The Fall Cup: Stage 1, Groups 25-26

            

Group 25

New Face In Hell, Middle Class Revolt, I’m Frank, Extricate, Pay Your Rates, Sleep Debt Snatches, Arid Al’s Dream, You’re Not Up To Much, Wolf Kidult Man, No Bulbs, Craigness, Tempo House, Proteinprotection, The N.W.R.A., Stepping Out

Group 25 was deemed to be a particularly tough one by all of the panel. From my point of view, this was possibly the first set where I would happily have given points to all of them.

The Fallen

Apart from bzfgt criticising the 'incredibly banal' lyrics, nobody really disliked 'Stepping Out', and it would undoubtedly have done better in a less strong group. Richard commented that it 'must have been powerful at those very early gigs, but it's an example of nascent promise, rather than fully fledged glory'. Eric agreed: 'it's as much about the promise it portends than it is about what it actually is itself'.

Lewis is known to be a fan of title-track-that-never-was 'Extricate', but even he could only find a single point for it. 'This is so hard', he complained. The group's supposed tribute to Zappa, 'I'm Frank' also managed only a solitary point, even though Richard considered it 'jaunty, priapic, and rather good'. (He went on to say that it 'lost a point for sounding cock all like Frank Zappa, which was enough for an early bath in this group'.)

Lewis had some praise for 'Pay Your Rates' ('f*cking ace') but thought it let down by 'the overlong and slightly overwrought middle section'. Conversely, Eric enjoyed the 'interesting interlude' but thought that overall it was 'just not quite good enough to compete with the others'. Lewis gave 'Middle Class Revolt' a few points for the 'magnificent double drumming, also Brix's "Simon Dave and John" live versions'. I would agree that live recordings of the song are generally superior to the rather flat studio version; Richard was less forgiving though: 'A socio-economic trend report wandering in a digital miasma, albeit one with a slightly annoying keyboard line.'

'Sleep Debt Snatches' attracted moderate support from most quarters, although not from Lewis: 'A whimsical bit of rockabilly descends into an overlong industrial dirge'. bzfgt thought that he might be 'going out on a limb' by awarding 'Arid Al's Dream' ten points, and so it proved, although I certainly would have liked to have given it more. (In YMGTA, I called it 'an overlooked little gem' and expressed puzzlement as to why it was 'thrown out on an obscure 1992 various artists compilation' rather than being included on Shift-Work.)

The uplifting yet melancholy 'You're Not Up To Much' is another that would have received a higher score from me in a less challenging environment. Lewis concurred: 'A lost classic - the best track off MCR carried along with a lovely Hanley bassline'. 

The most controversial non-qualifier, I would imagine, is 'Craigness'. bzfgt found it 'hypnotic' and Lewis described it as a 'beautiful lilting tune', but it fell three points short, largely due to Eric's disdain: 'it just sort of oozes along in a way that doesn't much thrill me'.

The (Are You Are Missing) Winners

The top four are all songs that might be expected to be in the competition for quite a while, although the support was not universally strong for all of them: bzfgt only gave 'Tempo House' a three; Eric awarded the same mark to 'New Face In Hell', once again taking issue with MES' 'shrieks'.

'Proteinprotection' is a huge personal favourite of mine (for reasons I will no doubt expand upon in later rounds) that qualified with comfort despite a zero from Lewis. 'I expect to be chastised for this', he said. Well, consider yourself chastised.

Group 26

Crop Dust, Edinburgh Man, Australians in Europe, My New House, Psycho Mafia, 2×4, It’s a Curse, Jawbone And The Air Rifle, Reformation!, What About Us?, Hilary, Music Scene, Dangerous/So-Called Dangerous, Groundsboy, Janet, Johnny and James

I found this group rather more straightforward than the previous one, although the rest of the panel thought it another toughie. Richard - not for the first time - was the big outlier here, with his first, second and fourth choices all failing to make it through.

The Fallen

Lewis gave 'Hilary' its only point, but even he considered it 'a bit inessential'. He also thought 'Psycho Mafia' to be 'one of the more enjoyable of the punky Fall songs' but like 'Stepping Out' the consensus was, as Eric put it, 'early twitches of approaches yet to come'. There was some affection for 'Groundsboy' (Lewis found it 'a pleasant enough wind-down from the heavier NFE moments') but, endearing as it is, it was never likely to progress in such strong company. Richard: 'Sad to see this one go, it’s an odd and unforced little track painting a micro-vignette'.

In YMGTA, I described 'So-Called Dangerous' as 'an inoffensive indie-dance-rock shuffle that spends four minutes going nowhere very fast' and its five-point total suggests that the panel agreed. I've never understood the high regard that many have for 'Australians In Europe', and apart from Richard, the panel shared this view: Lewis disliked 'the horrible Van Halen riff'; Eric thought it contained 'Mark's stupidest lyric'.

The remaining non-qualifiers are all potentially controversial. For me, 'What About Us?' is a cracking powerhouse of a tune, of which there are some wonderfully lengthy live recordings (Lewis referenced this one from Øyafestivalen, but I think that this mammoth version is even better). Eric and Richard, however, were unmoved, the former describing it as 'sort of punchless and dreary'. Although bzfgt described 'Edinburgh Man' as 'a new Waterloo Sunset', Lewis was not alone in finding it 'schmaltzy'. 

I think there's a lot to love about the taut, focused 'It's A Curse' (not least the line 'I do not like your tone, it has ephemeral whinging aspects') and Richard clearly agreed. Lewis, however, commented that 'MES is better at being angry than he is at self-pity'. I quite like the cartoonish punkabilly of '2x4', but can't argue with Richard's comment: 'Merely one of the crowd from the Beggars era. It’s a nice crowd to be part of, mind.'

The (Are You Are Missing) Winners

Given the Fall community's generally low opinion of Are You Are Missing Winner, it's interesting to see 'Crop Dust' winning this round relatively easily. The next four places are taken by predictable big-hitters, although it's notable how divisive 'Music Scene' was. I was pleased to see the delightful 'Janet, Johnny and James' make it through so comfortably.

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