2013-09-20

Soft selling Soft Cell
3 Out 5 Stars

David Ball and Mark Almond came from the school of synthesizer does that came of age in the 80's. That was a category that encompassed everything from the avant-garde Suicide to the easy listening of Naked Eyes. Soft Cell, on that sliding scale was closet to Suicide than any of the others, as Almond's sleazy vocal delivery and Ball's penchant for gothic keys made Soft Cell on of the darker sounding bands of the time.

As the first track on this "20th Century Masters" set, if they'd just made their cover of "Tainted Love" a hit and quit there, they'd have a spot in the history books. But they couldn't stop there. Adding camp to the creepy, they made a dance single of the hit by attaching a breathy cover of the Supremes' hit "Where Did Our Love Go?" of top of it. They may have been trolling the gutter for some of their original songs (like "Sex Dwarf" and Memorabilia"), but they also did so with a wink. It was all a façade, but a really fun one. Thus, with the aforementioned songs, you get another cover attempt at a hit ("What!"), the sweet "Say Hello Wave Goodbye" which was ironic enough that David Grey did a cover if it. Or the controversial "Numbers," which was banned on the BBC for its depiction of gay hustlers.

Ball pretty much went underground when the duo split, but Almond still cuts the occasional solo disc, and they're often very good. The sound here is better than the original albums, and since all most of folks want is "Tainted Love," this is all the Soft Cell you'll likely need.

2013-09-20

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