''The Unutterable'' is the 21st album by English rock band the Fall, released in 2000. It was recorded with much the same lineup as had appeared on the group's previous album, 1999's ''

The Marshall Suite ''The Marshall Suite'' is a 1999 album by the Fall, their 20th. The album builds on the techno-influenced beats of its predecessor ''Levitate'' (1997), while also returning to a more rockabilly-influenced sound reminiscent of earlier Fall lineu ...

'' (although Kazuko Hohki—the singer from the English-based Japanese band Frank Chickens—provides extra vocals on one track). However, whilst this version of the band was still coming together as the previous album was being made, by the time of the current record, they had had a year to gel as a unit. Therefore, while there is some similarity in the sound of the two, ''The Unutterable'' was much more consistent in its production and songwriting. It was generally well received by the critics, being praised as a "career peak" by Dave Simpson of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

''Simpson, Dave (3 Nov. 2000)
Review
''The Guardian''. and prompting Piers Martin of the ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' to suggest, "...this is as vital and relevant as The Fall have sounded for a considerable length of time.Martin, Piers (Nov. 2000)
"''The Unutterable"
. ''NME''. " Lyrically, the album covers a number of diverse themes. On "Dr Bucks' Letter", lead singer

Mark E. Smith Mark Edward Smith (5 March 1957 – 24 January 2018) was an English singer, who was the lead singer, lyricist and only constant member of the post-punk group the Fall. Smith formed the band after attending the June 1976 Sex Pistols gig at the ...

appears to dispraise superficial materialist modernity, stating, "I was in the realm of the essence of Tong", an oblique reference to British DJ

Pete Tong Peter Michael Tong, (born 30 July 1960) is an English disc jockey who works for BBC Radio 1. He is the host of programmes such as ''Essential Mix'' and ''Essential Selection'' on the radio service, which can be heard through Internet radio stre ...

. In the song, Smith lists the five things without which he, or that Tong, cannot leave home: sunglasses, music, PalmPilot, mobile phone and

American Express American Express Company (Amex) is an American multinational corporation specialized in payment card services headquartered at 200 Vesey Street in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The company was found ...

card. Elsewhere on the album, Smith's lyrics discuss issues such as drugs on the ranting "Ketamine Sun", and his favourite meal on the jazz-influenced "Pumpkin Soup and Mashed Potatoes". ''The Unutterable'' is notable for not featuring a cover song in any format, unlike all of the group's other studio albums from '' Bend Sinister'' forward; although "Ketamine Sun" reportedly started life as a cover of

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. ...

's " Kill Your Sons", there is little musical similarity between the two tracks. This was the first and only Fall 'official' studio release to be issued on CD only, without a corresponding vinyl version. A double-LP set was eventually issued through Let Them Eat Vinyl in 2014 with the same track listing.

Track listing

2008 Special Deluxe Edition

;Disc 1 - ''The Unutterable'' :''as per original CD'' ;Disc 2 - Testa Rossa monitor mixes ;Notes *The Testa Rossa monitor mixes are early, rough versions of most of the album tracks, as well as two instrumentals not used on the final album. On the reissue, the position of the apostrophe has changed in "Dr. Bucks' Letter" to "Dr. Buck's Letter".

Personnel

;The Fall *

–

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

sound effects A sound effect (or audio effect) is an artificially created or enhanced sound, or sound process used to emphasize artistic or other content of films, television shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, or other media. Traditi ...

Julia Nagle Julia Adamson (also known as Julia Nagle from 1988 to 2006) (born September 30, 1960 in Peterborough, Ontario) is a Canadian composer, musician and current label manager of Invisiblegirl Records.Simpson, Dave (2009) ''The Fallen'', Canongate Book ...

–

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

, guitar, backing vocals, programming *Neville Wilding –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

; lead vocals on "Hands Up Billy" *Adam Helal –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

, Pro Tools, backing vocals *Tom Head –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

, backing vocals ;Additional personnel * Kazuko Hohki – vocals on "Cyber Insekt" *

Steve Evets Steve Evets (born Steven Murphy; 26 July 1959) is an English actor and musician, who found fame in the leading role in the 2009 film ''Looking for Eric''. Personal life Born in Salford, Lancashire, Evets joined the Merchant Navy after leaving ...

- vocals on "Midwatch 1953" *Ben Pritchard - guitar on "Dr. Bucks' Letter" and "Midwatch 1953" * Grant Showbiz - backing vocals; arrangement on "Pumpkin Soup and Mashed Potatoes" *Rob Ayling - executive producer, voice on "Octo Realm" (uncredited) ;Technical *Grant Showbiz - production *Mark E. Smith – production *Adam Helal – engineering, programming (Sonic Surgery) *Andy Drelincourt – engineering, programming (Testa Rossa) *Mike Body – engineering, programming (Streetlevel 2) * Pascal Le Gras - cover art

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Unutterable, The The Fall (band) albums 2000 albums Albums produced by Grant Showbiz