The Fall - Grotesque (After The Gramme) vinyl LP (Rough Trade - Rough 18, 1980)

£ 20

$ 27

£ 20 Sold For

Apr 21, 2013 Sold Date

Apr 11, 2013 Start Date

12 Number Of Bids

Great Britain Country Of Seller

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Description

The Fall - "Grotesque (After The Gramme)"

Original 1980 Rough Trade vinyl release (Rough 18)

99p start & no reserve for this sublime post-punk classic

This fab album is from my own personal collection and was purchased by myself on first release.

For Fall fans, this is simply essential. A record defying description that genuinely sounds more magnificent as the years fly by. Maybe they'll play "New Face In Hell" (pure genius!) at Maggie T's funeral (with apologies to the myriad of Tory Fall fans if I've caused offence!) Seriously though, this LP is a bona-fide masterpiece (and I'm a Grateful Dead fan!)

Here's a review from Allmusic:

"Kicking off with the thrilling bite of "Pay Your Rates," on Grotesque, the Fall really started hitting its stride, with Marc Riley and Craig Scanlon now a devastatingly effective combination, somehow managing to sound exactly placed between random sloppiness and perfect precision. The sharp rockabilly leads and random art rock racket thrived on both counts, with Smith as always the mad jester ripping into anything and everything while having a great time doing so. The final song of the album was especially fierce -- "The N.W.R.A.," short for "the north will rise again," Smith's own take on the long-standing "soft south/grim north" dichotomy in English society given extremely bitter life. Throughout the record, a slew of really good producers keep an eye on things -- besides the band themselves, there are Grant Showbiz, Geoff Travis, and Mayo Thompson all contributing. The end result is crisp without being polished, rough while packing its own smart punch (though "W. M. C.-Blob 59" intentionally sounds like it was recorded eight rooms over). Some nice variety starts appearing more and more in the Fall approach as well -- "C'n'C-s Mithering," a brilliant vivisection of California and its record business, and the attendant perception of the Fall themselves, relies on acoustic guitars instead of electric, creating an understated but still great groove. "Impression of J. Temperance" fits more immediately with what had come before, but the martial drums from Paul Hanley and Riley's freaky keyboards create some crazy atmospheres. Of course, Smith sends everything over the top, whether it's his rant about governments, dead neighbors, and scandals on the hilarious romp "New Face in Hell" or "In the Park." As a side note, the hilarious music scene caricatures on the front cover and wind-up liner notes add just the right level of acidic wit to the proceedings."

Both vinyl and cover are in excellent to mint condition, having been stored for 25+ years (I have it on CD too!)

I'll shortly be moving in to a small flat with my partner Lorraine who's instructed me to scale down my 7", 10", 12", CD's, hi-fi, musical instruments & books ("get rid of that clutter!") so I'll be listing around 500-1000 vinyl items from a variety of genres over the coming weeks and months (all with low starts and no reserve) - please check out my other vinyl items.

At this weight, UK postage will be £2.60, however for anyone purchasing multiple items then clearly postage will work out even cheaper.

Anyone outwith the UK, please contact me first for postage cost and to be added to the exclusion list allowing you to bid.

Collection is welcome, though be assured item(s) will be securely packed.

Paypal, cash on collection or bank transfer are all welcome.

Please check my feedback and bid with confidence.

Many thanks.