much prefer the Brix Smith era.
todo muy bueno, menos la voz del cantante y eso me arruinó todo.
A decent album. Nothing spectacular, but wasn't bad either. Drumming was good. 2.5/5 Might listen again
Maybe a little bit sparse for my taste.
281/1089 i can see the appeal but it sounds like a lot of other music to me, maybe a bit ahead of it’s time though? i’d associate this with later in time than ‘79 and can hear how it might’ve influenced later acts the uninterested british punk vocal style just puts me off a bit, it feels performative to me at times just not a wholly interesting album to me Two Steps Back was the main highlight but idc about this music really 30/100
late 70s punk rock; this is another album straight from that era of alternative music that speaks for itself. this album was recorded in a single day... despite that narrow time window it sounds pretty good for the most part. post-punk is starting to become a genre on this list that really blends together with each entry on this list. just a big long soup spanning a few years with sarcastic british voices, clean guitars and just music that wants to make you puff a cigarette and flick your hair. i can say that this one is pretty good, at least. my interest kept relatively steady throughout. it has character and swagger, but it didn't change my life.
Very much not for me. The bass on the last track sounds cool.
Do you ever listen to an album and think "yeah, this guy's a snob"? This album. At least he's a goofy snob, though I don't know if I'd like the vocals more or less if I listened to this album again. I feel like I was tuning out the instrumentals a lot and doing a lot of focusing on this guy's singing. That's mostly because everything but the weird synth they use is pretty quiet. I had to go back and listen to a few songs to remember whether or not there was a guitar present on the album at all. There is, but it's not really memorable. Granted, the vocals are really the only memorable thing about the album.
at first i was like Wow. but then not so much. still, it's sort of ahead of its time like i usually say
Interesting to listen to this right after Pavement. Where Pavement felt boring this feels inspired, full of interesting musical ideas that even if they don't always gel do keep me intrigued. I do wish they had a better drummer though. Honestly this could be 4 stars with a better drummer
I had to look on Wiki to tell me the bands that cite them as an influence, but yeah now I can see the LCD Soundsystem influence for sure. I don’t really want to hear it again, but I respect the influence.
I can't do this.
Sorry, but a few albums back I was also introduced to this band and I didn’t like them at all back then. I’ve given it a go, but I don’t enjoy listening to this album either :-( No more than 1 star as far as I’m concerned...
As far as punk or punk-adjacent music goes it’s not bad. A lot of the songs sound very similar but this is interesting enough to make me want to listen to their later albums.
Hard to listen to
Nope
After I heard the first song I thought I had discovered the first Jack White (vocally), but then that was it. It should have been a one song album.
album punk con sonorità talvolta ripetitive e talvolta psichedeliche. non ho ascoltato molto i testi ma non mi è dispiaciuto
Never followed this band, raw sound and lyrics seem unstructured and ad-hoc, but influential for some good groups.
Not the most memorable
Recorded in one day.....we'll that's 24 hours they ain't getting back! Not for me thank you
First time listening. Love the energy. A bit long in the tooth after a while though.
It's not particularly special in any way but I guess it went on to inspire a lot of other mfs so it's probably cool.
It's cool to hear an early punk album like this that I otherwise wouldn't listen to
I've never really liked or understood the Fall. I have tried several times given the adulation they got from the music press. My main issue is I cannot get past Mark E Smith who comes across as a bit of a sneery bellend. Musically this sounds great with some killer bass - but then the singing starts and I turn off - so much so that I cannot appreciate the cleverness of the lyrics or Marks famous wit. Life's too short and I cannot be fucked with the Fall today. My loss I guess.
