Dragnet (album)

Dragnet is the second studio album by English post punk band the Fall, released on 26 October 1979 through Step Forward Records. Appearing less than eight months after its predecessor, Live at the Witch Trials, Dragnet established at an early stage two key patterns characteristic of the group's future: that of high productivity and that of a regular turnover of group members.

Only Mark E. Smith and Marc Riley remained in the lineup from the band's debut album, Live at the Witch Trials. Drummer Karl Burns left soon after recording and was replaced by Mike Leigh, while founder member Martin Bramah quit mid tour in April 1979, when some of the material intended for the second album had already been written. Dragnet would be the Fall's final album for Miles Copeland III's Step Forward label; the band signed with Rough Trade Records in early 1980.

Reviews for Dragnet have been generally favourable. Sounds critic Dave McCullough wrote that "The Fall have never been stronger, the sound is more concise, more assured and Mark Smith's writing has an aura of confidence and direction to it." David Quantick, reviewing the 1999 reissue for Q, found that Dragnet contains some of Smith's best songs and noted its crude production, remarking that the album sounds as if it "was recorded on a home cassette recorder in a multi storey car park." In his review of the 2016 reissue, Jason Heller of Pitchfork described the album as "weighty" and "overwhelmingly dense." In 2018, Billboard writer Geeta Dayal ranked it the Fall's fourth best album. Trouser Press opined that Dragnet is "not one of The Fall's best efforts, but contains at least two classic numbers, 'Spectre vs. Rector' and 'A Figure Walks'." AllMusic reviewer Ned Raggett noted that while several tracks "come across as Fall by numbers (even then, already better than plenty of other bands)," the album nonetheless includes "thorough standouts" such as "Spectre Vs Rector".

In 2004, Castle Music reissued the album with, for the first time, remastered audio from the original master tapes. The reissue included the contemporaneous singles "Rowche Rumble" and "Fiery Jack" (and the singles' B sides), but also previously unheard alternate takes and breakdowns from the "Rowche Rumble" recording sessions. Dragnet was reissued on vinyl in 2016 on the Superior Viaduct label.

All tracks arranged by the Fall except "Printhead" (arranged by the Fall and Martin Bramah).