Definition:

The Wikipedia description is pretty much nailed on, although my one song / one genre policy means that tracks which share Post-Punk characteristics often fall into more specific / appropriate genres such as Dubbeat, Electronica or Trance Rock, to name just a few.

The Jukebox Pick (of 1,725):

 Blindness [peel session]

 (Mark E. Smith, Spencer Birtwistle)

 The Fall

  “Utterly perfect” Post-Punk

 Recorded on 4th August 2004 and first broadcast 8 days later on the 12th. Brilliantly, a huge amount of the history of The Fall was played out tirelessly in a Radio 1 series that ran from episode 1 (1978) to episode 24 (2004). With a constantly evolving cast and dramatic storylines, the Fall's Peel Sessions were a bit like the Archers, but for musical intellectuals! The Fall recorded more sessions for Peel's programmes than any other artist; there can be no doubt this was a mutually beneficial relationship. It was business as usual as John broadcast from home on the 12th August, 2004. his episode commentary at various intervals reading: “As regular listeners will know, there are few words in English finer than, 'tonight, a new session from The Fall' ... After that you're probably thinking why only 24 sessions? ... Well I am tempted to say that this is possibly the best Fall session that we've ever had but I probably say that about all of them.”

With The Fall there was permanently a feeling of excitement that the next track might be their best yet - and that feeling was justified when “Blindness” was unleashed. Hilariously, as can be heard on the video intro, Peelie had a false start, not once but twice as playback sources seemed to get mixed up with the Steveless track “Not” (yes, as I was saying it was business as usual, we always laughed with him!) Once we finally got going, the track rumbled out of the radio like a champion horse off the mark. Where did THIS come from?

“We took a break from Tuff Gong to go for a drink in The Original Wire pub. Pretty much the worst pub in Warrington. I remember a cloud of flies buzzing around in there. In the car on the way back we heard witness by Roots Manuva and Spencer [Birtwistle] got very excited. We were inspired by the groove and I think Spencer started the beat, then Steve [Trafford] came up with the bass and me [Jim Watts] and Ben [Pritchard] came in with our guitar parts. Then it was put forward to Mark as a demo and he went in to do his vocal sessions and he made it a Fall song. I remember the sessions were pretty much - day one band recording - day two vocals - day three mixing. Or something close to that, wasnt a long recording.”

Witness the fitness of The Fall at their thundering and mesmerizing best, yes, ripping off Roots Manuva, but propelling his 2001 tune into murkier and duskier realms, inhabited by a savage, seething beast of rhythm and a fevered madman sing-shouting bewildering exclamations on multiple storylines which somehow manage to link the blind (then) home secretary David Blunkett (“blind man, have mercy on me!”), state control (“Said poster with a picture: "Do you work?") and masonic rituals (“I was on one leg”)! Right there, we were in the weird, wonderful and frightening 26-year-old world of The Fall. Just 10 weeks after this recording, John Peel was dead; this session marked the end of an era. “Blindness” burned fiercer than anything which went before - that there was no fade away on the Fall's Peel sessions is tantamount to the working ethics of a great DJ and an awesome group.

“Well this has been just magnificent I think, and thanks Mark and the rest of you for making an old man very happy.” ~ John Peel, 12th August, 2004

Some favourite artists:

The Fall, Joy Division, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Echo & The Bunnymen

The Jukebox pick: