Excavate!: The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall

Edited by Tessa Norton and Bob Stanley, Excavate! is a collection of in-depth essays and various other ephemera (tickets, concert flyers, zines, correspondence, hand-written notes, etc.) from one of the greatest and most original post-punk bands — The Fall. The essays are especially well-chosen, and include pieces that explore the impact of Manchester's urban architecture on the band, the various inspirations for Mark E. Smith's lyrics, and the (possible) origins of Smith's spoken-word delivery style. Excavate! turns out to be an appropriate title not just for the book but for the ways in which Smith and the band mined cultural references for their album titles, song lyrics and verbal rhythms. I wish the book devoted a bit more attention to the albums themselves — for the most part they are presented with just cover art images and key production details — but overall this is a unique collection of Fall memorabilia. More music biographies should be structured like this one.