Reviews (page 2 of 7)
Wow I more knew of The fall and Mark E Smith before, but damn I loved that. Raw but crucially great tunes and lyrics, middle of the album sagged a little, but was great!
All I could think while I was listening was wow, what a strong debut album. I feel like the opening lyrics to 'Mother - Sister!' really encapsulates this album in the best way. "Er, what's this thing about? Er, nothing." I feel like the artists didn't worry about hitting you over the head with a message or conforming to what might have been expected from a debut album, they just created a series of rocking songs from start to finish. Some might dismiss it as sounding like drunken rambling at times, but I think that's what makes the album special.
what a fun album, really weird style but I loved it 10/10
Pleasant surprise!!
Really liked this one
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.
A psychic hammering
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.
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.
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.
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
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 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
Great punk album that felt ahead of its time.
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.
4/5
good punk
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.
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.
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
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.
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
Efforty
Live album. Pretty good. Would listen to again. Rock.
Jepp, dette likte jeg! Fet sound.
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.
Ok, I liked this way more than I thought I would, having heard other stuff by The Fall and just not really having gotten it. This was much more straightforward punk (I guess technically "post-punk" but I have no idea what that means) than the other albums, and I wonder now whether if I'd heard this first I would have liked those better. Probably.
(84/100)
The Fall has been hit or miss with me. This one is more hit than miss. I like how they can sound very messy and unstable, but then it just snaps into tightness. I also like the synth work. 3.5/5
Very cool! I like it a lot.
Excellent
Nice and kind of weird.
Ratings: 5: I will happily play this album anytime 4: I may occasionally play this album of my own free will 3: I will happily listen to this if someone plays it in the background 2: I will tolerate this if it is playing in the background 1: I will leave the room if someone plays this in the background 1st listen: What is this crap? 2nd listen: Maybe there is something interesting here 3rd listen: I'm intrigued. I'd like to dig deeper.
I love the way the drums sound, and the bass is hypnotic goodness
7/10
Cool
I sure do like this band. This doesn’t have the “holy shit” effect of This Nation’s Saving Grace, which is more accessible. But it’s a wildly confident debut record.
i know a couple guys who are mark e smith obsessives. Perverted by Language is the only one of their records i loved, but this is good (and much better than the 90's album also included on this list)
Great album, in retrospect. I was around during these days and for some reason I never really listened to the fall, even though people I know/knew were definitely listening to The Fall. I was probably being a snob of some sort or another. In any case, great album and sorry I missed it in real time. 4 falling stars.
This album has so much going for it. It is very tight for a band with a garage feel (think Mudhoney), and the tracks pulse with energy throughout. The only real problem for me is the vocals. In this space and genre, it is crucial to not come off as whiney, and for the most part the lead holds it together. However, the range doesn't allow him to distinguish himself well, and by the end of the album, I was tiring of his voice. Despite all of this, it is a really fun album.
Better than expected
dont worry Mark E Smith. ( i got your back <3 )
Soooo many alt bands from the 80s were just copying Martin Bramah’s homework.
Post punk art rock, raw and angry. I can hear the krautrock band Can influence with the repetitive bass and drums throughout. Can also tell they were a big influence on the bands that I grew up with, Sonic Youth, Pixies, Pavement, etc. If you are a fan of punk or indie art rock give this one a spin.
Good Post Punk, found a song I was looking for years
Parquet Courts if they time traveled back to 1979
I normally say that I dislike post-punk, but then I’m shown albums like this where the band is treating the studio like a live show and just being load and destructive and punk in a deconstructed way, and I’m won over. Live At The Witch Trials is not flawless. Sometimes, it gets into “fuck around and create feedback to be annoying” territory, which, while punk in ethos, I think has aged like milk from a listening-in-retrospect perspective. But the actual songs on here are all really good, and really my style. Unfortunately, I also have a sinking feeling that this live, punk-as-fuck energy is lighting in a bottle, and they will spend the rest of their career trying to recreate it or just being bland post-punk with cool bass riffs. But at least it works here!
definitely pretty mixed on a lot of these but when it works it works. drums and bass are incredible
I really enjoyed this album! A quick listen with great energy throughout. Closer to a 4.5 than 4.
Jeg hyggede mig med the Fall igen. Det er nok det bedste ukendte band som listen har bragt med sig.
Trejde The Fall album i projektet. Jeg er stadig mega godt underholdt. Vokalen er klassisk britisk punk. Melodierne sejler rundt mellem lige på punk og finurlige legende indslag. Særligt bassen har en fed funky vibe der giver et godt modspil til vokalens monotone ordsprøjterri.
The Fall are a very unique band. A single album really doesn't do enough to represent this band. They made 30 or so albums, and every single one is different - some good, some bad. But this, their first album, presents the band as what they are and will always be, abrasive, uncompromising, and not afraid to be different, all driven by Mark E. Smith's singular and equally uncompromising vision. I love his lyrics, which are cryptic, full of wit and satire, and I love his delivery, which is basically shouting in the right key. There's a certain amount of similarity to John Cooper Clarke. But where John Cooper Clarke is funny and dry, Mark E. Smith is about to punch you in the face.
This was a really good listen, it feels both classic and very modern. You can tell that this band was incredibly influential to rock music in the 2000's.
Rinky dink, rattley old rollercoaster Post-Punk ramblings. Pre'y good innit.
It’s one of those records when you listen, you see the next forty years of music right before your eyes. Spazzy guitars for Sonic Youth, “toy piano” tone for 2000s indie rock, and sing-talking for post-punk, to name a few.
Some good early post-punk. Very raw, great and simple but effective production and the vocalist's half singing half talking approach is quite unique. Some more energy could really elevate this, because it's consistently good but rarely amazing. Still, I enjoyed it all the way through.
Never heard of this punk group was super happy I got to know this band amazing raw album
Sometimes an album will grab my fancy for reasons I can’t fully explain. Am excited to dig deeper into The Fall catalogue. It kinda feels like smart punk? I’m intrigued.
Classic and more musical than most.
Virkelig solidt punkalbum. Glædelig fredag
Yaaass
Love the name of this album. And how timely with it being October 22 today. :) Hm I like the sound of this, it's borderline punk. Thick English accent. Rebellious Jukebox reminded me of that intro song on Misfits. Yeah dude this album is cool. Heading into a 4 star review. How cool would it have been an adolescent at the height of the punk era. 4 stars.
