The Fall: Ersatz GB, 3CD Box Set

• 'Ersatz GB' was the 28th studio album by post-punk band The Fall.

Originally released on Cherry Red Records on 14 November 2011, 'Ersatz GB' was the Fall's first album on Cherry Red! The album marked the first time in the history of The Fall that the group released three consecutive studio albums recorded with the same line-up!

The album was produced by Mark E. Smith and the Fall's frequent collaborator and former bass guitarist Simon Archer. In his notes for the album, Smith wrote that "brighter mixes and versions existed but these were dismissed because brightness does not fit with 'Ersatz GB'!" This set contains the album, single B-side and two exclusive live shows.

This set as with the other Fall reissues has been compiled in conjunction with Fall Expert Conway Patton and has notes by Fall guru Daryl Easlea and have been mastered by long-time engineer Andy Pearce with art by Becky Stewart.

The Fall were an English post-punk band, formed in Manchester in 1976. The band was essentially built around its founder and only constant member Mark E. Smith.

Initially associated with the punk movement of the late 1970s, the group's music has gone through several stylistic changes over the years, but was often characterised by an abrasive guitar-driven sound and frequent use of repetition, always underpinned by Smith's distinctive vocals and often cryptic lyrics.

The band were noted for their prolific output with over 25 studio albums, and more than triple that counting live albums and other releases. They never achieved widespread public success beyond a handful of minor hit singles in the late 1980s, but maintained a strong cult following. The band were long associated with BBC disc jockey John Peel, who championed them from early on in their career and cited The Fall as his favourite band, famously explaining, "They are always different; they are always the same."

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