The
Fall play:
Bristol Fleece & Firkin on 14 December. Tickets GBP 8, available through the NME Ticketline (0870 1212 500 - unspecified markup)
London Astoria on 16 December. Tickets GBP 10.50 available from box office 0171 434 9403/4, Stargreen 0171 734 8932 ( + unspecified large markup), Ticketmaster 0171 344 4444 (+ 4 quid markup), Rough Trade, Rhythm (Camden). NME ticketline (see above); Melody Maker ticketline (0870 1212 600)
Manchester Ritz on 29 December. Tickets GBP 10 plus Booking from Piccadilly 832 1111 Virgin, HMV or Ticketmaster.
============
Subject: <fallnet> Melody Maker 21 Nov 1998, p9
COURT IN THE ACT
Wu-Tang Rapper and Fall singer's criminal behaviour
blah blah
The Fall's Mark E Smith called the Maker last week to talk about his appearance in Manhattan Criminal Court on November 4 to face assoult and harassment charges. blah blah Judge Suzanne Mondo adjourned the case for jury trial, which will begin on January 12. blah blah
Smith told The Maker "It's fine, it's fine. The judge said 'Why do we just keeping dragging (sic) this man from England...They've accepted that I work and live in Britain and it's a different thing over there."
"They want letters off doctors and my relations and everything to say I'm a nice fella. So after January 12, everything should be all right."
When asked what he thought the outcome would be, Smith replied: "Nothing happened. It's like a pub fight breaking out and the police arrive and arrest the fella who's sat in the corner quietly. But I'm not gonna run away from it or anything, cos I haven't done anything."
"I had to go over to America last week and sit in a hotel room for three days and they were all like, 'Good, you turned up.' "Of course I turned up! I'm not daft y'know. I'll face the music, whatever that is."
Meanwhile, The Fall are hoping to play some shows in America in the New Year, after Smith pulled out of a tour thatt had been planned for late October and November. Smith commented: "We've had more publicity from this in America and of course people are gonna insinuate that that's why we did it. But it's a pain in the fucking arse to be honest, it's cost me a lot of money."
Smith is to appear on Channel 5's "The People vs Jerry Sadowitz" on January 8 - where he'll be seen walking out of the show. blah blah The Fall have dates next month at he Bristol Fleece & Firkin (Dec 14) and London Astoria 2 (sic) (Dec 16). Tickets are 10.50 for the London show and 8 in Bristol. Tickets for the London show are available through The Maker ticketline (0870 12 12 600).
They're currently working on a new album, likely to surface in February, and a new single "Touch Sensitive" will be released in mid-January on Artful records. Smith said of the song "We were looking for something a bit more savage. I've been using rhythm machines, but using them properly and distoring things. I still want that basic rockabilly thing that I think we've been losing in the past year or two."
===
Subject: <fallnet> NME, 21 Oct 1998, p6
RETURN OF THE MARK
(pic: presenting the all-new Mr Smoothie, Mark E Smith)
THE FALL are back with a new line-up, single, album and live dates after one of the most turbulent years in their 20-year history.
MARK E SMITH telephoned NME to give full details of his groups forthcoming activities and to explain the recent developments of his ongoing court case in New York. As reported in NME last week, Smith appeared at Manhattan Criminal Court on November 4 on assault charges, but the hearing was adjourned until January 6. It was the second time the case was adjourned.
He was arrested in April after allegedly kicking, punching and choking Julia Nagle, his girlfriend and The Fall's keyboardist, at a New York hotel during a US mini-tour. He was released on $1,000 bail and ordered to undergo counselling on his return to the UK. Smith said: "They (court officials) just said, 'Why do you keep dragging this man from Britain?' Then they all started talking to themselves and asked me to go again. I'm not running away. I'll just keep going and bore 'em to death and they'll drop the charges. It's lucky, I could've got 15 days."
Smith said that The Fall's new line-up featured both himself and Julia Nagle, with Tom Head on drums and Karen Latham on bass. Former drummer Karl Burns, guitarist Tommy Crooks and bassist Steve Hanley left during the US tour in April. Head, Smith explained, was from the 'country and western circuit', while Latham was a stalwart of the Manchester alternative music scene.
They will all appear onstage at the band's forthcoming dates at the Bristol Fleece & Firkin (December 14) and at London WC2 Astoria (December 16). A new single will be released in January on Artful/BMG - either 'Touch Sensitive' or 'Fold In Money'. Smith said he was thinking of calling the forthcoming Fall album 'The New' to reflect the band's fresh start.
