FACT AND FICTION

First issued in 1982, Twelfth Night's masterwork Fact and Fiction is very much of its time. The album is in stark monochrome from its cover art to its spartan arrangements of synths and guitars. Geoff Mann approaches these songs with a punkish ferocity at times, his performance ranging from the disgusted laughter and shouts of "LEFT RIGHT LEFT RIGHT" of"We Are Sane" to the plaintive calm of "Love Song." But at the same time, its lyrics and themes, that of individual identity in the face of massive conformity and love in the face of hatred are appealingly timeless, some years after the group's disbandment and Mann's death. "We Are Sane" is a chilling indictment of consumer culture's effect on individuality with lyrics like "the maintainance of power can be so fulfilling/just as long as all the slaves are willing." "Human Being" is a prog spin on synth pop with one of Mann's best couplets "if everytime we tell a lie a little fairy dies/they must be building death camps in the garden." "Creepshow" was Twelfth Night's monumentally theatrical epic, but does not come across as well in the album setting, seeming rather melodically bland in contrast with their newer compositions. With an album full of thought provoking, rocking material and an equal tendency towards atmosphere, its easy to see why calling the band "Punk Floyd" was an easy way out for early 80s journalists. But it seems apt on some of their early singles, provided as bonus tracks on the 2002 Cyclops reissue. "East of Eden" in its original incarnation had a ascending and descending psychedelic riff over which Mann bellows "It seems that paradise/has been well locked and barred/from all the issue of Adam."