Live At The Witch Trials I like The Fall, but I’m only really familiar with This Nation’s Saving Grace. I’m sure I’ve listened to this before, but it doesn’t really ring that many bells. It's pretty great though. Obviously Mark E Smith is a bit take it or leave it, but I’m into his ragey, splurgey, stream of bile proselytising. It's not always what he's saying, it's often that I just like the sound of it, especially when he lands on a phrase he likes and he hammers it into submission. I feel like he’s kind of the British post punk Tom Waits, but with a different set of obsessions - Smith’s into singing about idiots, Waits likes dwarves and sailors Musically it's fantastic though. I love how its scratchy, bassy, post punk, new wave, dissonant, angular feel, obviously in thrall to Kraut-rock, is combined with a wobbly, uneven feel, often provided by the vaguely comical organ sounds. That dynamic of repetitive and teutonic with a staggering, collapsing sense makes a great dynamic and leads to some great tracks. Frightened, Rebellious Jukebox, No Xmas for John Quays, Mother - Sister! Underground Medecin, the very Neu Two Steps Back, Music Scene. It doesn't always work, but that’s probably par for the course for a Fall album, but its a great album nonetheless and an easy 4. 🪄🪄🪄🪄 Playlist submission: Two Steps Back
The Lydon drawl is evident, but I found it to be more like Magazine ('Futures and Pasts' probably most Pistolesque). The vocal reverb and mix are excellent giving this more polish than it deserves. It's not trying to be deliberately arch or confrontational for confrontation's sake - but there is withering commentary and some excellent hooks. I've toyed with whether it should get top marks; it's between four/five. Given the singular nature of it, the fact this is a debut, it sounds accomplished, original, along with great melodies, and some great lyrics I have afforded it a place at my five-table.
4/5
Rock ni idea
As Rainier Wolfcastle once said "What is it about music that enchants us? The Notes." Sadly, this album doesn't have any notes. Seriously, I counted. What it does have is lots of anger and talky singy. I don't like talky singy. But I do like anger and lyrics. In conclusion, this is a bit shit.
What am I meant to learn from this… I don’t know… I could go to the tote and hear music more better then this.
I’d hope if I was at the actual Witch Trials I wouldn’t be presented with music this mediocre. Like, the album has this real raw sound, but it feels so one-note repetitive. There is no variance across any of the tracks and it really comes of as dull by the end. I’m sure if I heard this album live it would sound better, but ya nah.
I'm sure I've said this before, but it's albums like this where I wonder what the base line selection criteria were when creating this list.
I needed this today.
good punk
I quite like The Fall - this project has shown me how much I like Punk and Post-Punk stuff, and The Fall sit nicely in that niche for me. This album is a bit samey, however, and while I enjoyed it there is some growth for the band to come.
I’d never listened to The Fall and was ready to do it under duress as I’m a live album hater so discovering it wasn’t one was a pleasant surprise. I enjoyed this but as a northern southern hating punk I enjoyed the lore more than the album so I’m hopeful more of their discography will come my way.
Seems kinda like proto-White Stripes. If Jack White wasnt influenced by this album I'd be surprised! Decent but not my cup of tea on average.
I prefer this over The Infotainment Scan, but it’s still not that good. I gave it a few tries, and it just never pulled me in.
The Fall rules. It's crazy how many bands (especially in the UK) have tried so hard to emulate this sound, but you can't beat the OG's. Raw, vital, dissonant...this is a great record.
Rumors is a better album
Waste o time
horrible, espantoso e inescuchable. parece que constantemente estan intentado hacer que la cancion suene mal apropósito.
This was a hit and miss for me
Early British Punk. Classic, but not my favorite.
4/10 No me gustó, me aburrió el ritmo y la voz, no me coparon los ritmos. Se pueden rescatar algunas partes, pero en su mayoría bastante flojo
For late 70's post-punk this is pretty good. The addition of the organ/keys is really novel and Mark E Smith is either a fantastic frontman or borderline annoying depending on how you feel at the time lol. Starts off strong, but as the record goes on I wish they would do more to develop their sound more or at least, make the album feel less one-note. STILL, it's a debut and a solid one at that. If anything, makes me curious to hear the rest of their albums eventually.
It gave me a light headache halfway through, which is crazy because I found this album v boring.
Cool. Kinda weird.
I've come to enjoy The Fall, and the late great Mark E. Smith. It's just Rock music with what sounds like your drink uncle rambling, but there is a charm to it. Favorite Track: "Mother-Sister!".
Old Skool punk, has a vibe to it
I was unfamiliar with The Fall prior to listening to the album. It’s a good album. It’s challenging in a way that it’s not straight forward. You get the post-punk/punk and it works. Songs are good and some get stuck in you head. I can understand why it’s on the list.
