London, Hackney Empire — 1st night, Friday, 31st October 2008

First!


Fantastic new song: Jack The Ripper. JTR. Toby says it's a Screaming Lord Sutch cover. Wings. My favourite: Reformation - including plenty of new lines, read off a big writing pad. Whoa. Dudes. 50YOM, people clapping before the interlude. And Wings. Eleni wearing a beautiful black dress and a pink top. High-heeled boots. Mark in top shape.
Magnificent. 10/10. Plenty of empty seats. Tomorrow? Go go go! (Even JCC has some new jokes for you).

Fuck me that was a barry night out. After a couple of pints and a jar of pickled cockles (with sand) the Empire looked rosy.

Bobby Peru were tight as a rentboy's vest, and very good with it. They sound like they have tunes enough to spare and I would go and see and them again any day of the week, excpet Tuesdays which is choir practice.

John Cooper Clarke was like an entertaining uncle on top anecdotal form, only did a couple of poems but they were new so good on him.

The Fall were mighty - had the stalls dancing in the aisles, MES's onstage mixing was impeccable (I guess he's heard the songs quite a few times, so why not try and see what one or two of them sound without guitar or bass? just synth and drums.) a very friendly crowd and the bar does good beer not just yer usual chemo-piss. Even my pregnant friend who'd never heard them before really enjoyed tonight.


On the tube home, the usual bunch of drunks was interrupted by a woman proclaiming "You know what yeah, I feel like I've been living too long". No crow's feet yet though.

(sorry, merge if neceassary)

This was MES and the band on top form. I am the first to admit that I have of late been critical of their live performances, but tonights gig ranks as one of the all-time greats. Knob twiddling was kept to the bare minimum and MES and the band seemed to gel like never before. It is though MES has found a new lease of life - he looked confident and in control. It would appear that the mediocrity that was "Heads Roll" has been finally laid to rest and the newish material was played with a new found zest and verve. This was truelly a return of form for the band and tonights performance ranks as one of the best in all my 28 years of following the band.

TS!
LKK!
IBD!
Ed Blaney cameo!
Heavy heavy bass!

Bit of a hassle, these 'seated' shows, of course there were people rushing to the front (hi Max!), blocking the view, then others getting up etc. Me bruvva spotted Frank Skinner he did! Great venue.

I'm the unseen.


Nighty-night!

Good if predictable kind of performance, not so well served by the environment. Same kind of set as recent gigs with the addition of Jack The Ripper, which is indeed a Lord Sutch cover, though hardly a novel pick as already exhumed by the likes of The Horrors.

MES looked relaxed and happy, band in the comfort zone, expect a bust-up within six months.

PS For those unfamiliar with JtR:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_the_Ripper_(song)

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=TRM3LO2ZCac&feature=related

If it had been covers of either the Nick Cave or LL Cool J's 'Jack The Ripper', that would really have been something to write home about.

I agree with the unseen. This was truelly a magnificent performance in a magnificent venue. Everything was just sooo fine - even 'Duped' turned out to be a winner. The sound was absolutely fantastic throughout - topped off with a brilliant "Latch Key Kid". I was dancing on the balcony throughout. Roll on for part two.

Mary, Mary, quite contrary How does your garden grow? With silver bells and cockleshells and pretty maids all in a row.

two bouncers(or was it three) protecting the stage
i told them we came in peace
but to no avail
we could only touch stage at a distance
6 inches


dear mr smith
although it was good it could easily of been great




flash not allowed(at front)
could not see in dark to adjust camera
more surreal images to come!

flash not allowed(at front)
could not see in dark to adjust camera
more surreal images

I thought Sutch's was a cover of The One Way Way Streets'

From memory, someone will doubtless correct/amend. Something like:

(Chino Splashback?)
Wolf Kidult Man
Fall Sound
Wings
Tommy Shooter
50-y-o Man
I've Been Duped
Reformation

Jack The Ripper
Latch Key Kid


Don't think there was much else - the whole thing was about 50 minutes. So perhaps you'll get Blindness, Carry Bag, Sparta etc tonight.

