The Creepy Crawl
Monday, April 26
Doors open at 7:30
$12 in advance, $14 at the door

The Fall’s Mark E. Smith once told an interviewer, “It’s like listening to Pavement: it’s just The Fall in 1985, isn’t it? They haven’t got an original idea in their heads.” If you’re going to treat one of the most critically revered bands of the ’90s as total personae non gratae, you’d better have the rep to back it up. The Fall, who have served as one of the most important post-punk bands of the past 25 years, have it in spades.

Formed in 1977 in Manchester, England (the same birthplace as Joy Division and the Buzzcocks, and later the Smiths and the Stone Roses), the Fall were a loose conglomeration of working-class rockers based around one man, mastermind Mark E. Smith. In early singles like “How I Wrote ‘Elastic Man’” and “Totally Wired,” you can hear the band’s formula-loose guitars and clanging drums pound out one-or-two-chord vamps so that Smith can unleash his stream-of-consciousness harangues, delivered in a tone-deaf sing-speak with a tendency to add syllables to the ends of words (“relax-uh!”). Later, in the mid-’80s, the Fall really hit their stride with a string of solid albums that culminated in “This Nation’s Saving Grace.” They also got some mileage out of well-chosen covers, including the Other Half’s “Mr. Pharmacist” and the Kinks’ “Victoria.” Their later work is less consistent, thanks in part to Smith’s tendency to inexplicably fire group members, but they remain a force to be reckoned with.

Considering their lauded past, it’s hard to believe the Fall are going to be stopping at such a tiny venue. For post-punk fans, having the Fall play in an intimate setting like the Creepy Crawl is basically the equivalent of Van Morrison playing a free show in my mom’s living room. At the same time, one has to wonder if ol’ Smith is still capable of putting on a good show. He’s looking worse for wear these days, with missing teeth and a haggard visage that’s reminiscent of D.J. Qualls (you know, the goofy guy from “Road Trip”). In true geriatric punk fashion, he also recently broke his hip, meaning he’s had to sit down while singing during many of the April shows. Apparently all this hasn’t distracted from the band’s performances; fans posting on the Fall’s website are calling these shows some of the best in a decade. The band has been playing a lot of material from their latest record, the aptly titled “Real New Fall LP (Formerly ‘Country on the Click’),” as well as some oldies like “Pharmacist” and “Mere Pseud. Mag. Ed.” In other words, be there! Check out the Fall Monday night, then on Tuesday see if your Strokes ticket was really worth the 25 bucks.

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