The Fall: Slates

The Fall: Slates

1981

Rough Trade Records

Format I Own it on: Vinyl

Track Listing: 1. Middle Mass  2. An Older Lover Etc.  3. Prole Art Threat  4. Fit and Working Again  5. Slates, Slags, Etc  6. Leave the Capitol


A 6-song 10-inch EP (that cost me a little more than I should have paid, but I couldn't resist that glorious cover) but don't let its brevity fool you. This thing is jam-packed with prime Fall. And although there's no big stand-out capital C classic you can really point to, it's one of their best and most interesting releases, because it acts as an exploded view of the Fall....

You get to view all the band's different aspects, from shambling rockabilly corkers ("Fit and Working Again), to bass driven drone rock ("Middle Mass") to spare ominous dirges ("An Older Lover").  The highlight might actually be "Leave the Capital" which is a sneak preview of the upcoming pop-Fall era. The song/play experiment, "Prole Art Threat" is also surprisingly great for it's eccentric structure. 

I really don't have a ton to say about this. It's a fun miniature. Like a well-shaken snowglobe filled with soot. It's the classic line-up (only Brix is the final, missing ingredient at this point), with Marc Riley and Craig Scanlon scratching up a storm on their guitars, the Hanleys tearing shit up on the rhythm section and of course Mark E Smith honking it up over all the madness. A super distinctive sound running at peak efficiency...

Here's " Leave the Capitol" by The Fall...Enjoy...