Parc de la Villette, Paris, 10th July 2005

Here's my fag packet translation of the article:

"The Fall très remonté" 9/7/2005 Libération
(The Fall back up all the way.. help me out, French Fall fans..)

Feedback Festival, Sunday 10 July @ 19h45

What have Blur, Pavement, and current scenesters LCD Soundsystem have in common? All admit to having been influenced by The Fall, the Manchester group headed by the bilious Mark E. Smith since 1977. A sort of missing link between Jerry Lee Lewis (rockabilly groove, expressed belligerantly) and techno-industrial rock (throbbing mix, grinding together of styles), the group is basically Smith, (who once declared that "if it's me and yer granny on bongo's, then it's a Fall gig").- lone survivor after around 40 line up changes in almost 3 decades.

"Misanthropist"

Brought up on a diet of Can & Captain Beefheart, Smith has been a lot more prolific than either. Sitting on a tentacular discography, MES is equally noted for his misanthropy - he appears to detest everyone, particularly the French. However, they recently played a blinding set in Lyon (for Les Nuits Sonores in April) where Smith revealed himself to be as affable as he is charming. Is is going soft? (towards the French): "We're losing our prejudice..!", jousted Smith, who also admitted to no longer feeling bitter about his talent being ignored in the past; "We've always been the dunces at the back of the class, but I'll keep banging on about it - look how the copycats end up!"

The Fall hasn't fallen, and prides itself these days, miracle of miracles, on having had a stable line-up for 2 years. "We're a 5 piece, everyone's 10 years younger than me". They've just put out a 6-CD set reuniting all their Peel Sessions , on which you'll find some versions outclassing those of the original album versions. The PIAS label (France) has just re-released around 15 albums bumped up with bonus tracks. The next studio album "Fall Heads Roll" is due in the autumn.

"Paper Chase"

In the meantime, Smith and his group, who haven't set foot in Paris for more than 10 years, will probably play several new tracks off the forthcoming album at the Feed Back festival at La Villette. "I've never had to fill out as much paperwork as for this gig", grumbles Smith. "Ridiculous stuff like "What was your previous occupation?" Answer: "No idea. What a drag! But OK, it's worth it anyway - sometimes we spot some old farts here and there, but in general our fans are young".

Laurence Romance (a.k.a. Nick Kent's better half, former French Indy rock TV presenter and noted Fall fan).


There's also another article about the festival in the same paper called "Choc des Cultures" (Culture Shock) which begins:

"At 7:15 p.m. on Sunday, the gig by the unshakable Mark E. Smith accompanied by the latest version of the Fall will headline & close the Feed Back Festival. It's a paradoxical headline act, because hardly anyone here (in France) knows them, but it's ideal for a festival proudly announcing itself as cutting-edge, and where it would be difficult to imagine a more innovative line-up..."


(for a 28 year old group to be considered 'cutting edge' is a badge of honour and an incredible achievement, I think..)

No reviews yet?

Thanks for the translation ET!

Review anyone?

Sorry for being so impatient!!

Tres bien or merde....?!!

M.E.S in top fine form, giving water bottles to fans, messing with amps, mics, usual antics. Nice gig, great sound. Probably their biggest concert in France (their last time in Paris was 1993 in a quite small venue), young fans & old geezers. Tracklisting (probably uncorrect, sorry) :

Sparta FC
Clasp Hands
Bo Doodak
Ride Away
Wrong Place/Grass
What about Us
Mountain Energei

off stage (40 mn!)
then back

Mr Pharmacist (in fact i can't remember if they played it before or after leaving the stage)
Assume
Blindness

off stage again
then

Carry Bag Man!
with MS Smith singing a lot (even if her husband's messings with the mics damaged 'em a bit).

Thanks and bloody hell..the return of Carry Bag Man after a 15-year break!!

