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The Fall
On Tour3,183,526 plays (144,711 listeners)
Listening now: lincolnalbemarl, toomilk
post-punk, punk, indie, alternative, new wave… see all
Manchester, England (1976 – present)
Famously described by John Peel as being “always different, always the same”, The Fall were formed in Manchester, England in 1976 during the punk era although their style quickly evolved into something more idiosyncratic.
The one permanent fixture amidst the Fall’s ever-changing line-up is Mark E. Smith. Smith’s lyrics are free, unboxed and unpredictable, touching on an extremely wide range of subjects and places and caring little for being tied down to easily digestible messages.
Smith’s singing can put off some people, but others find it a uniquely expressive instrument. Smith is not a conventionally great vocalist, but his keen sense of rhythm, his energy and personality more than make up for this. Perhaps his most distinctive trait is an explosive syllable added after some words, such as in his delivery of a lyric from Free Range: “This is the spring-uh without end-uh” (Smith himself has expressed annoyance with being picked on for his Manchester accent-uh.)
The music changes depending on the line-up at a given time. Always experimental, Mark E. Smith has claimed to invent several musical genres, including house music; “we were doing that years ago” and even the internet. “He told me I didn’t understand, that we were from the bleak industrial wastes of North England, or something, and that we didn’t understand the Internet. I told him Fall fans invented the Internet. They were on there in 1982.” One thing that is for sure is that The Fall (and their fans) have always pushed the boundaries, and never been afraid to experiment.
The one permanent fixture amidst the Fall’s ever-changing line-up is Mark E. Smith. Smith’s lyrics are free, unboxed and unpredictable, touching on an extremely wide range of subjects and places and caring little for being tied down to easily digestible messages.
Smith’s singing can put off some people, but others find it a uniquely expressive instrument. Smith is not a conventionally great vocalist, but his keen sense of rhythm, his energy and personality more than make up for this. Perhaps his most distinctive trait is an explosive syllable added after some words, such as in his delivery of a lyric from Free Range: “This is the spring-uh without end-uh” (Smith himself has expressed annoyance with being picked on for his Manchester accent-uh.)
The music changes depending on the line-up at a given time. Always experimental, Mark E. Smith has claimed to invent several musical genres, including house music; “we were doing that years ago” and even the internet. “He told me I didn’t understand, that we were from the bleak industrial wastes of North England, or something, and that we didn’t understand the Internet. I told him Fall fans invented the Internet. They were on there in 1982.” One thing that is for sure is that The Fall (and their fans) have always pushed the boundaries, and never been afraid to experiment.
Videos
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Top Albums
Shoutbox
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FootToFace wrote:
i can imagine a world where pavement and the fall both kick ass. oh wait... i'm living in it*
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ilovebabygator wrote:
the fall would kick pavement's arse any day of the week.
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AvailableRush wrote:
i can imagine a world where pavement is better than the fall. oh wait... i'm living in it
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dasm88 wrote:
The Fall are neither emo or worse than Pavement.
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withgod wrote:
http://www.lastfm.com.tr/group/music+born+was+Manchester
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nancykitten wrote:
Can you imagine a world where Pavement would be better than the Fall? Nah, me neither.
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sunkenlandscape wrote:
live at the witch trials and dragnet are always on heavy rotation
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_KevMusic_ wrote:
Thanks for the recommendation :) I love my 50,000 fall fans alb - need more! THE MAN WHOSE HEAD EXPANDED-UH!
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hudgie wrote:
Pavement are fine...and they admit they ripped off the Fall.
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Wombfruit wrote:
fall>pavement
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AvailableRush wrote:
pavement>fall
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baucham wrote:
" * Labels * UMC (Universal Music Catalogue) * Universal Music GmbH * Sanctuary * Mercury * Strange Fruit * Rough Trade * Castle * Castle Music * Essential * Castle Music UK " They aren't indie you fucktards
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nicoinfurs wrote:
rum dum dum
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theansweris42x wrote:
The Fall are proto-emo, emo, AND post-emo.
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oohdoiloveyou wrote:
HOW ARE THEY NOT
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bullfroggreen wrote:
How are The Fall emo?
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oohdoiloveyou wrote:
the fall are emo, you're all wrong.
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djawg wrote:
50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong is a good double disc comp of singles, so is A-sides (and is most folks starting point), but This Nation's Saving Grace is a flawless album and easy to get into.
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streetvendors wrote:
What's a good starting album or albums?
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timahall wrote:
Hard to imagine a band that's more indie than the Fall.
Events
- Oct 10 The Fall Lemon Tree, Aberdeen, United Kingdom
- Oct 12 The Fall The Queens Hall, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Oct 31 Bobbie Peru Hackney Empire, London, United Kingdom
Listeners
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lincolnalbemarl
Listening now
to What You Need -
booradleyhr
Listening now
to Hotel Bloedel -
Spindash
Top Listener
-
fractious
Top Listener
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drpat
Top Listener
Recent Activity
- IRONICtypo updated the wiki page for The Fall. (diff) 2 hours ago
- carlospinheiro added The Fall to carlospinheiro’s library. 4 hours ago
- blaurebell tagged The Fall with ‘post-punk’. 7 hours ago
- ophile, ZiaEmily, alfaomaris and 24 other people added The Fall to their libraries. 7 hours ago
- DuFletch tagged The Fall with ‘f’. Saturday afternoon
- Neko_Loliighoul, MaybeNot_, scruffypup and 3 other people added The Fall to their libraries. Saturday afternoon
- Alnightroad tagged The Fall with ‘post-punk’ and ‘new wave’. Saturday morning
- MinduimMateus, real0cool0time, asfaletti and 6 other people added The Fall to their libraries. Friday evening
- wallerofdeath connected The Fall to the group Pretentious Music For Pretentious People. Friday evening
- proleman, nancicumpson, DerDiplomat and 25 other people added The Fall to their libraries. Friday afternoon
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Groups (189)
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552 members
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More Information
- Links
- Band Members
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- Adam Helal
- Adrian Flanagan
- Ben Pritchard
- Brian Fanning
- Brix Smith
- Craig Scanlon
- Dave Bush
- Dave Milner
- David Spurr
- Ed Blaney
- Elenor Smith
- Jim Watts
- Jonnie Brown
- Julia Nagle
- Karen Leatham
- Karl Burns
- Kate Themen
- Kay Carroll
- Keiron Melling
- Kenny Brady
- Marc Riley
- Marcia Schofield
- Mark E. Smith
- Martin Bramah
- Mike Leigh
- Neville Wilding
- Paul Hanley
- Pete Greenway
- Simon Archer
- Simon Rogers
- Simon Wolstencroft
- Spencer Birtwistle
- Steve Hanley
- Steven Trafford
- Tom Head
- Tommy Crooks
- Tony Friel
- Una Baines
- Yvonne Pawlett
- Labels
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