Television-vibbar. Ganske kult
Álbum de se esperar do final da década de 70 e início da de 80. Temas anti governo e anti estabilishment. Pessoalmente curti as tracks Industrial Estate e Two Steps Back, em especial a última, descrevendo a alienação do trabalhador de uma fábrica.
I love it. Fascinating to hear where it started for The Fall. Very playful lyrically. Some really interesting instrumental parts. Amazing drumming. Yes. Good.
I liked this! Wild, fun drumming and rhythms. Manifesto-like vibes at times. Playfully insistent. A strong start for The Fall that seems to lay out their ways and intentions. I'm into it.
This rocks. Another band whose name I've known forever but never took the time to listen to until now. Great post-punk here with a weird single-finger keyboard style that sort of sits on top of everything without seeming like it's totally out of place. Reminds me of a tamer Rudimentary Peni in energy and vocal style. Interested on the rest of their catalog now.
I can see why this is polarizing, but I dug it. Underground Medecin and Futures and Pasts added to Liked Songs.
I enjoyed this, there were a few tracks I wasn’t as into, but on the whole The Fall has been a good (new to me) find through the challenge. I’m just a bit annoyed this is the third album we’ve had by them. I don’t think this album was wildly different from the last two, if I was writing the list I’d put a cap on entries by the same bands unless their style drastically changed.
I love this kind of stuff but have only gotten into it in the last few years. I feel like I've kind of missed out on a lot of real punk and post punk outside what everyone knows. It has a lot to say, its fun to listen to, it energizes you. What else do you need from music? It's not exactly complicated but that's not the point. I'll definitely be listening to some others of theirs after this one and that seems like the mark of a good album to me. I get that this is not a style of music meant to be for everyone. And that's totally fine. But why this music is more generally panned than pop country or hip hop I'll never know. 3.75/5 on this one.
Favorite tracks: Frightened, Rebellious Jukebox, Industrial Estate I enjoyed most of this album, but I don't know that it's something to write home about. The songs are fun but felt really repetitive, even for punk (or post punk? Someday I'll learn the difference). A+ work on "No Xmas for John Quays" though, I didn't realize what it was about until I googled who John Quays is
Gotta say, the synths often feel like a peculiar tack on, but they don't take away from the experience. Overall, I found this to be a very enjoyable punk record. Plenty of thick bass, punchy drums, and wandering guitars. Standouts for me were Frightened, the way Mother - Sister! comes together, and Two Steps Back. Also enjoyed the jamminess of the original closer: Music Scene. All around solid. Falls in the realm of low 4 for me.
Батя инди-рока и тви (на которого очень похожи Фонтэйнз ДИ СИ, вот мое внезапное осознание) тридцать минут режет. Лучшая песня - Rebellious Jukebox.
With this band name and title, how are we in 1979? “The Fall” is absolutely some 2008 emo band that has shouted vocals and clean passages. The next question I have is will this actually be live? I can presume they aren’t doing a live set back in time at the Salem witch trials, but is it just a clever little quirky title for their deluxe set from meeting room B at the Holiday Inn Detroit? These are the questions that keep me momentarily interested while I procrastinate starting this endeavour once more. Only 736 more to go. Jesus Christ. Burning at the stake is sounding like a nice alternative here. Frightened - The Fall is frightened and I’m STOKED. Weird proto-punk spoken word music? I’m in heaven. Some of sort of weird autistic male heaven. I can smell the steam from the model locomotives. Crap Rap 2like to Blow - This reads like an old man on Facebook criticizing a black singer. Remember when racism had to at least have a small veil placed over it? Guy likes to blow apparently. Good for him. Rebellious Jukebox - Too much repetition here and I want this to be over. How the might have FALLen. Man. I’m a natural born comedian. No Xmas for John Quays - Yeah!! Fuck you John boy. Two fingers pal. The British way. This is a return to form. Hell yeah. Disclaimer. I do not know who John Quays is. Mother-Sister! - Quirky keyboard is back with fast punk beats. I’m a happy fella. Sufficiently odd and heavy for regular rotation. Industrial Estate - This is one of the more uninspired tracks on the record. Underground Medecin - I found a reason not to die. This fucking RIPS. Two Steps Back - Calm. Pensive Punks are having a field day with this one. Wait did he mention the cracker factory??? I wonder if he’s a big wheel down there. Did I just mention Big Wheel? Don’t get me started on that guy. Legend of the villain game. Live at the Witch Trials - Oh hell yeah. Just hook this type of shit to my veins and leave in my modern day opium den. Which is just this type of music playing while I attend AI generated walrus jousting events from my padded cell. 2027 can’t come soon enough. Futures and Pasts - This close to writing Pasta. That would’ve been a faux pas! The direct translation of that doesn’t really make sense. Learning about other languages makes me feel dumb. I suppose the feeling has to match the aptitude at some point. 30 minutes in and out. This thing rules. Artistic punk rock that was ahead of its time and never got boring for me. There are some proto-punk tropes that pop up here and there but there is so much intrigue in the instrumentation, so many quotable one-liners and a palpable beastly energy that propel this record past those tropes with ease. I had a great time throughout and I really don’t have much else on this. Great album out of absolutely nowhere. BAH GOD!! HE HAS A FAMILY. YOU SON OF A BITCH WHY?? TELL ME WHY?? Mixing my JR calls, but you get the picture. Get outta here. 4 HIGHLIGHTS: Frightened, No Xmas for John Quays, Mother-Sister!, Underground Medecin, Live at the Witch Trials
Mark E Smith isn’t really here for casual listening. But whenever I hear The Fall, I like it. Never heard this one, their first, but it is very very good. I can see how they aren’t for everyone but if you enjoy a belligerent drunken Englishman shouting at you over the sound of a killer post punk band playing their asses off, have I got a record for you.
As track 1 side 1 of debuts go, Frightened may be one of my favs, a unique statement and together with the "We Are The Fall" opener to the next song, reads as something of an anti-manifesto. Always thought that the claustrophobic, paranoid Mood for the opener was the template for the atmosphere for Kasabian's debut. In my pre-stream days I probably listened to nothing but The Fall on 2018, become a little obsessed with MES's contradictory working class intellectual cynicism and his supernatural psychic outlook. I rareiy played this one however, due to it's rawness and uneveness but listening now the Drums and especially keyboards sound fantastic, so edging into the 4 Zone.
