Album: Hex Enduction Hour
Artist: The Fall
Genre: Post-punk
Suggested by: Josef K
Familiarity: I've heard the whole thing before, but I've probably forgotten all of it.
1. The Classical - Reminds me of Public Image Ltd already. It's like Public Image Ltd but without Wobble (with a different bassist). The way the lyrics are belted out sort of reminds me of Bob Dylan. It's basically just the same riff over and over. It's definitely bland, but it somehow doesn't come off as tired. Alright, cool.
2. Jawbone and the Air-Rifle - A bit faster at the start, but it slows down in the middle. In the section, it gets a bit darker. I love the diversity. Honestly, Smith isn't that bad of a singer for the early 80s. The whole thing is very intriguing actually. Yeah, I can totally vibe to this.
3. Hip Priest - I remember the intro from the first time I heard it. Overall much mellower than the last tracks. Guitar playing harmonics, bass seemingly just improvising. The drumming is awesome; it's very light and jazzy. The song plays with silence well. I really like it. Oh, suddenly it picks up. Very nice. From what I can hear, the lyrics seem to be really good too. It's like a semblance of a song, rather than an actual song. It's like, you can't get into it, but you can still appreciate it. Weird, but awesome.
4. Fortress/Deer Park - This one's a bit jangly at the start. The bit at 18:30 sounds like early Pink Floyd, except with Mark Smith singing, and everything being a bit heavier.
5. Mere Pseud Mag. Ed. - Heavier than the last one. Very dissonant this time. It's getting a bit boring. Meh.
6. Winter (Hostel-Maxi) - Oh wow. This one is really fun. The keys are really cool and happy. Everything is happy. This song is very fun. Fun.
7. Winter 2 - More fun here. So fun. Fun. Fun. Fun.
8. Just Step S'ways - Just drums and vocals at the start. The guitars and bass come in, and they're actually really good. The lyrics are fully understandable and pretty good. Repetitive like the previous songs, but also pretty short, so it's not bad at all.
9. Who Makes the Nazis? - A bit avant-garde or industrial this time. The dissonance is back, and it's an interesting effect. Guitars loop their way through the same riffs, and a groaning noise shows up as well. It's easy to tap your feet along with the drum beat. The phrase "Who Makes the Nazis?" is repeated throughout, which would get boring over a long time. Fortunately, it's only 5 minutes long, so no complaints here.
10. Iceland - A bit of mellow bass leads the song in, and some tape effects also play in the background. Soon after, Smith's strange lyrics come in again. Okay. Once the tape effects go away, the precussion really takes over. Like the rest of the album, most of the instruments are just repeating a couple of notes, with one or two getting a bit more complicated. Smith weaves in and out of the song this time. The piano bits in between verses are really nice. Long build up, and no pay off, but it's fine.
11. And This Day - This song is heavier than the last, and a bit more krautrock inspired. There's a psychotic key part in the back, and the drums are hectic. It goes on for almost ten minutes like this, but increases the tension throughout, right up to the distorted ending.
It's a very lyrics-driven album. Most of the songwriting is pretty uninspired, or seemingly improvised on the spot. The musicianship is average, and Smith's vocals are practically spoken. But there's something particularly strange about this album. Something about the combination of repetitive lines and the vocals peppered in and out make it a really easy album to just vibe along with. If you're willing to sit and listen to the same riff for several minutes, then you can easily get into this album.
OVERALL RATING: 7/10