"It's all a bit clearer, you can hear my lyrics, stuff like that. Very smooth. I'm really pleased - after what's gone on this year, it's like coming out of a tunnel."
Eleven tracks have been written so far, of which five have been recorded. It should be released in February.
As for his new colleagues, Smith said "They're just getting used to being in The Fall now. It's been a bit of a shock for them"
Blah blah about Sadowitz
For tickets for either Fall gig, call the NME 24-hour ticketline on 0870 1212 500
===
We started to put together a list of Fall-related films: those that appeared in lyrics, used as intros, ets...
Silence of the Lambs
Zulu
Ivanhoe
New Face in Hell, aka P.J.
Glow Boys
Ace in the Hole
Jurassic Park
Fifth Element
The Stepford Wives
2001 ("also sprach Zarathustra")
Citizen Kane
Last Exit to Brooklyn
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls
The Shining
The Littlest Rebel
History of the World, Part 1
maybe High Anxiety, Macbeth (Polanski version) as mentionments
===
Fall drummer Tom Murphy successfully dealt with Coronation Street's Des Barnes last week, pic to follow.
Toby:
I must say I quite like the idea of Fall members killing soap stars. I reckon
Julia could do a job on Mick from Brookside - in an argument over an extra
topping on her pizza that gets out of hand.
===
John Peel's collating another Festive 50 this year, and accepting votes by email:
john.peel@bbc.co.uk
===
Peter Reavy:
Subject: <fallnet> Dada lunchtime
Earlier today I made my way to the darkened gymasium under a local arts centre to attend a so-called Dada lunchtime. On arriving I found one of the performers trying to enlist a person queueing in the corridor to operate the box office. I discovered that it would cost 5 pounds to get in and realised I only had 4 pound and forty pence. I was also insulted for arrving late. However because the box office operator was actually an audience member I was able to get in. It was a large, cold, dark room with a few tables and chairs and candles. Some opera was playing. A light on a stage went on; a slightly tubby man wearing leopardskin swimming trunks rolled up to become a G string was pointing a bow and arrow at the audience, and moving around as seductively as possible. Eventually he went off and a few black suited gentlemen came out with music stands to read out a couple of simultaneous poems. One occasionally thumped a drum he had. They had notable glasses and one had a stuck on beard. The lights went off again; hardly anyone applauded. When the lights reappeared, a man in a chair facing away from us read out a manifesto in French. More sound poems followed this, to scant applause. A curtain at the back was pushed out of the way to reveal a rock drum kit. The semi-naked man banged this while a clothed man did a slow, formal dance in front. They left the stage to little applause, then reappeared a couple of times, bowing a bit. The couple beside me kept talking or else reading a sheet of paper to understand what was happening. Then the men reappeared to do a black face act, involving them eating bananas (which they opened by holding the tops and flicking them forward) and talking about drinking Tango. One of them spanked the half-naked man. Out went the lights again, and the most smartly dressed performer reappeared with a music stand. He read out a fax in Italian, from an Italian futurist clown troupe, which seemed to be about how they would not be appearing because one of their fathers was in hospital. Then it was announced he would read Kurt Schwitters' Ur-Sonata. This turned out to be a very long sound poem, during which four or five people, including the couple beside me, got up and left. After about ten minutes I could hear someone behind me barking like a dog. Eventually I turned round; there were two security guards under a black sheet, who were taking women under the sheet and hitting them with inflatable Union Jack hammers. After a bit, the guards threw off the sheet, and started insulting the audience and telling them to get out. I went to get a sandwich.
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Recent news....
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981116 nothing special
981109 Peel session reactions
981102 Melody Maker singles review, Action Records
details
981026 St Bernadette's Hall reviews, Astoria ticket
details, Nottingham 92 album
981019 various
981009 NME interview, TBLY #13
981005 F-olding Money lyrics, couple of PNM reviews,
Simon Rodgers' career
980927 Live Various Years details/review, 1994
interview
980920 more snippets
980914 bits & pieces
980907 NME interview, Post Nearly Man reviews,
Mojo's How to Buy The Fall, Something Beginning With O
980831 Inertia tour details
980825 various snippets
980817 Observer interview, Manchester and LA2 gig
reports
980811 Melody Maker interview, Live Various Years
details, previews. Rick.
980802 Spoken word LP press release, Northern Attitude
key & sleevenotes, Edwyn Collins, TBLY #12 details
Old stuff: Nov 1997 - July 1998
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