I can't decide where exactly I land on this one. It's correctly labeled as 'post-punk' because it's doing more than punk rock, but definitely not as much as new wave... like they're trying to convey some new wave ideas but only using the language of punk rock. The Fall does eventually learn to speak new wave (even with horns!), but they aren't there yet in this debut album. In a lot of ways, The Fall is an excellent case study in the evolution of punk/post-punk/new wave. If you're into 'classic' punk, this should be a tolerable listen for you. If not, this is probably a little too hardcore (or weird) to get all the way through. Some of their later records are a little more broadly palatable, but I enjoyed chewing on this one for a little bit.
Just my kind of weird, I really liked this. And you can hear how it influenced a lot of the garage/indie style rock of the 2000’s like the Strokes. Only this is better.
I had never heard of this band. Not really my style but I did enjoy it.
Yay
hä mega "volli" produktion? für 1979?? frightened isch en BANGER gsi de schluss mite gitarre hahaha muss sege bis jz fühlis uuuhuere es nimmt sich selber nöd zu ernst aber finds recht kreativi/abwechsligsriichi lieder TAKTWECHSEL innerhalb vomene tag uufgno :0 ICH HAN ERST JZ CHEGGT dass das die vo infotainment sind ich han die ganz ziit murder system verstande statt mother sister hahaha da ghörtmer de punk-ihfluss echt nod sehr fest hä echt ich liebs ja er singt schräg aber find d produktion suscht isch easy stabil funny synthiiii ah scho fertig en KANON two steps back findi au suuper weiss nöd es isch sicher guet dass s album nur 30 min lang isch, suscht würds sich wahrsch schochli zieh aber eso findis hammer no s letschte lied! überrascht jz nüt meh hett nöd denkt dass mier das so gfallt, aber es isch es churzwiligs album wo mega spass macht starchs 4i oder es 5i! alsoo ich han gester nomal öppe d hälfti glost, es 5i isches nöd. aber spass machts!
This album kicked ass
I love Mark E. Smith's snarl-singing. I know it's not for everyone, but I really like how raw this album is. Personally, I think it would've been better without the keys, but that's me. Liked Songs Added: Frightened Mother - Sister! Two Steps Back
Hell yes. The first full-length rinky dink foray from greatest weird band in the world. It's difficult to explain/justify the appeal of the Fall to the unsold because they are not all that "appealing", and I think there are better entry points to their endless catalog (Grotesque and Bend Sinister) but this is still quality mutant humanity asserting itself.
The Fall of expectations and the Rise of Punk supremacy.
Really strong post-punk debut by The Fall
The core album was solid. I don't need to listen to a bunch of demos that makes the total album 40+ tracks
Cool early-punk sound
This is some solid punk rock and it’s not just a bucnh of noise and it’s still the raw primal energy.
Shouty shouty obtuse lyrics
Crappy Rap 3 when?
An auspicious debut from the Fall, and the sound is already there. I generally like the later stuff like with Brix better, I feel some of the brittleness of the sound is shed. But still good stuff.
I guess I like The Fall. This was a lot of fun and fits the overall vibe the generator has been giving us lately. Anyone else notice the overall quality of the albums we’ve been getting lately? Of our last 30 albums, the global review of 17 have been below 3.00. Of the remaining, only one has been above 3.30 (Fear of Music). The average global review of those 30 is 2.9943333 To put it into context, the average global review is 3.4. I guess, some things to consider are we’re listening to 1001 albums, so a pocket of 30 like this doesn’t seem so note worthy in the grand scheme. But, when you’re in the thick of it, it can feel a little tiresome. Hopefully this means we’ll get a good run eventually. Also, our group’s average rating of the 30 is 3.51, which is right around our average.
7.5/10 Liked this a lot better than I expected. It may be a bit rough, but still sounds pretty good. Highlights: Futures and Pasts Music Scene Frightened Rebellious Jukebox No XMas for John Quays
Mark E Smith is a fascinating individual and one of the most difficult men to ever pick up a guitar. His contempt for his bandmates, contemporaries, and audience is pretty apparent in most everything he did, said, and made. This band has had 66 members during its lifespan for a reason. Although, people attempted to put up with him for a reason: the man was kind of, sort of a genius in his own weird way. Live At The Witch Trials is an extremely interesting debut. The Fall can be lumped in with the other post-punk bands at the time, but no one did it like this. This isn't to say that The Fall was far ahead of the rest of the scene, but they were kind of a singular, inimitable thing. For a band that really isn't *that* aesthetically extreme, there is something disproportionately alienating and caustic about The Fall's music. I think a lot of it may be that it seems like Smith had very little interest in keeping the band's energy from hurtling off the tracks, especially for how intricate some of these songs come across as. It kind of feels like everyone is pulling in a different direction, but the forces all balance out. And on top of all of it, Mark E Smith is *ranting*, it almost feels like he's trying as hard as possible to keep everyone from settling into a groove. And as a result of all this, The Fall's sound feels chaotic and nervous. I will also say that The Fall is really not for everyone, and they really don't seem to care that a not-insignificant portion of the population is left in the dust here. Despite that, I would really urge everyone to give this one a shot, it probably isn't The Fall's best, but it is *very* good, and is honestly probably one of their most accessible. It's really the kind of thing you struggle to find anywhere else.
I always thought The Fall was some sort of a "difficult" band, but this is very easy to like. Maybe it's because of the recent resurgence in post-punk by bands clearly influenced by them.
Happy to see a 2nd album from these guys. After our first album hit the list I took a little journey into their portfolio and I can say I'm a fan. I think Mark Smith has very unique voice that just fits perfectly with the bands sound and style. Great energy throughout and there's not much to dislike, if you're a fan of the punk sound. This album is a little raw, but it's from 1979. Favorite tune is Frightened, but again, I pretty much liked most of the songs off this album. Thought the opening of Bingo-Master's Break-Out sounded a bit like a Clash tune. Also liked the reference to President Carter. After all, he loves repetition too! For shits, I checked to see if they were still around and I'm sorry to hear Mark has passed. So much for trying to see live. I can imagine this would be a pretty fun concert. This is a good one and really have enjoyed my listens. Spotify then kicks in with some solid music picks too! 3.5
Scratchy with grooves. A great noise with longevity.
Surprised to not have known this band, I feel like they deserve to be in the same group of household names as sex pistols and buzzcocks. yet they were new to me. Pleasantly enjoyed the punk vibe and thought they have considerable talent. The drummer shreds, bass lines were steady and lyrics entertaining . Just complex enough to be super interesting and straight forward enough to be legit punk.
Not terribly familiar with the band, never heard this record, but I like it! Feels a bit like a less polished more punk Gang of Four, which is high praise. I'll have to give these guys a bit more playing time in the future.
