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All Music Guide Review:
Review by Ned Raggett
The Fall's second album was also one of the hardest to find in later years, getting only sporadic represses and reissues. Though some opinions would have it that there was a good reason for this -- namely, that it was something of a dead end sonically -- it's not as bad as all that. It's true that more than a few tracks come across as Fall-by-numbers (even then, already better than plenty of other bands), but there are some thorough standouts regardless. There's also another key reason to rate Dragnet -- it's the debut album appearance of Craig Scanlon, who picked up on the off-kilter rockabilly-meets-art rock sensibilities of the initial lineup and translated it into amazing guitar work. No less important is the appearance of Steve Hanley, who would soon take over fully on bass from Marc Riley, who in turn moved to guitar, forming one heck of a partnership with Scanlon that would last until Riley jumped ship to form the Creepers. Generally the songs which work the best on Dragnet throw in some amusingly odd curves while still hanging together musically. The full winner is unquestionably "Spectre vs. Rector," an amazing combination of clear lead vocals and buried, heavily echoed music and further rants, before fully exploding halfway through while the rhythm obsessively grinds away. Another odd and wonderful cut is "Muzorewi's Daughter," which starts out sounding like stereotypical Hollywood music for Native American tribes before shifting between that and quicker choruses. "Dice Man," with its rave-up melody and slower vocal- and guitar-only chorus, not to mention the weird muttering elsewhere in the mix, says it all in under two minutes and has fun while doing it. Through it all, Smith rants and raves supreme, spinning out putdowns, cracked vocals, and total bile with all the thrill and energy one could want from a good performer.
Mark Prindle Review:
Dragnet - Step Forward 1979.
8 out of 10
STUDIO ALBUM #2 - Not quite as strong as the first album, this one pretty much leaves punk behind to concentrate on the postpunk circus music that the early Fall did so well. Very lo-fi, and some of the duller songs ("Flat Of Angles," "Choc-Stock") seem to go on for years, but the standouts ("Before The Moon Falls," "Your Heart Out," "A Figure Walks") are truly impressive; the guitarist sounds like he (a) can't play worth a shit, and (b) knows exactly the right notes to hit in his amateurish manner at every moment. Mark E. is more self-assured and cocky this time around, claiming in "Dice Man" that, while other entertainers play it safe, he "takes a chance, man - do you take a chance, fan?" - and admitting in "Your Heart Out" that, well, as he puts it, "I don't sing; I just shout - ah! All on one note - ah! Sing sing sing sing-ah!" Foon-wah, as my mom is wont to say. Also, "Spectre Vs. Rector" is one of the earliest of their weird-as-hell experimental guitar melodies. Like most Fall records, this has one or two semi-dull points, and about ten or fifteen moments of pure genius. You've probably never heard them, right? You should! They're really good!
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