Soft Cell Albums Ranked
Soft Cell is an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. The duo consisted of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The band is primarily known for their 1981 hit version of “Tainted Love” and their platinum-selling debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret. In the United Kingdom, Soft Cell had twelve top 40 hits including “Tainted Love” (#1), “Torch” (#2), “Say Hello, Wave Goodbye”, “What” (both #3), and “Bedsitter” (#4). They also had four top 20 albums between 1981 and 1984. In 1984, the duo split; however, they reformed in 2001 to tour and release a new album and held a final reunion concert in London in 2018. Soft Cell’s songs have been covered by various artists, including David Gray, Marilyn Manson, Coil, and Nine Inch Nails. Their track “Memorabilia” earned recognition for the band as pioneers of the synth-oriented techno genre. The duo has sold ten million records worldwide. Here are all of Soft Cell albums ranked.
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7. The Very Best Of Soft Cell (2002)
“This album is so different and can’t be compared to anything by any artist. It makes you wanna dance and sing. It’s a mug’s game makes you wanna groove with it’s bass and drums. You’ll feel like you were dancing on broadway while you were listening to Down in the Subway. You would be singing to Tainted Love. This album is great. I bought it and haven’t been able to stop listening to it. The only thing I don’t like is how they seperated Tainted Love and Where did our love go? That should be one song but the rest is great!”
6. Down In The Subway (1994)
“The beat is stronger, the bass keys are dirtier, and the vocal is right on. New effects on the voice include the “Cher” effect used on “Believe”, and tons of echo, reverb, and tone changes. Later on in the mix the beat switches to the Marilyn Manson song “Beautiful People”. (And I think I also hear “My Sharona” in there too!) Okay, I know there is more to this set than the new ‘Tainted Love’.”
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5. The Singles (1986)
“Soft Cell was a British new-wave group of the early 1980s. This album contains their most radio-friendly tracks, the most famous being “Tainted Love”. Very 80s sounding (lots of synthesiser blips and beeps) as you would expect, although some tracks such as “Torch” (with an occasional sax backing) have a brooding quality that’s quite interesting”
4. This Last Night In Sodom (1984)
“Last Night in Sodom is sort of a slight departure from the previous works in that there is some guitar in some of the songs. The songs are more angrier in tone as well. “Mr Self Destruct” may be the closest Soft Cell has come to making an actual rock song. “Slave to This” is a chilling dirge where Marc Almond’s lyrics are never more angry and desperate in this artsy track. “Meet Murder my Angel” is a great song that describes the mind of a killer before he takes out his victim. It is very creepy much like “Martin” is from the “Art of Falling Apart” CD. “Down in the Subway” is a catchy song in which Almond almost makes killing himself sound like fun or a happy event..heh. “Where was your Heart” is about a girl “giving it up” and losing her virginity to someone who never cared about her and just wanted to have sex with her.”
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3. Non Stop Ecstatic Dancing (1982)
“With the 1982 successor Non-Stop Ecstatic Dancing, the two then performed something like pioneering work. The EP was a remix album with 5 songs already released and with What there was even a new track to hear. The remixes have succeeded sometimes more and less. The tracks are slightly mixed together, but it was not a megamix with continuous beats. Nowadays, remix albums are not uncommon, at that time these were exceptions. In the informative CD booklet it is even pointed out that Soft Cell was the first to start, at least The Human Leagues remix album Love & Dancing followed only a short time later and the Pet Shop Boys made such albums popular with disco and introspective only in the second half of the 80s.”
2. The Art Of Falling Apart (1983)
“The Art of Falling Apart is almost like a mix of the Non-Stops and This Last Night, I’d say it’s a very balanced album. And although it isn’t my overall favorite of Soft Cell’s, it still has really great songs! Some of the songs may take a few listens before you can really get into them. The song that I love the most is The Art of Falling Apart. It’s such an incredible song! Definitely one of my all time favorites by Soft Cell!”
1. Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret (1981)
“Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is the classic synth pop/new wave album Tainted Love comes off of but the album contains such cult hits as Sex Dwarf (my favorite as I heard it thousands of times on LIVE 105 in San Francisco in the 80’s and into the 90’s), Seedy Films which was recently remade by the DMX Krew (they did a really upbeat version while the whole Electroclash sound was happening), Bedsitter and Say Hello Wave Goodbye. Of course this album also contains the extended version of Tainted Love with Where Did Our Love Go.”