Curmudgeonly, challenging, and singular.
Great to see The Fall on this list. This isn’t among my favourites but it’s still classic Mark Smith (Nation’s Saving is more fully realized by a ways).
The Fall...every time I listen I hear so many of the contemporary bands that I love. Massive influence. Mark E. Smith has such an amazing delivery. 4/5
I love this kind of stuff. A+ album title, too
Nice and dark, it's the sound of a group of people who probably don't like themselves very much. They dislike other people even more so. Spiky bass, snappy drums, demented keys, ringing guitars and drawling vocals make for some compelling sounds. Swirling and manic, the noisy production underlines the hypnotic compositions. Favourite tracks: Rebellious Jukebox, No Xmas For John Quays, Two Steps Back, Music Scene
I like the guitars on this
Masters at work
Not likely to have a calm time at the diner with THAT jukebox. Post punk at it's postiest-punkiest. They know how to be thrashy/snarky/sneery/ bass line right there punchy drums punching. You were calming down? Here comes the screech!
Say what you like about Mark E Smith. Yes, he was curmudgeonly, awkward, difficult, annoying, obstreperous, angry and he hated Southerners (British). But boy was he prolific! And distinctive! And I have more time for him and his very recognisable, unforgiving style than most of the dross around. Anything that sarcastic and edgy that puts a smile on my face deserves credit. RIP you angry man!
Ah, Mark E Smith and The Fall. Smith is one of the most literate and irascible figures in music, and he arrives fully formed on this debut album. He, like Johnny Rotten and Karen O, so dominates the proceedings that it's almost hard to hear the band behind him. They're a bit raw on this one, though I was into it on today's listen. There are three Fall albums on this list, which is probably two too many as you're either going to enjoy Smith's "singing" or it's going to irritate the hell out of you. But if you dig it, boy are you in luck, because there are about 1.5 million Fall albums, and they're all good. Having said that, I think they're best served by the two compilations A-Sides and B-Sides.
Angry northern man shouts at the world!
Quintessential The Fall. Does what it says on the tin!
Such a distinctive vocal style old Mark has. Doesn't feel like it should've been released in 1979 but equally I can't really compare it to much later music either. Great post punk sound though I think this was better than the infotainment scan but not as good as nations saving grace so that puts it at 3.5
I really dig the jangly, raw, discordant music. Wish I had known of this one earlier.
Bonkers.
I see there are three Fall albums on the list, which is a pleasant surprise, though I'd include Hex Induction Hour over this. This one probably deserves a four, but This Nation's Saving Grace will get a five when it comes around.
If you don’t like this then you just have objectively bad taste.
very good punk album, will listen some more. probably 4.5
Of the many bands I have not heard of on this list The Fall will most likely be one of the more memorable ones that I probably won’t listen to often. These guys rip. The Fall were so ahead of their time. The guitar work is primal and beautiful.
Very nice album, I enjoyed a lot and I got the chance to discover The Fall
3.5
This is the second album from The Fall I've gotten, the first being This Nation's Saving Grace. I like this better, the raw production fits their sound a lot better.
Added this to my collection. Classic old punk vibes.
This is an interesting one. The instrumental choices are quirky in a good way. I like it.
Like the style and the punk vibe. Short album that I could easily listen to again and again.
I do enjoy some British punk music.
Breath of fresh air after the Ramones album. Now this is the kind of punk I like: ill-tempered, brash, rough-edged, just wants to get off work and head for the beer. I’m sure there are better Fall albums but this is the first one I’ve listened to, and I’m glad I started with their first so I can see where they go from here. Sure, it’s a must-listen, #48.
Kinda ok. Interesting. I can see why that album is part of th mix, and why it's a well rated one, or a poorly rated one. I may listen to it again. It has something a bit special. 4 stars.
Un punk como nunca lo había oído; apasionado y profundamente novedoso. Disfruté de esta corriente musical con mucho gusto. La música es excepcional y contestataria a una realidad exterior gris y cada vez más gris.
I have many Fall albums...never heard the 1st album...much rawer, stripped down and heavier.. a little early Gang of Four-ish... Not bad at all and I'm old.. RIP Mark E. Smith
Cool sounds. Guy seems weird though
punk 🤝 rap
I really dig the vibe - it has a raw “live in studio” feel to it that few bands can really pull off. Definite revisit
Enjoyed this
Very solid fun punk
Solid album with a lot of weirdness. I enjoyed it, reminded me of a tamer Subhumans.
Raw creativity harnessed by punk sensibility
man i really like this band. they have the attitude just short of annoying and the dude has a cool voice.
Big fall fan, seen them live, but they're back catalogue is immense, and I can't lie, I didn't know this album. As with (most of) the rest, I warmed to this pretty quickly. In fact, it's more accessible than a lot of their work. So long as you appreciate Mark E Smith is tone deaf and can get over his unique-er singing style, then you'll be in for a treat -er.
I finally have a punk album that i like
Listening via headset on my work laptop, but I wish I had a mixer so I could boost the bass in the first song, because that riff is great. The bassist definitely sounds like they're the only one with previous music experience. I didn't know this was going to be a punk album, but Rebellious Jukebox is definitely a punk song. Quote from the singers Wikipedia sums it up pretty good, "rock & roll isn't even music really. It's a mistreating of instruments to get feelings over." What a great album.
For some reason every time this album gets reissued the number of tracks on it doubles. It's been growing exponentially since 1979 and currently the number of songs is equal to the number of grains of sand on an average length beach. In order to listen to the whole thing before they die of old age, fans have been reduced to listening to hundreds or even thousands of the songs at once on specially adapted gramophones. The good thing is this often produces sounds that you can see and taste and is referred to the Multiple E. Smith effect. But be warned! It's not a live album despite what the title may suggest. And we never find which witch came top in the trials and carried off the coveted golden broomstick award. Disappointing.
Surprised myself by quite liking it 😂
Perhaps one of the most important post-punk records ever made, and one of the best records Mark E. Smith ever released, even if it does end up overstaying it's welcome by just a few tracks.
