Tarmac (company) business retained the Tarmac name and was bought by Anglo American shortly afterwards. In February 2015, Lafarge announced that the business would be sold to CRH plc, once Anglo American had sold its stake. Anglo American completed the sale in July 2015, and the acquisition by CRH completed the following month. Following the purchase, Lafarge Tarmac was rebranded as Tarmac. In February 2011, Anglo American and Lafarge announced their intention to merge their British construction materials businesses, excluding Lafarge's gypsum activities. In September 2011, the proposed transaction was referred to the Competition Commission by the Office of Fair Trading, and
The Fine Art of Surfacing around America leading up to "The Fine Art of Surfacing", drumming up publicity for the band in the States. During this time the Rats learned much about both American life and breaking into the American music market. This is a recurring theme on the album, sometimes taking a serious approach in looking at American society, in songs like "I Don't Like Mondays" and "Diamond Smiles," while other times looking at it in a downright silly and mocking manner in songs like "Nothing Happened Today" and "Having My Picture Taken," the album takes aim at 1979 life in classic punk style.