Short report & 2 pictures here from a friend (more to come somewhere soon) :
http://www.homme-moderne.org/musique/carnet/

Where exactly do I look?

click on 'le blogue' .. a great photo! - this is mes duet with himself

I think they came back on and played assume - full-0n version, then straight into mr p. ..they did that thing: beginning without drums, then spencer catches-up from behind
It worked just fine for mes to insist on them leaving the stage after mountain energei - even though the place was moving alot, it was a chance to measure how much they were wanted back - fucking loud just below the stage.
Beforehand we met electric triangle
..and we were warned not to expect so much from a 'cool' paris crowd, so it was a big surprise to find a small storm going down at the front
..and so many people there familiar with the songs - 'what about us?' seemed to touch a nerve.
.
Got to salute the French for funding festivals like this

click on 'le blogue' for the fantastic photo + review by sebastien
..but below they have the HEAD'S ROLL design already at large
.
A new Backdrop for the gig:

Contry&Western/Wild West style:

THE FALL
F.H.R

amidst flames.

It was a time-based piece. Took about 50 minutes to peel and fall to the floor.
.
Too much beauty here

..carrybag man

Carry a BAG Man!!! I'm not normally bothered about the revisited old stuff, but that's surely the most exciting oldie to surface in a while...

Thanks for that Coryphe and Mark.

God I SO wish I could have gone!

The pics look great - you don't often see the band in daylight!!

I'm very jealous....

No "Blob 59 Casino Soul" then?

Any tapes, then?

When can we expect to see this on Fallshop?

There must be plenty of tapes. I saw a whole bunch of what i first asumed were bird watchers or trainspotters in the audience ( filming/taping/making notes/looking up facts in their Fall encyclopedias)

Carry Bag Man was an excellent choice. Those of us who were lucky enough to be there at the sound check could hear the band rehearse it. By the time they played it on stage sound was absolutely awfull due to MES messing with almost every electrical appliance on stage. During a large part of the concert bass or guitar or keyboard or kick drum could not be heard at all. 'Carry Bag Man' was mostly just MES and Spencer.

I'm afraid this was just too much chaos to be called a great gig. Some highlights though: 'What about us' was very good; 'Blindness' suberb. (Is throwing apples a traditional French way of saying 'this is the only truly brilliant song we heard so far'?)

The whole atmosphere was weird to say the least, the Fall playing amidst joggers, playing children, picknickers and other Parisians having a nice Sunday in the park.

Still a memorable gig.

Some other photos here: http://brohel.club.fr/TSH/index3.htm

According to me, the show had lots of great moments (the impressive Theme from Sparta FC, in the beginning of the gig, could have bring me to tears!) and some really really chaotic parts (due to MES messing everything a little bit too much... but, hey, that's The Fall).
Mark seemed on top form to my surprise: I was at the bar where the band spent his time the night before the gig and Mark seemed to be tired and to have some trouble with his leg.
Anyway, that was was a great pleasure to see my favourite band in France. Someone said that the band didn't play in France since 93 (Arapaho, Paris... I was there too) but the real last gig the band performed was in Saint Lô/Normandy in 94 where I've had the pleasure to see them last.

Parc de La Villette, Paris 10/08/2005

Sparta FC/Clasp Hands/Bo "Demmick"/Ride Away/Wrong Place - I Can Hear the Grass Grow/What About Us?/Mountain Energei/Assume/Carry Bag Man/Pacifying Joint/Blindness (Boxoxtosis & Janet aborted probably due to a combination of 'can't be arsed'ness', flying red apples, faulty equipment and 62 min set (thanks MJungbluth!)

<<Drink the long draught for the Big Prinz..>>

Blimey. Must be our lucky year - two French visits in the space of 3 months. And, after more than a 10 year absence, there he was, the Big Prinz, shuffling into a triumphant and keenly awaited Paris return with the oldest young rock group there is, real warts and all. OTT? So would you be if you had had to wait this long. You had to be there..