With The Fall's protean discography you gotta start somewhere. Why not start indeed with their first LP, where Mark E. Smith proved from the get-go he was leagues ahead in the post-punk game? As weird as this record is, it could have been released yesterday, and -- in the current British crank wave revival at least -- no one would have batted an eye. 3.5/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums, rounded up to 4. 8.5/10 for more general purposes (5 + 3.5) Number of albums left to review: 54 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 408 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 236 (including this one) Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 303
Not one I expected to be well-liked here, and I'm not surprised to see that 2.64 score, but as usual it's blatantly wrong. It's raw, rough around the edges, and at times weirdly catchy. "Frightened" is one of my favourite recent discoveries, I listened to the start of this album while walking my dogs and was just walking down the street just in awe of how amazing the keyboard sounds on that song. It's almost like a sonar, and of course Mark E. Smith's delivery over that and the jagged guitars and bass makes for a really interesting listen. The rest of the album is very much the same, with some tongue-in-cheek humour (say "John Quays" out loud) but never loses its appeal, with a couple earworms in there. Their Peel sessions from around this time are also very much worth a listen, so I highly recommend those too. 8/10
original songs and styke
Pretty nice start pacing was a little slow
It is not, despite its title, a live album. First few tracks kind of muddled together but gained steam in the middle tracks. Found my head bouncing and my feet tapping. Found it an enjoyable listen. Might take a casual listener a second to get over the exaggerated pulling vocals.
More of a trip, but you can see where it’s going.
I don't know what post-punk is but this record is the definition right here
Not for me
Bardzo dobry post punkowy album. Dobrze się słucha i zdecydowanie wrócę czasami
I dig it! Classic post punk. 3.8
First time I've listened to this band. My kind of weird.
I enjoyed this - especially Mark E Smith's delivery with '-uh' at the end of each phrase. Rough and raw
I missed categorized The Fall in my mind, so was very pleasantly surprised by this album.
Pure brit punk in the best ways
I've like the other releases from The Fall on this list so far and this is another interesting one that probably requires a bit more time. Frightened certainly captures me from the start.
Always different, always the same, as the Peel line goes. I do enjoy their schtick, but I don't think any Fall album is gonna get to a 5 with me. But at the same time, probably never get a 3 or lower either? 4s for The Fall, then! Fave tracks - "Frightened" is a fun kick off. "Rebellious Jukebox" and "Futures and Pasts" are both stand outs. "Bingo-Master's Break Out!" and "Various Times" if we're allowed to include bonus tracks!
Imagine if Yard Act had a set of testicles and wasn't a product to be marketed
Liking the vibe
This album is so odd, from the sound of the guitars to their weird riffs to the accent the singer has. It actually works out. Some really great tunes, "No Xmas for John Quays" is an all timer and one I put on constantly. The album does have some dips in quality though
Not their best, but still The Fall. A little over-produced (or under-). Would have been great to hear these tracks produced to sound like Dragnet or the early singles. But there are some great songs here (notably Music Scene, Rebellious Jukebox and Underground Medicin) and the straightahead 60s garage band approach – complete with cheap keyboard sound – already sets them apart from a lot of the other 'punk' bands of the time. An intriguing hint at what was to come.
There's so much energy and ideas swirling around here. And all under 30 minutes. Right from the start The Fall didn't give a fuck. It must have sounded like nothing else in 1979. It still pretty much the case. A glorious mess. Mark was a one.
4.0
Love British music they don’t know how to cook food but they cooked on this
If I ever need a reason to not read reviews before starting an album, I'll look here. Fuck you. I like this.
Musically interesting, lyrically dense; much better than I expected, but still far from perfect; probably a band that will pop up again, although there is (in my opinion) more deserving artists. A tricky one to score, but for the music and the influence, I'm going to round up, rather than down.
I don’t know if Mark E Smith was Live At The Witch Trials, but it sounds like he was. Commenting everything happening with his satirical tone. Honest and primal post-punk.
Punk como melódico. Está bien. Un 4.
Kind of fun punk
Enjoyed it.
Strong debut from a great band ✌️
There’s something endearing about Mark E. Smith and the Fall, they are in many ways the anti-band. The sound of this album is so inventive, it is dissonant yet there is enough of a melody to feel connected to it. It reminds me of a less jarring and less desolate PiL, kind of like a rough day that you got through and were better for it. The production is surprisingly crisp for a punk debut with “Live” in the title. It’s not an album of hits, but more like a collection of well thought out schemes. The impact of this album and this band is pretty wide reaching, given how prolific they would be following this. Many post-punk, alternative and indie bands owe a debt to the Fall.
I'm taking a star off for the extra 30 tracks on this goddam disc. I know that puts me in league with the braindead Amazon reviewers who review a new 4k disc with 1 star because "I don't like George Clooney at all". But fuck it. 30 tracks??? You didn't even put the requisite 'deluxe edition' signifyer on it. But I'll put a star back on because this is the kind of vibe I can dig. Do I love a song on here? I do not. Could I let this play all day? Probly so.
Puzzling, literary, disturbing and inspiring all at once; I wouldn't describe this as an easy listen but it's certainly a vital and bracing one. In terms of how it sounds, well, the lurching, queasy rhythms are pinpricked with wiry guitar and almost comically cheap sounding keyboards. And then you've got Smith's high-low poetry to contend with. Sui generis, but points towards all kinds of possibilities including post-punk and the Neue Deutsche Welle sound. Can you listen to Fontaines DC without hearing The Fall? If you've heard The Fall beforehand, probably not, I'd wager. In a category of its own - this peculiar music winds itself around your bones.
Do you think they were really there
I have only twenty-odd albums and saw them live only 4/5 times, so a lightweight Fall-head really. This gets less spins than others possibly due to being on the original Small Wonder vinyl and safely stashed away. Their run of brilliant early singles - collected on Early fall 77-79 - has rather put this debut in the shade. A relisten reveals that it's - what do you know - already a classic fall album. Rebellious Jukebox, Two Steps Back, Industrial Estate and No Xmas for John Quays are all prime cuts, supported by such perennial Fall tropes as a dig at the music biz ('Music Scene') and a sub-1 min amouse bouche (title track). Their sound - rolling bass to anchor, clattering drums , obtusely tinny yet melodic keyboards - is here in template form. MES appears already full-formed, speech-singing and making everything rhyme by putting 'ah' at the end. Not a five as that would say it is the equal of 'This Nations...' or 'Hex Enduction'. But 4.25 definitely.
As spot-on a post punk album as you'll find. Intense but properly pissy, full of prickly, bass-forward rhythms and stark, jagged guitars. I appreciate the band's start-stop, punk-inflected approach to pacing, with an effective use of both volume and speed that propels the listener through each song. The songwriting is less coherent than on later albums, but Mark E. Smith's delivery is so compelling, I'm not particularly bothered by it. For a first album this is pretty fantastic.
