It would be hard to make up a character such as Brix Smith. From LA, and besotted with punk, post-punk, new wave and The Fall, a chance encounter in Chicago with Mark E. Smith saw her arrive in grim and pasty Salford, where she suddenly became a member of The Fall, married Mr. Smith, wrote songs and basically became a bit of an indie star in her own right. However, Mr Smith didn't prove so wonderful, and Brix concurrently formed the psychedelic pop revivalists The Adult Net, who achieved minor indie success in the late 80s. She then married Nigel Kennedy, the virtuoso violinist, before that one also fell by the wayside, and is now on marriage number three, this time to fashion entrepreneur Philip Start, helping him to run his empire, whilst becoming a presenter for TV's Gok’s Fashion Fix. She had, by the late 90s (following a couple more The Fall albums) given up with music altogether. So, not your usual career path then.

Like Ruby Wax, another ex-pat American who came over in her early 20s, there's an endearingly hyperactive, can-do spirit to Smith. And re-discovering her love of music is certainly a good thing, for which ex-The Fall members Steve Hanley, Steve Trafford and Irish guitarist Jason Brown, have leant a big hand. Channelling the spirit of The Fall (hence the album's name, Part 2), but also clearly demonstrating that Smith was (and still is) a very good songwriter, who brought a little pop nous (and glamour) to the band, enabling them to become unlikely, if minor, hit makers back in their 80s/90s heyday.

With The Fall being such an explicit part of this band (The Fall's 1990 album, the first one post-Brix Smith, before she re-joined in the mid-90s for two further albums, was called Extricate) it is no surprise to hear them resurrect a few Brix Smith-penned numbers from the back catalogue and give them a 21st century makeover. Such as 'Feeling Numb', a fast and slashing song in classic remorselessly driving The Fall mould, while 1983's 'Hotel Bloedel' has been significantly enhanced from the lo-fi original, one of Brix Smith's earliest songs and vocal performances (out of tune in places). Listening to ‘LA’ you can perversely hear the sound of The Pixies in Brix's updated version, whilst The Fall's original comes closer to New Order territory, as well as being an influence on the yet-to-come Happy Mondays.

The rest though are originals and, for the most part stand up just as well, if not sometimes better. This includes the startling opening track 'Pneumatic Violet', the band having a rollicking good time, sounding a little bit like Television, with a hint of Blondie in amongst this tale of a Single White Female episode Smith endured, which at first she sings about rather matter-of-fact, before exploding into a litany of revenge fantasies ("I'm going to slam your spine into the dirt, I'm going to make you pay", "I'm gonna wring your neck until I hear it snap", et al). 'Something To Lose' meanwhile has that classic dark and chugging repetitive (indeed, Can inspired) rhythm that The Fall employed on many an occasion, and here done just as well. Brix's lyrics once again full of memorable, indeed arresting, visual images, such as, "A homeless shelter in a burger bar", and, "I was clean yesterday, but tomorrow I will be filthy". 'Damned For Eternity' shares a kinship with the dirty riffage of The Stooges’ Raw Power, and sounding remarkably snarly for a band of mostly 50-somethings.

The poppier side of Brix comes out on the psychedelic pop groove of 'Moonrise Kingdom', while album closer, the new wave-esque and anthemic 'Hollywood', seals the deal with this Paul Hanley/Brix Smith-penned number.

Part 2 is a pleasant surprise. She hadn't made an album since the late 90s, indeed had barely picked up a guitar since then. This is the sound of someone rekindling their love of music, along with a band made up of largely ex-The Fall refugees. Hanley’s bass still sounds totally wired, while both Steve Trafford and Jason Brown provides loads of guitar textures and colours throughout. All together, their racket is gloriously big and uplifting. If there was any doubt, there shouldn't be any now.

Jeff Hemmings

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