I could've sworn that MES and Julia covered Jack the Ripper at MES's spoken word debut at Nick Cave's Sacred and Profane evening at the South Bank, presumably as a tribute to SLS who had recently died. But nobody ever mentioned it so I wondered afterwards if I'd dreamed the whole thing. Perhaps not!

I think the quicher is right on that score.

But I'm not positive.

Must be.

BYE.

Set played was just shy of 50 mins.

Reformation and the extended Duped were fantastic.

I'd be very intrigued to hear a recording if at all possible, they didn't do that whole list did they - or were those cockles I had spiked?

Agree that I've Been Duped was very exciting and also the one where MES turned the bass and guitar right down so it sounded like Suicide for a while, before the whole thing came crashing back in - a marvellous moment.

I also thought Pete Greenway was cool-as-a-fish, he's so dreamy


p.s. I've put a few photos up on the Flickr page mentioned in my signature.

This post has been edited by Fritter on Nov 1 2008, 11:39 PM

Recordings will surface from this.

I suspect Jack The Ripper may have been a one off for Halloween?

Just listened to this again, and the whole gig is a bit of a corker.

Right back on form. What a wonderful venue as well.

Thanks Fritter, thanks all!

A bonfire with the seats was all that was missing.

a truly phenomenal performance, band were on fire and complete chaos, drunken old folk falling over chairs........

Liked Mark's shirt.........

Yeah I enjoyed it, ..., easily best of the 4 gigs I've seen over last two years

The oddity of an all seated venue wasnt as great as I'd feared.
Although not sold out it was fairly full & I expect a fair few more ppl will dance tonight than the 29 or so who did so last night

Bobby Peru I'd not seen before & I liked, ..., they saved their better songs for last

JCC lots of jokey banter, some I'd not heard before, but the only poems were 'Hire Car' & the slightly liberally dubious 'Crossing the Floor', ..., fun nevertheless

A short bit of Safi, ..., I've always quite liked him & a seated venue seemed to suit his stuff, ..., tho Iit wasnt really dark enough for the screen etc

I make it a short intro instrumental (Chino?), Fall Sound, Wings, Wolf Kidult, Tommy Shooter (with effective guest vocals from ??), 50 Year Old Man, Duped (best version I've ever heard), Reformation, Jack the Ripper?, Latch Key Kid (again best version ever)

A fair amount of knob twiddling, but it was effective

Sound was OK-ish , if a bit loud at times. The crowd , ..., oddly there seemed that female fall fans are also smokers judging from my fellow snoutcasts.

5.75 for a pint of Kronenberg & a half of Orange & Lemonade. & in a appropriately perverse way the only time ever I've had to queue for a piss, ..., so much for bladder problems etc

I had a brief convo with Simpson's editor who was leafleting for the FALLen tome. Hes never seen the Fall, (for shame! for shame!! etc), but plans to at the Holmfirth gig. He said 4,000 copies printed 3,500 sold rto shops already of which just over 1,000 had been sold to punters, which he seemed pleased with. He apologised for the errors & promised that they'd be fixed for the paperback version, ..., I suggested the addition of an index he said ge'd see what could be done

Cliffs: 8/10 dont be put off by the all seater gig fingy

Sorry to be a naysayer but I thought this was pretty dismal. Certainly the environment was unsuitable but the band was pedestrian. i was there with 2 non fans hoping to win over new converts and it didnt happen for them, the fall live should win over anyone. Sound was too fuzzy (and not in a good way) Stronger bass needed, David is too Level 42 and whilst I think Eleni continues to improve as a stage presence, her keyboards arent adding anything. mark has to reshape the lineup again and start over.

I wasn't there but I'm guessing the MES rendition is more like this one: Screaming Lord Sutch: Jack the Ripper (live). I can't wait to hear what the Fall do to this song.

Does that stooped stance and sinister stalking of the stage look familiar?

I wasn't there but I'm guessing the MES rendition is more like this one: Screaming Lord Sutch: Jack the Ripper (live). I can't wait to hear what the Fall do to this song.

Does that stooped stance and sinister stalking of the stage look familiar?

Thanks for the link, GingerAlex.

I've always loved this song, and its great that Mark has chosen to cover it.

I hope its not just a one-off, and that it stays in the set for a while.