God I love a good post punk drum part. Fantastic drums certainly carry this album, but as far as post punk goes this is a fantastic album even if the drums weren't as good as they are. The bass work is also pretty great throughout. The vocals are strange for sure, but I wasn't paying as close of attention to the content as much as the tonality and they very much so sound post punk so I can't complain.
Блять, нахуя столько песен на спотике. Ну в целом ок, но нет ощущения кайфа. Но в моменте было норм и даже пару песен сохранил Алкоальбом: ну вроде коктейль спиртягой не разбавили и ок
Barbed yet bouncy, based on tensnion between the edgy, dissonant and relentless guitars and the basic, carnivalesque keys. Dark and edgy. Perhaps monolithic and impenetrable-seeming (perhaps even amusical) to those listeners who prefer more conventionality, accessibility and obviousnes. Mark E's vocals are an acquired taste, too, alas. One likes the oddball timings; authentic, low-fi passion and commitment to DIY-their-way; intense and discordant hooks; distinctive and memorable vocals; fixating little glimpses of melody amidst all the abrasiveness and (it would seem willful) difficulty. "No Xmas" is memorable, an early classic for this keeper of a band.
Great rudimentary post-punk that would go on to inspire everybody, from Pavement to Protomartyr. Not their best but I really like the amateurish aspect of it.
I don't know what's with The Fall, but I just love them!
This album was just short of 5 stars. It is definitely one of the best mixed records I heard, especially the drumming. I just got bored by the repetition near the end.
I liked it!
Kind of like a Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Doors and Rolling Stones mash up. Pretty good album and I’m interested in listening to more by them.
I'd have to be in the right mood to listen to this but I like punk
Dissonant, noisy, rhythmic
I am not super familiar with The Fall, but whenever they pop up and I am hearing them, I definitely dig it. Just some great post-punk. Mark E. Smith rocks. Great listening to this first record of theirs.
Dynamic, unique, many interesting bits, engaging
I'm familiar with the eccentricities of Mark E Smith via the stories Adam Buxton tells on his podcast. He definitely sounded like a bit of a character and I think that uniqueness shines pretty well through on this. Punk aligned but also a major divergence from anything I've heard before (which on reflection is probably the point of Punk in the first place).
It wasn't the easiest listening but I enjoyed it. I like punk and it was interesting to absorb some of it's origins.
Never listened to the Fall before. This had strong Television meets Sex Pistols vibes, but from the North of England. It was a good listen.
This was pretty good.
Interesting as always
This is a solid post-punk album. It doesn't particularly stand out to me from others in both good and bad ways.
With Live at the Witch Trials, The Fall arrive to a bustling scene not only fully formed (in regards to the brutally antagonistic stance of one Mark E. Smith) but completely contemptuous and skeptical of everything and everyone around them. This album forms the blueprint that would occupy the band's point of view for nearly forty years, embodying the rejection of what's current and the embrace of what's everlasting. They may be Northern white crap that talks back but the only difference between them and us is that they have brains. Favorites: Frightened, Rebellious Jukebox, Industrial Estate, Two Steps Back, Futures and Pasts, Music Scene.
I know this is hot garbage, but the heart wants what the heart wants.
As spot-on a post punk album as you'll find. Intense but properly pissy, full of prickly, bass-forward rhythms and stark, jagged guitars. I appreciate the band's start-stop, punk-inflected approach to pacing, with an effective use of both volume and speed that propels the listener through each song. The songwriting is less coherent than on later albums, but Mark E. Smith's delivery is so compelling, I'm not particularly bothered by it. For a first album this is pretty fantastic. Fave Songs: Frightened, Rebellious Jukebox, Futures and Pasts, Music Scene, Underground Medecin, Industrial Estate
This unrelenting cavalcade of Mancunian barks, carnival keyboards, incisive, elastic guitar work, and pervasive, post-punk percussion isn’t just up my alley; it IS my alley.
I think I need to listen to more stuff by the Fall.
I enjoyed this a lot. Great to hear Mark E Smith young and spritely and less gravely. I felt it was all pretty tight. Was sad one song wasn't actually about Donkeys not getting Christmas (John Quays etc). A punchy lil album this
Wow. This took me to places I never anticipated. I thought I vaguely knew The Fall, but playing Live At The Witch Trials I realized quickly that this band was not who I thought they were. This is like punk avant garde. After the first bunch of tracks, I realized that IDLES must be inspired by this shit. Two Steps Back was the turning point for me from interested to engaged. But I still can't completely describe the experience... it just sinks in. I'm not curious to hear more from this band. I wouldn't say I love this album, but I have definitely enjoyed the time together and would be agreeable to doing it again sometime 😘
I've listened to some of The Fall's music but not enough. This album is really great. I love the off kilter guitars and organs, and Mark E Smith's rambling, interesting vocals are so good. You can hear their influence in so much of the post-punk I listen to.
Excellent opening track. It had such a good beat. Easy to follow along considering it was my first time hearing it. "I feel trapped by a mutual affection". The lyrics are so surreal and sound like you're on a trip. It's got a real underground punk sound. I'm really into it. The contrast of punk instrumentals to electronic sounds blends well. The sound makes me think of paranoia. It's very hectic and busy. No room to breath, it's just a constant flow of bonkers. It's a very eclectic album. I loved the intro to 'Mother-Sister!' I feel like the singer is on drugs. I think a better word is psychosomatic. I believe the electronic sounds might be a keyboard. Overall, I really loved this album and it was right down my alley. I will definitely listen to it again and add most of it to my playlist.
punky goodness! or, well, post-punky goodness.
fun.primus punk. or more accurately primus is 90s this i guess. very unnerving mixes of tonality between bass and guitar. Big up these guys
Man, I enjoyed the hell out of that. It's about as punk as it gets so, if that's not your bag, it's gonna be a heavy listen. But it IS my bag and I loved every moment of it. It's clever, it's defiant, it's fun. It's everything I want out of my punk albums PLUS sharp social commentary. I got nothing but good feels for this one. It's a real shame they didn't keep this vibe and, instead, went down the post-punk electronica route on later albums.
The Fall je jebena grupa, underrated definitivno. Tko voli taj stari hladni britanski zvuk post punka? Ovo je za vas.
