The Fall Cup: Last 64, Ties 21-24
Tie 21: Dr. Bucks’ Letter v Alton Towers
Steve: I'm heartbroken to reject the deliciously woozy and jazzy Alton Towers, a criminally underrated track in my estimation. But DBL is one of my favourite ever Fall songs - for reasons that I'm confident I'll be able to elaborate on in future ties.
Eric: Oh, arggghh, I hate to see this pairing here, the only time in the Round of 64 where two songs that I identified among my Top Ten Fall songs in my "Favorite Songs by Favorite Artists" series are going head-to-head against each other. Both of the songs are deeply, sonically weird, both of them feature imminently quotable Mark lyrics with "Bucks" including one of the most spectacular bits of magpie behavior in the canon, both ably highlight their era's keyboardists making unique sounds on distinctive songs. But the choice is clear in the end game, as "Bucks" swirling, swishing, broken-washing machine gurgle trumps the fractured jazz of "Alton." Alas.
bzfgt: Alton Towers, on an album I don’t really understand, has massively grown on me over the years. Dr. Bucks’ Letter is one of the most remarkable pieces of music I know, though.
Richard: A brace of fantastic tracks with a more leisurely pace. "Letter" is the march of a phalanx of martial woodlice, "Towers" is the drunken stumble of a twatted caterpillar. Both deserve to be in the next round, but "Letter" sneaks it, mostly because I'm not cockahoop about the word "mong".
Lewis: A very easy choice for me, I never took to Alton Towers at all and cannot fathom the love for a double bass lead out of tune ramble that, as an opening track is a pretty poor advert. Luckily the rest of IWS was an improvement. Dr Bucks' on the other hand is another Unutterable stand out, a beautifully dirty bass and Ben Pritchard's first guitar riff that was admittedly his last of any subtlety before he went all pub rock. Apart from Mountain Energei and that Aspen cobblers, but you get my drift.
Steve: These choices seem particularly challenging when you're presented with Fall songs from very different eras. The unhinged clatter of Mister Rode is an absolute delight, featuring perhaps the best use of Melling and Garratt as a drumming duo. However, the way that CB captures perfectly the absurdities of 80s British life - over a bed of classic early-80s Fall repetition - just about takes it.
Eric: This one's a much easier choice for me, with the pounding and era-iconic "Rode" easily rumbling over the herky-jerky humor of "I'm Into CB," one of the few early single b-sides that's not actually better than its A-side counterpart. Also "Rode" could have been extended on and on and I'd have been happy with it, whereas I feel like "CB" would have been improved with some parsing and editing, as its conceit and concept don't merit its 6:30 run.
bzfgt: This is difficult. I’m Into C.B.’s lurching groove makes it a top tier classic. Mister Rode is almost raga rock, particularly live. This thing they sometimes do with a repetitive riff is possibly the best thing they do, so Mister Rode.
Richard: Rode exemplifies the sloppily tight paradox of much great Fall playing, but the strangely robotic rhythmic grids that are overlaid to create CB still sounds exciting all these decades later.
Lewis: Just an impossible ask for me, both are easily in my top 10 Fall tracks. I've gone with CB, lyrically amazing and funny, musically perfect discordant. I love the end where the lyrics are repeated from a room several floors up from the recording studio, again typical Fall messing. Mr Rode is astonishing but my reason for voting it out is the (imo) poor live renditions. They all lose the highlight of the song, that manic ending after the 'lemon freshness' bit where all hell is let loose and it builds to it's mad finale. Somehow the live versions just amble along with the basic riff almost to the point of tedium. In fairness I've not heard many live CBs, but I don't recall any disasters.
Steve: Two great songs from the 'classic' era. Not much to choose between the two, but Lie Dream's serrated stomp and vivid painting of the grimness of life in a 'slum canyon' is the pick for me.
Eric: At the risk (again) of excoriation for heresy, I find "Middle Mass" to be of lesser stuff than most of its Slates record-mates, the good-enough opener that sets the stage for the masterpiece numbers that follow it. "Lie Dream" packs loads of energy and aggro into a punchy three-minute package, a memorable dose of bile and some great story-telling anchored in the interesting Northern Soul scene, a clearly superior lyric to the (likely) below-the-belt cheap shots of "Middle Mass." Even as an insult song, a genre at which Mark excelled, this one doesn't stand out for me. So "Lie Dream" it is, even as I recognize that it's another early A-side that's inferior to its own B-side.
bzfgt: Middle Mass is just two repeating riffs, and the second is so incongruous to the first, yet it complements it perfectly. Musically it almost suggests a contradiction of the first section or an alternate perspective, although this is not borne out in the lyrics. Lie Dream is clever and catchy, but MM is otherworldly.
Richard: Possibly the best track from The Fall's best record, and a peak-era single. Both are bursting with quotable lyrics, and musical ideas. Today that oddly lopsided drum part just trumps the seasick organ.
Lewis: Quite straightforward this one. Lie Dream of course being a so called classic, but I think Middle Mass is the one I always enjoy the most of the pair. In fact is Lie Dream a classic? Tbh it's b-side is more of a classic to my ears. So Middle Mass for me please, I think 'quirky' is the best descriptive word for this one, and another Fall song that doesn't quite sound like anything else.
Result: Middle Mass 2 - Lie Dream of a Casino Soul 3
Steve: One of the easier choices for me. Lots to admire in Iceland's meandering improvisation, but it's ultimately a bit unfocused and overstretched. Sparta is wonderfully sharp and crisp, the crackling guitar riff contrasting beautifully with Smith’s confrontational growl.
Eric: An interesting pairing featuring songs from near polar opposites in the spectrum of Fall Fare, with "Sparta" being a high-energy, accessible, singalong-friendly bit of pop/sports culture alternative history, and "Iceland" being not any of that, not by a longshot. But I've got to go with the weirder one here, easily, as it's so much more emblematic of what makes The Fall special for me, a fine example of their epic form, on every front. "Iceland" and "Winter" have always felt like the chilly hearts and souls of Hex Enduction Hour to me, evoking darkness and isolation and desolation, and the magic and magick that ooze from the cracks of such frigid liminal spaces, should you be willing to attune your psychic antennae into their depths.
bzfgt: I love Sparta, but it’s kind of the hit single that you enjoy while pitying those not familiar with the deep cuts. It’s their Touch of Grey. Iceland is the sound of a band as much as a piece of music, and while the lyrics are great it’s more about that.
Richard: The way Iceland swells from its tentative start, as the group gain confidence in their improvisation is beautiful to witness, but sometimes you just want a a serrated pub rock buzz.
Lewis: Iceland is magical, it gives off a real feeling of it's recording location in that cold Icelandic cave, an aura of strangeness and mystery with a touch of angst. Unfortunately it wasn't quite up to scratch for the Final Score theme tune and wouldn't be great at kicking out time down the Dog & Ferret. My first Sparta was the Peel version, and it's still the definitive one for me, but #2 and the demo/live #3 are also worthy contenders. The only annoyance would be the slightly below par TRNFLP mix. Oh and the original COTC one was abysmal. Perhaps I should go with Iceland after all? No, it doesn't have cute Eleni backing vox.
Result: Iceland 2 - Theme from Sparta F.C. 3
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