The Fall - Your Future Our Clutter (2010)

Entering on “O.F.Y.C. Showcase” with that lurch and throb that they do so well -- guitar, drums, and bass in perfect Mancabilly sync -- the Fall sound as vital as ever on Your Future Our Clutter, their 28th studio album leader/vocalist Mark E. Smith describes perfectly with the song's line “a showcase of proud talent.” Add the cover artwork which, in a rare move, features pictures of the bandmembers, and fans can correctly assume that everything is good in the Fall's often tumultuous world as the members from their previous effort all show up here. It’s also safe to assume and that this album is going to feature some esoteric references to their previous work along with some other oddball moves that are best appreciated by Fall regulars. Two songs in and Smith is giving us a minute and a half of recordings off his cheap hand-held tape recorder, a regular stage prop as of late, but part three of “Bury” is the stomping payoff, rewarding those who have learned to savor the man's eccentricities with a serious kick in the gut. “Mexico Wax Solvent” references the band's previous effort, Imperial Wax Solvent, and maybe even its universally positive reviews with Smith’s declaration “I am invincible!” Then the bizarre happens as layers of Western guitars and Smith's cut-up tale of “Cowboy George” combine for an unexpected Fall classic. From here on through it's back to the usual business with two tight hook/sharp riff/caustic Smith tracks (“Hot Cake,” “Y.F.O.C./Slippy Floor”) mixing with the surprise rave-up cover song (Wanda Jackson's “Funnel of Love”) along with two of those elaborate numbers (“Chino,” “Weather Report 2”) that take time to untangle. These knotty tracks are worth the effort as they are two prime Fall epics, and when Smith exits with “You don't deserve rock & roll” on the closer, the whole theme of the band and fan relationship has come full circle. Too insider to cross over or consider one of their classics, but an otherwise solid Fall effort offering everything fans require.