I have never seen The Fall play, yet they’re one of my top three bands of all time, in those lists that I often make in my head when walking down the street, with my cd walkman reminding me how many favourite songs I have. The other two are Joy Division and The Smiths. They don’t exist now in physical form, so I can’t go and see them. The Fall do exist, so I can, and I did. And I am so glad.

Bristol’s Bierkeller is an interesting venue, all mock nineteenth century Bavarian interiors, and filled with long wooden benches and tables. Tonight it was filled with an odd assortment of middle aged men with grey hair, biker types with long hair and leather jackets, and some students in long coats. It’s a lovely big open room with a tiny stage at its far end, and tonight the stage looked lovely decked out in Christmas decorations, lovely along the lines of an office Christmas party. In Bavaria. In the nineteenth century.

Anyway after one hell of a long wait for a substandard bunch of English public school boys playing it at American working class punks to start and then to finish, suddenly three middle aged guys and an implausibly attractive Greek women start playing some music. I said to my friend, oh I wonder who these are? they sound like they’re playing a Fall song.

I was a bit stupid, because of course it was The Fall, and I only realised this as the inimitably nonchalant Mark E Smith sauntered on to the stage, in black shiny shoes, trousers up high above his waist, and a nicely pressed shirt. He took the microphone stand in his hand and in his usual northern slur took proceedings to a fine beginning.

After this song finished he drawled out that The Fall were only going to play a short set because of the youth club at nine o clock. I thought this was a joke so laughed, but only later did I realise how it wasn’t that much of a joke!

Anyway, they smashed their way through a set comprised of recent tracks from the latest albums, 'Country On The Click' and 'Interim', or from their recent John Peel session, their 24th and final, with the highlight of the new tracks a particularly heart wrenching yet smile inducing version of 'What About Us'. 'What About Us' is a track aired on their last John Peel session, about an East German who on unification with West Germany, finds himself an immigrant in his own country, looked down upon, sneered at as scum, as not even having a home in the one place he could call home, he is reduced to the status of a permanent outsider. This is a song for all those who don’t feel they fit in, it is a song for the outcasts to cling on to. For giving me hangers such as this to allow my identity to rest on I am forever indebted to The Fall. That this is a new Fall song, shows their importance, in that almost 30 years on from their commencement they are still making absolutely vital diatribes, that can still mean the world for some people. For many seeing their favourite band of all time, who have been going since before they were born, would mean a retread of the old hits by a few overweight and balding old men, just interested in finishing the show to get some Horlicks and cash. This is not the case with The Fall, they played mostly new tracks, sounded as fresh and vital as I ever have heard them on record, and anyway Mark E Smith has always looked old and haggard, this is part of his charm.

Oh now we come to that, what charm. It seems impossible to conceive how such an apparently horrible old man can have such charisma and place you in the palm of his hand. The idea here is do not go on the superficialities and find something deeper. Which is the only way to explain the ball of putty I was, for the moulding, with every scowl of his wrinkled face. The bullish attitude of Mark E Smith can be seen in that he spent most of the show turning his guitarist’s amplifier down, only to have it turned back up by the guitarist on Mark E Smith turning his back, or in how his keyboard player had learned to back off and let Mark E Smith mash the keys in beautiful dissonance interrupting her playing in almost every song.

The miserable power from this man is incredible, yet his band know this, and acknowledged that to be the in The Fall club means you have to put up with this bad attitude and nastiness in order to be a part of something truly special. Maybe its just that most geniuses need to be bastards? Philip Larkin was pretty misogynistic and unpleasant from many accounts, Michael Foucault had unprotected sex with as many men as he could once he found out he had aids, and Arthur Rimbaud dealt in slaves in his later life. So I think its fair to put up with a bit of grumpiness and arrogance when it provides the genius I witnessed tonight.

As well as the evidence that the creative fire still burned healthily in this little man at the end of my gaze, we got a couple of old classics to recline in like comfy armchairs. There was 'Mr Pharmacist', which made everyone present suddenly realise they were allowed to sing along, and all around I just saw open mouths like in a fish tank, as the crowd implored said practitioner to ‘give me some energy’. Is the irony that Mark E Smith is singing a song about seeking something to make life worthwhile and exciting from a man, when in fact that is what most of us are doing tonight from this man who claims he needs some himself? Oh the other old classic is the song that always makes me think of the sadly departed John Peel, 'Hip Priest', "he’s not appreciated" indeed. John Peel it was who first got me into The Fall and they have had a very big impact on my life and my love and understanding of music, whenever I hear them, I hear him. And tonight was no exception, I just know he would have smiled and agreed at how excited and filled with inspiration I was tonight. Anyway the version of 'Hip Priest' was sped up, and in place of the sparse slow burning grind, was a punk rockabilly thrash, which helpfully washed away any sentimentality or sadness I felt on thinking of said departed legend.

Anyway all too soon, Mark E Smith had walked off the stage, leaving the band to finish up behind him.

A customary bit of shouting from the crowd, and without even time to light a cigarette back stage, they were back on. There was a blitzkrieg attack of 'White Lightening', and again off. Mark E Smith practically ran off this time. I hope I didn’t scare him off with my obsessive and in awe staring?

This time it was clearly over, that was an end. but this show had only lasted for about ten songs, and hadn’t felt like a full show, great as it was. The beautiful Greek synthesizer player, Elini Poulou, came back on stage to collect her coat, and the crowd roared but she informed us that they wanted to play some more, but weren’t allowed to as there was a club night. So Mark E Smith wasn’t joking, they were being cut short for youth club!

A huge chorus of boos ensured, with much stamping and kicking of the stage. All in all a very angry mass, and for a second I was quite excited at the energy and creative passion The Fall had inspired taking light in a small riot. But no, the organisers relented, and The Fall came back on to orgasmic cheers to give us just one more for our money, fittingly a vicious rendition of 'Blindness', about the curfew, and the curfew they were facing tonight! A humorous piece of bile turned on to the organisers who only gave The Fall the chance to play a truncated set tonight, stormed through with stealth and conviction, and sent crashing to a close.

It was over and all felt right. I had just seen a show that had inspired such wanton creativity in me that I had not known for so long. Its probably a bit of an obvious and trite thing to do, to quote the bands own song, but I must be that kind of a readable guy. From' Rebellious Jukebox', that Fall tune about finding this strange outsider music that can give you the spirit to survive life;

‘I'm looking for the home of the real, I want a happy time now’

The Fall live tonight have filled me with so much hope that I can carry on making greater and better music myself, and that there is still great music being made around me. The creative potential is the ultimate facility at use to the human being, and mine has been encouraged by this Fall show. Who would have thought that a 40 something miserable old man talking over music played by the latest recruitment of musicians in a long long line of backing bands, could be so powerful. It is just one of those things that shouldn’t work but does work. No further explanation is needed, it just works, I accept that!

For me, one ambition has been filled tonight, seeing The Fall, but a whole host of other ambitions have been created.

Review by Daniel Newman

www.visi.com/fall