The Light User Syndrome
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| The Light User Syndrome | ||
 |
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| Studio album by The Fall | ||
| Released | 10 June 1996 | |
| Recorded | ??? | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 59:30 | |
| Label | Jet | |
| Producer(s) | Mike Bennett, Mark E. Smith | |
| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
| The Fall chronology | ||
| Cerebral Caustic (1995) |
The Light User Syndrome (1996) |
Levitate (1997) |
The Light User Syndrome is an album by The Fall, released in 1996 on Jet Records. It was preceded by 18 minute, 3-part single "The Chiselers" and was the group's first album to feature keyboard player and guitarist Julia Nagle, It was the last to feature Brix Smith and the group were without Craig Scanlon for the first time since 1979's Dragnet album. The album features a rare lead vocal from drummer and guitarist Karl Burns on a cover version of "Stay Away (Ol' White Train)" by Johnny Paycheck. The album did not chart.
Brix Smith told Simon Ford (in his Fall biography Hip Priest) that the album was recorded very quickly, with Mark E. Smith absent for much of the recording, delivering nearly all his vocals on the final day. Despite this, alternate versions of many of the album's tracks featured heavily across the series of compilation albums issued by the Receiver label in the late 90's (see Compilation albums by The Fall). The tour supporting the album was disastrous, with Brix walking out of the group after the soundcheck at Motherwell Concert Hall and a gig in Worthing being declared by long-serving bassist Steve Hanley to be the worst Fall gig ever. [1]. By the end of the year, they were playing without Brix, Julia Nagle and Karl Burns, although both Nagle and Burns would return during 1997 for follow-up album Levitate.
[edit] Track listing
- D.I.Y Meat (Smith/Smith)
- Das Vulture And Ein Nutter-Wain (Smith/Hanley)
- He Pep! (Smith/Wolstencroft)
- Hostile (Smith/Smith)
- Stay Away (Ol' White Train) (J. Paycheck)
- Spinetrak (Smith/Smith)
- Interlude/Chilinism (Smith/Burns/Hanley/Wolstencroft/Nagle/Bennett)
- Powder Keg (Smith/Burns)
- Oleano (Smith)
- Cheetham Hill (Smith/Wolstencroft/Bennett)
- The Coliseum (Smith/Spencer)
- Last Chance To Turn Around (Milrose/Bruno/Elgin)
- The Ballard Of J. Drummer (Smith) (this is the correct title, it was misprinted on early copies as "The Ballad Of J. Drummer")
- Oxymoron (Smith/Nagle)
- Secession Man (Smith/Burns/Bennett)
[edit] Reissues
The album has been reissued twice, firstly by Receiver in 1999 and then by Castle Music in 2002. Both of these editions added the other two tracks from The Chiselers single; "The Chiselers" and "Chilinist".
[edit] Personnel
- Mark E. Smith - vocals, tapes
- Brix Smith - guitar, vocals
- Steve Hanley -bass guitar
- Simon Wolstencroft - drums, programming
- Julia Nagle - keyboards, guitar (listed as "Julie" on some editions)
- Karl Burns - drums, vocals, guitar
- Lucy Rimmer - vocals
- Mike Bennett - vocals