I think I can see how this inspired future bands, but this didn't do a whole lot for me.
Gostei do sintetizador e do baterista. mas além disso não é meu estilo favorito de pos punk
Typical punk music, couple catchy rifts.
First track was ok then it was pretty much downhill from there! Of course I’ve heard of the Fall and what a character Mark E Smith was blah blah blah but the musics shit!
Well, I listened to this whole album even though about 3 songs in I could tell it was not for me. I'm learning through this list that I'm not really into punk.
The witch trials were more exciting.
Now I see where Public image got their sound from. I admit I enjoy post punk more than punk, and this album was kinda fun to listen to, although it was a bit long. I had never even heard of The Fall until today.
an incredible title.
I had never heard of this band or album and I was pleasantly surprised. Definitely raw, but in the best way possible. No need for gimmicks and tricks. I was even more impressed when I found out they recorded the whole album in a day. They must have really known these songs well by the time they got into the studio. Going with a 3.50/5
Punk is shite
I cannot stand the vocal diction ("____-ah" on every single word), and in combination with the obnoxiously-mixed low end, make this one of the worst things I've heard while doing this. A few moments where I was not hating what I was hearing does not make it any less terrible overall.
Upon opening the album on Spotify and seeing it 2hs 23 mins I was ready to throw in the towel and give it a 1 out of principle. Wikipedia shows original album was only ~9 tracks and 38 minutes so, ok, we’re back on. First track was sonically interesting. By track 3 (Xmas) I was beginning to feel like breaking a bottle and getting in a scrum with opposing team hooligans, my enthusiasm waning. I do like the studio-live recording, music almost always sounds better this way. Two Steps Back the strongest track in my view. There is a lack of consistency here - Live at Witch Trials song begins vocally lame with the second half music partially redeeming it. There are nuggets here to like but requires wading through crap to find. In the end, this album begins to feel like parody - damn you Fred Armisen for ruining an entire genre for me. Oy! 2/5
Some songs are good but it’s also kinda meh
too freaking long man too freaking long....i did not like most songs but i did like some so idk it was alright
Frightened - 4 Crap rap 2 / like to blow - 4 Rebellious jukebox - 4 No xmas for john quays - 3 Mother - sister! - 3 Industrial estate - 3 Underground medecin - 2 Two steps back - 4 Live at the witch trials - n/a Futures and pasts - 4 Music scene - 3
Skipped around, defintely wasn't my jam.
Probably would have liked them more in high school… but not bad.
I found the music decent, but the yell-“singing” really put me off. Plus some of the live recordings are terrible! Thought my equipment was malfunctioning. I don’t know how many tracks were on the original album; I only made it through disk one on the 41-track, 2.5 hour album on Qobuz. The PDF I have of the 1001 albums book only has 11 tracks listed. 3/10 Ho Hum
Ok
Efforty
Live album. Pretty good. Would listen to again. Rock.
My mate who has significant musical overlap with me says The Fall are his favourite band. So I've tried them a few times before, but never managed a whole album. And I at I still just don't get it. Maybe the ramblings of a mad man, a work of genius, both or neither - I'm still not sure.
Astute title, I guess.
Bit punk/sloppy for me but could be my mood today
Liked the guitar!
Fuck yeah stop talking to the cigarette machine
yet another random British "punk" album that's on here for no reason.
Like vomit on a shag carpet, this too cannot be cleaned.
For once, the music in a 70's post-punk record isn't bothering me. Weirdly, it even has a proti-goth sound to it on some tracks that I enjoy. Unfortunately Mark E. Smith's awful singing and the really bad, stilted drums are doing this record in for me. I think I prefer it over their other album on the list, but not by much.
I've listened to this album three times because I thought "come on, this is just fine, there's surely a song that's going to grab my attention", but after one day I remember absolutely nothing. Nice background music - that's all it is.
Jepp, dette likte jeg! Fet sound.
ugh...
I had never heard of them before but really scratched an itch. I like post-punk. I like sarcasm. I like the vocalists that are slightly grating. My guess is check all my boxes.
Ugh.