Mark E. Smith

Mark E. Smith

Mark E. Smith is the late lead singer, lyricist and co-composer of The Fall, the British post-punk band he forms after dropping out of college in 1976. Born Mark Edward Smith in Broughton, near Salford in Lancashire, England, he moves to Prestwich near Bury early in life. He gives up his job at Salford docks shortly after forming the group in order to focus on it full time.

The Fall and style

Smith fronts The Fall from the start and remains its central figure. The band is named after the novel by Albert Camus and is associated with the UK post-punk and new wave scenes. Smith’s writing develops a distinctive style that combines social realism, surrealism and absurdism, and he writes about subjects including unemployment, football violence, time travel and ghosts. He is also known for a sharp sense of humour in his lyrics.

Other work

Outside The Fall, Smith releases the spoken-word albums The Post-Nearly Man and Pander! Panda! Panzer!. He also provides guest vocals for Inspiral Carpets, Elastica, Long Fin Killie, Mouse on Mars and Coldcut. He is a member of Von Südenfed as well as The Fall.

Influences

In interviews, Smith cites Colin Wilson, Wyndham Lewis, H. P. Lovecraft and Philip K. Dick as influences on his work.