Rating:7/10 Best songs: Rebellious jukebox, No xmas for John Quays
If you like punk rock you will like this album and it is as simple as that. As someone who enjoys it I like this album. I don't love it but I do like it. I really don't know how to describe how I feel about this album. It definitely is good but it also isn't like that enjoyable of an album to listen to. It is sort of like "Bone Machine" by Tom Waits in that way. It is a great work of art but not one that I won't come back to super often. Sort of like a great body horror movie like The Big Shave. It is a great piece of art but it is hard to watch. That being said I care a lot about how enjoyable a listen an album is and I can't say I enjoyed this album to the level of a lot of the other ones I have listened to. Solid 8/10 because I don't think it has that much replay-ability for me.
Excellent record, I was entirely grabbed by the repetitive rhythms, only to lose some attention in the second half.
Why aren't we burning witches anymore?
This album is like a progression from a cool buzz to shitfaced. This is really good, raw stuff from the 70's and tracked really well until the album fell off a cliff after the fourth track and devolved into nonsensical blabbering drivel by the end. I left this really disappointed because it started so strong.
Based on the title I was thinking "man The Fall are way tighter live than I thought" but the name is misleading as this is their debut studio album. None of the hits I know of are on this album, but overall it's a strong debut of what The Fall are all about: doing their own thing, saying what they wanna say, and doing it on their own terms.
Despite listening to a lot of post-punk, I haven't listened to a large amount of punk music, but this is good! "Frightened" is really good, reminding me a little bit of, like, The Cure or Bauhaus, and some Christian Death (to a degree). The other songs are not quite as good, but still fun, and I do like "Rebellious Jukebox." "Repetition" also came up at a weird point since I was trying to write about performance studies theories of repetition. Overall, good punk album, so worth a listen every once in a while, but something I'd actively seek out, not listen to as casually. (4/5)
This is noisy and falling apart. That's a compliment. This is good.
The title of this STUDIO album is either brilliant or idiotic. I can't quite figure it out. But the music itself is exceptionally fierce and thoroughly enjoyable. A post-punk album recorded in a single day sounds like an awful idea, but it's clear that all members must have practiced an insane amount prior to the recording session. Especially the playful drumming of Karl Burns stands out on this frantic, yet quite streamlined collection of tracks. While there are less enjoyable moments ('Industrial Estate'), the highs definitely outweigh the lows: the awesome changes in tempo on 'Mother - Sister!', the perfect opener 'Frightened' and the almost prototype mathrock on 'Rebellious Jukebox'.
It’s as if whenever Mark E. Smith opens his mouth he is possessed by post-punk itself - also amphetamine - but mainly post-punk. The album opens perfectly with the hauntingly great “Frightened” that really helps set the tone for the entire record. Throughout I was mesmerized by Karl Burns’ erratic drumming. It really encapsulates almost everything I want in a punk drummer. Nothing short of phenomenal. There are a few misses along the way, but not once did I lose interest. What a stroke of luck that Mark E. Smith fell ill during the first days of recording. Being limited to only one day of recording must’ve been the main factor in the frantic vibe on this. And for that I’m glad.
Gott post-pönk. Stendur alveg fyrir sínu, enn þann dag í dag.
I don't mind this at all.
I enjoyed this much more than previous Fall albums I checked out, it actually made me laugh a bit. Loved Rebellious Jukebox and the "SIX MINUTES" in Music Scene was funny.
This was my introduction to The Fall and I’m a fan. This is an excellent post punk album, I carried on listening to the extended version and live tracks as well. I liked the classic punk snarl delivery and sharp guitars. Didn’t find any of the tracks to be filler really, standouts for me were Rebellious Jukebox, Two Steps Back and Music Scene. Great stuff 4 stars
I'd never listened to this album before, but have liked everythibthing I heard from The Fall in the past. I thought this was great, interesting lyrics and a lot of interesting things going on musically. More complex than I was expecting for a punk band, I can see why they're considered so influential.
The Fall is my favorite kind of Post-Punk. The kind that is still pretty damn punk.
"Live at the Witch Trials" is the debut studio album by English punk/post-punk band The Fall. This album was recorded in a single day and mixed by Bob Sargeant. Impressive. At the time the album was released, only vocalist/guitarist Mark E. Smith remained from the original band formed in 1976. This is a unique and eerie sounding album. Both qualities I like in an album. Eerie guitars open "Frightened." An interesting, slower beat. He's in a trance from doing drugs. The drug-theme continues in "Crap Rap 2/Like To Blow." We're pretty much in punk territory here with the pace. Great bass. Scratching guitars. Smith screaming "I Like to Blow." The band gets more of a groove going in "Rebellious Jukebox." Great guitar chorus. A song very much of its late 70's/early 80's time. Smiths' stance against prevailing trends. They're back to drugs in "No Xmas for John Quays." And back to more straight-forward punk. A dark song. Hüsker Dü was listening. There is no Xmas for junkies. A high-pitched guitar starts "Industrial Estate." A punk beat. Smith commenting on the pollution from industry. I dug Smith's I-dont-give-a-fuck tone. He uses that quite a bit. "Futures and Pasts" is more pop-punk. A guitar sounding like a keyboard carries the melody. Smith offers a depressing view of both the past and future. Oh, how punk. And they continue the "Oh-how-punk" attitude on the album closer "Music Scene." Heavy bass and drums. Guitar sounding quite a bit like early P.I.L. A tirade against the music industry. They purposely made it 8-minutes long as a statement and to piss people off. They should have made it 25 minutes. I liked this album quite a bit. I've liked most things I've heard from The Fall. Bits sound like other bands but The Fall is very unique. I know there's a few more Fall albums upcoming and I'm waiting.
Look mate, I am always biased when it comes down to The Fall. This album rocks. Love how young Mark E Smith handled the mojo in this record. You can hear many bands drinking from this nectar in the decades to come. Hit the north!
Punky, in the dad kind of way. Clearly inspired the likes of I, Ludicrous and Sultans of Ping. Enjoyable.
If this record was a person it'd be Johnny from NAKED. So a pretty good portrait of Mark E. Smith, then.
Another album from The Fall and another album that took a few listens to 'get'. Superb album
This is why this list is so great. It introduced me to albums like this. Love it.
Sure
Punk como melódico. Está bien. Un 4.
Liked the album and it's fun to hear where all the post-punk bands I regularly listen to come from. 4/5
Angry, almost toxic album that screams '1979'. They finished it in a day, took me a little longer.
I like the Fall and this is a good one. My biggest issue with this album and the Fall in general is more isn't better. There output is impressive but there songs are highly repetitive. Still good stuff.
Post punk band that I didn’t really like when I first heard them back in the 80’s but have grown to really like (not all, but enough). Good example of their better stuff.
