A phenomenally good in your face audience recording. Its almost like you are there. Some slight audience chatter but nothing that intrudes. Drums can be a little loud in places.
The usual narration from Niki commences proceedings what follows is The Fall at their most sublime. After a slight fluff on the intro to "Wings" we are treated to an exemplary reading - clear, focused, tight, dynamic and challenging.
"Fall Sound" boils and bubbles like a caged beast - a rolling and tumblng and joyous affirmation of the schema of the gruppe. "Pacifying" a similarly perky poppy with an edge thing - Marks vox could be a little higher but a minor quibble in such glory. Particularly good is the sinuous weaving of the synth riff around the rhythm. Pete also quiet on this track. "50 year old" is relatively short for this tour but still a tour de force. An audience member joins in before Mark starts. There is serious pulse to this tune coming from Keirons drums that counteracts the swirling synth noise.
"Kidult" thumps along like a good 'un as several audience members join in with Mr Spurr's lycanthropy. Again a surging and irresistable pulse dominates the piece with tension and release building and creating a sense of real excitement.
Unfortunately EP is mostly inaudible for a lot of the early part of "Duped" but gets louder later. Drums tend to dominate and there's a slight untogether feel. Probably relatively speaking the weakest outing of the evening - nonetheless a great expression of joyous abandon and all the better for MES joining towards the end. A shortish "Latch Key Kid" has a great jaunty feel however again Mark is a bit low in the mix to kick off. A sensational "Reformation" is delivered with beat perfect motorik rhythm coloured by Pete's range of guitar sounds - morphing from surf slides to squawling bends to sensuous riffing. MES quotes Can and the band rolls around the riff in repetitious rip-roaring revelatory glory.
Niki screws up the beginning of "Tommy" but picks it up and is joined by MES for another fine reading. A quick trip to the woods for some alcohol is dominated by synth. After a lengthy break the band return for another mammoth performance of "Blindness" with the obligatory keyboard solo. Apparently Mark came on stage at the end without a microphone and lectured the crowd but this does not appear to have been captured.
Imagery courtesy of Mr Christopher Goodhead (red eye removal by Mr Eccles - accounting for village of the damned look to some of the pictures).