Excavate!, a collection of essays inspired by the music and world of the Fall and Mark E. Smith, is set to be published in the U.S. for the first time on June 22nd via Faber Books.
The book, previously available overseas, features contributions from a variety of writers, as well as a collection of previously unreleased artwork, rare ephemera, and handwritten material. Bob Stanely and Tessa Norton edited Excavate! which includes essays from Grant Showbiz, Michael Clark, Elain Harwood, Ian Penman, Paul Wilson, Owen Hatherley, Mark Fisher, Mark Sinker, Michael Bracewell and Jon Wilde, Stuart Bertolotti-Bailey, Siân Pattenden, Dan Fox, Adelle Stripe and Scott King, and Richard McKenna.
A release describes Excavate! The Wonderful and Frightening World of the Fall as a book that’s not so much about the Fall as a band, but the world Smith — who died in 2018 at 60 from the effects of lung and kidney cancer — built. That world includes not only music but an eclectic mix of interests that run the gamut from Medieval scholar M.R. James to contemporary dance to Smith’s beloved Manchester City football club.
Back in February, the Fall released a new live album, The Fall — Live at St. Helens Technical College, ’81, which features a mix of tracks from 1979’s Dragnet, 1980’s Grotesque (After the Gramme), and 1981’s Slates EP.
From Rolling Stone US