“An album of staggeringly rich, mature music, inner questioning hand in hand with rock and roll at its fiercest, its finest, its most honest, rock and roll at its naked, most stimulating prime.”
A very cool album. O e that I missed back in the day but I'm happy to discover it at this late date. It does get a little avant garde here and there but it ne er loses its pop song way. 3.75 🌟
It's a solid album. I honestly don't have too many thoughts other than I thought it was very good but not quite great.
Pretty great! 2nd listen. Standouts: Frightened, Rebellious Jukebox, more…
I am actually starting to love the Fall, just a little bit
Pretty solid post-punk
Enjoyed this one. Punk rock vibes. Great lyrics. Love bass and drum parts.
I'm only somewhat familiar with The Fall. I've heard This Nation's Saving Grace a long time ago, but I already forgot what it sounded like. I know, that sounds crazy, but it didn't click with me at the time. This album, however, clicked almost instantly. I'm excited to return to this one. I like the punk-ish sound it has. There were some areas that lost me, but for the most part it's good!
Sounds like an album I should have already listened to. Very enjoyable
Really enjoyed this one, especially from a band I hadn't heard before. Will get more play time from me, for sure!
This the shit im looking for. Cool stuff ive never heard of.
It's incongruous that I don't really know the music of the Fall. Late 70s early 80s alternative music is MY era, so why did the Fall escape my grasp? Anyhow my first listen to this album and I very much enjoyed it. It's got some dissonance that reminds me of PiL. Definitely has an avant-garde feel which might explain why it escaped my radar. But even using these descriptors it still had some accessibility. 3.75 🌟
Incredible album. Mark E. Smith has an very unique voice. Top 3 Fall album. 8/10
Wreszcie powrot na lono wyspiarskie, gdzie tym razem wylosowalo post punkowa perelke, bo live at the witch trials to jeden z tych albumow, ktory raczej nie podejdzie szerokiemu gronu sluchaczy, ale tych ktorych zauroczyl zmieni w the fallowych fiendow, laknacych wiecej tego typu materialu, co stanowi o jego unikatowosci tego krazka, zaczynajac od tytulu, live at the witch trials, pasowaloby do zapisu jakiegos wystepu, ale jest to debiutancki numer grupy, a nazwa moze nawiazywac do tego, ze calosc zostala nagrana podczas jednodniowej sesji, co do samych livowych albumow, to w dyskografii zespolu jest ich 55 co z 31 albumami studyjnymi tworzy naprawde gigantyczna kolekcje, co jest w tym wszystkim najciekawsze jest to jak wygladal sklad grupy w przeciagu tych prawie 40 lat, jedynie wokalista i osoba odpowiedzialna za teksty byla czlonkiem ktory pozostal z orginalnej ekipy i zakonczyl swoj zywot jako ojciec zalozyciel bandy, dajac wystepy z wozka inwalidzkiego, po smierci Marka Smitha banda zakonczyla dzialanosc w 2k18, wiec juz to daje wskazowke gdzie bedzie lezec jedna z glowych sil zespolu, kontencie lirycznym, 38 minut materialu nagrania ma w sobie tyle pomyslow, ktorych ciezko szukac na calej dyskografii niektorych zespolow, tak patrze na ciebie U2 i radjohedzie, glownym poruszanym tematem sa narkotyki, z dosc wyraznym protestem przeciwko szuakniu wolnosci w niewoli substancji, co najlepiej slychac na trakach frightened, no xmas for john quays, jedna z lepszych gier slownych jakie widzialem w tytulach piosenek, ale nie jest plyta wylacznie o drugach, bo kawalki takie jak rebellious jukebox ladnie podsumowuje brytyjska scene muzyczna, porownojac ja do grajacej szafy, jest to jeden z najbardziej catchowych songow calej plyty, zwlaszcza fragment refrenowy i wykorzystane tam klawisze, ale co do powtorzen, to jest nawet caly kawalek na ten temat repetition, song stworzony zeby byl jak najbardziej monotonym songiem plyty, akurat nie pojawia sie na orginalnym wydaniu, ale spotifaj mial ultra giga deluxe z ponad dwoma godzinami materialu i prawdziwymi livowymi nagraniami, niestety wiekszosc w dosc garazowej jakosci, repetition moglby byc nihilistycznym hymnem stwierdzajacym nijakosc wszystkiego wokol, jak na post punka to nie moglo zabraknac takze tematow zwiazanych z nierownosciami spolecznymi, zwlaszcza jesli chodzi o los klasy pracowniczej jak na kawalku industrial estate, wiec jest czego sluchac, a przygrywa temu dosc klasyczny sklad, bo gitarka, basior, drumy i klawisze, ktore najbardziej sie wybijaja na tle innych instrumentali i czuc ich obecnosc, pewnie dlatego tez pan Pawlett ktory na nich gra pojawia sie jeszcze na kilku materialach bandy, ale jak na material nagrywany podczas jednej sesji to nie ma sie za bardzo czego przyczepiac do reszty ekipy, produkcja odwalila takze kawal dobrej roboty, majac porownanie sluchajac prawdziwych livowych wersji, instrumenty sa wyraznie zaznaczone na kanalach, a jednoczesnie czuc buntowniczy charakter i lajwowosc nagrania na orginalnym wydaniu, plyta z pewnoscia przekonala mnie do zapoznania sie z reszta tworcznosci the falla i sama persona jej zalozyciela i osobe wokol ktorej sie zespol obracal Marka Smitha, co do kawalkow ktore leca na plejke, to beda to otwierajacy frightened, swiateczny songers i powtorzeniowy majstersztyk
Thought I was listening to the artic monkeys. Cool.
Das hat doch Hand und Fuß - 4
The roots of punk!
Punk Fuckin Rock!
I guess this is punk without the aggressive/fast music. Also, the riff on the last track sounded like Republica's "Ready to Go"
Had forgotten how good it is.
actually quite liked this, do like a manchester band to be fair
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.
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.
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
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 experimental
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.
It was fine
I'd rather listen to Wire
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
два панка подряд! не оценила такой стрик
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
Sounds like inspo for Idles. But not my favorite style singing.
Rv
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 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.
Fav song: Frightened
pretty nice
This was an ok listen and I actually enjoyed it at moments
Aaaa
Что такое осень?
Not the worst punk you would hear in a day.
Vroege punk invloeden wel heeeeel hoorbaar, net iets te vroeg voor mijn smaak
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.
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
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.
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
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
A decent album. Nothing spectacular, but wasn't bad either. Drumming was good. 2.5/5 Might listen again
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