"Feel the wrath of my Bombast!" exhorts Mark E. Smith on This Nation's Saving Grace, the follow-up to their groundbreaking Wonderful and Frightening World of... the Fall, and this collection is ample proof of the pure confidence the group had at this time. Stompers like "Barmy," "What You Need," and the mighty "Gut of the Quantifier" are all led by Brix Smith's twanging lead hooks, filled by distorted guitars and bludgeoning drums, on top of which Smith rants with conviction. But it's the departures from this sound that mark the real interest here: The synth-driven "L.A." looks ahead to the Fall's experiments with electronica; "Paint Work" is an impressionist piece interrupted by Smith accidentally erasing over some of the track at home; and "I Am Damo Suzuki," a tribute to Can's lead singer, which borrows its arrangement from several of that group's songs. The Fall sound mysterious, down-to-earth, and hilarious all at the same time.Vinyl, LP, Reissue, RemasteredTracklist: CASTLE NKROACHED A1 MansionA2 BombastA3 BarmyA4 What You NeedA5 Spoilt Victorian ChildA6 L.A. NATION'S SAVING GRACE B1 Gut Of The QuantifierB2 My New HouseB3 Paint WorkB4 I Am Damo SuzukiB5 To Nkroachment: Yarbles
