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Average: 4.5 (99 ratings)
- Date Released: May 15, 2003
- Genre: Alternative/Punk
- Style: Post-Punk
- Label: Beggars Banquet
Often considered the Fall’s finest album.
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We Say...
Although, Mark E. Smith has habitually been romantically involved with female Fall-ites, he has always claimed that Craig Scanlon and Kay Hanley pushed him into bringing Brix Smith into the band for The Wonderful And Frightening World Of… Ballsy and talented, she quickly “took the band by the scruff of the neck” (Smith’s words) and, in only a year, the whole dynamic of the group changed, especially with the arrival of Simon Rogers, the Fall’s first classically trained musician, on keyboards. Cue a James Brown-style self-aggrandizing album title, for a record which is considered — rightly (probably) — to be the band’s finest. It has all its predecessor’s widescreen production (Leckie again), but a real sense of carrying over the old experimental edge in a pop framework ("Spoilt Victorian Child," "LA"). In a nod to his roots, Smith gave props to Can’s singer ("I Am Damo Suzuki"), while on "My New House," he squawked jovially about his move up the real-estate ladder — “According to the postman, it’s like the bleeding bank of England!”
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They Say...
"Feel the wrath of my Bombast!" exhorts Smith on this follow-up to their groundbreaking Wonderful and Frightening World of... the Fall, and this collection is ample proof of the pure confidence the group had at this time. Stompers like "Barmy," "What You Need," and the mighty "Gut of the Quantifier" are all led by Brix Smith's twanging lead hooks, filled by distorted guitars and bludgeoning drums, on top of which Smith rants with conviction. But it's the departures from this sound that mark the real interest here: The synth-driven "L.A." looks ahead to the Fall's experiments with electronica; "Paint Work" is an impressionist piece interrupted by Smith accidentally erasing over some of the track at home; and "I Am Damo Suzuki," a tribute to Can's lead singer, which borrows its arrangement from several of that group's songs. The Fall sound mysterious, down-to-earth, and hilarious all at the same time. The CD reissue adds the singles "Cruiser's Creek" and "Couldn't Get Ahead" as well as their B-sides making this an essential purchase.
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You Say...
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| 01. |  |
Mansion |
1:21 |  |
| 02. | |
Bombast |
3:08 | |
| 03. | |
Barmy |
5:20 | |
| 04. | |
What You Need |
4:49 | |
| 05. | |
Spoilt Victorian Child |
4:13 | |
| 06. | |
L.A. |
4:10 | |
| 07. | |
Vixen |
4:01 | |
| 08. | |
Couldn't Get Ahead |
2:36 | |
| 09. | |
Gut of the Quantifier |
5:15 | |
| 10. | |
My New House |
5:16 | |
| 11. | |
Paint Work |
6:38 | |
| 12. | |
I Am Damo Suzuki |
5:41 | |
| 13. | |
To NK Roachment: Yarbles |
1:22 | |
| 14. | |
Petty Thief Lout |
5:20 | |
| 15. | |
Rollin' Danny |
2:23 | |
| 16. | |
Cruisers Creek |
4:15 | |
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16 Total Tracks, 65:48 Total Length
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Credits
- The Fall - Main Performer // Brix Smith - Guitar // Brix Smith - Vocals // Karl Burns - Drums // Joe Gillingham - Engineer // Steve Hanley - Guitar (Bass) // John Leckie - Producer // John Leckie - Engineer // Simon Rogers - Guitar (Acoustic) // Simon Rogers - Guitar (Bass) // Simon Rogers - Keyboards // Craig Scanlon - Guitar (Rhythm) // Mark E. Smith - Guitar // Mark E. Smith - Violin // Mark E. Smith - Vocals // Ian Gillespie - Mastering // Carole Segal - Photography // Claus Castenskiold - Illustrations // Michael Pollard - Illustrations
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