<<We only have this excerpt..>>

There was no "Good evening, we are..", conspicuous by it's absence (ok, I've seen the evidence - it was a "Good afternoon during the 2nd number..). The rollicking riff from Sparta FC kicked off proceedings - exactly on time. The set was an hour of classic Fall rockabilly without windmilling arms. And a classic one it was too, wot with the black glove, equipment failure, three of France's finest red apples projected onto the stage (a late Common Agriculture Policy protest, anyone?), tangled wires, a long red 'Little Drummer Boy' drum (seen, I'm told, in the BBC4 documentary whilst recording their last Peel session) that refused to make any kind of sound whatsoever, miked up or not. Trafford is ice cool. He's more than a replacement for Shanley. Pritchard is his affable self. Spencer lights the big bonfire under the whole lot, and Eleni is Morticia to Smith's erm 'Thing' - yes, it was amateur keyboard playing time again, folks, with back to crowd as usual (see photos).

An entire amateur paparazzi of SMS-photographers, and Dad's holiday DVD camcorder specialists documented the whole thing. There seemed to be hundreds of them. This should be one of the most widely documented Fall gigs to date from the looks of it.

And the highlights? 'What About Us?' had a bassline so funky it would have been at home in an R&B club, a point not lost on two female Parisienne scensters in front of me, grindin' baby.. 'Mr Pharmacist' sent the lot barmy. 'Carry Bag Man' brought a smile to the face of many older fans. Smith returning two bottles of water (Mountain Energy?) to the crowd with a 'not 'round 'ere, mate' smirk. The band looking quietly chuffed at the great crowd response (and mosh-pit), save the apples.

We were spoiled - a memorable Fall gig for FREE, courtesy of the French taxpayer, in beautiful open air surroundings with an up-for-it crowd. Let's not wait for the grass to grow so long until next time, OK Mark?

Maximum R&B to MJungbluth, his missus, and 'Mark' from the forum, plus all other Fall fans who came from across Europe to see this gig.

There was a 'good afternoon we are...' though.

A truly classic Fall gig in Paris yesterday, I drove nearly 500 kilometers to see them - only three weeks after seeing them in Berlin. A very nice setting and my first Fall-gig for free since I saw them first in 1987. Gig started on time and in broad daylight - at around 19:45, audience greeted by a heartfelt "good afternoon" for a change. New band logo (Fall Heads Roll) at the back of stage came off in the heat - to the amusement of one MES. Mic stand expertly destroyed, apples thrown onstage, a "pogoing" crowd, MES's spouse giving the mixer the middle finger (due to the mic malfunctioning). MES now (inaudibly) playing your granny's bongos (fact!) - making even her redundant now. If it's myself, it's The Fall! Lead singer was handed some bottles of Vittel - which he gracefully rejected. Band ordered offstage after Mountain Energei, came back on after what I thought was some ten minutes (but turned out to be only two). Brilliant version of "Carry Bag Man" (to a French chorus of "se carrree...") made for a great encore. Here's the running order:
- Sparta
- Clasp Hands
- Bo Doodak
- Ride Away (my favourite!)
- Wrong Place/Grass Grow
- What about us?
- Mountain Energei
- Assume
- Pharmacist
- Blindness
- (encore) Carry Bag Man
Fall Heads Rule!

unreal-in daylight-no goths about then

and grinding parisian ladies

i hope this means a summer of love tour for orstralia

Loved the French article in Telerama sent in by Pascal - it says that the contracts were exchanged by text message (!) between Eleni and the guv'nors of the festival. Budget was only €40,000 too for the entire festival. Inspiring..

Great photos too, lads

Just got back home from Paris, I thought The Fall were superb, Smith on form. Did anyone see him mark the apple throwers card? Definately said something.

I didnt expect them to play a full set, so that was a treat, along with the weather. Highlights for me were Blindness and Grass Grow.

Shame the bass didnt work on Carry Bag, he seemed gutted as its a good one for bass, when it worked for about thirty seconds it rocked.

Saw a blind man on the metro on the way back to Montparnasse and asked him to have mercy on me.