Marc And The Mambas – Untitled

The songs and the fidelity on this are spectacular. Well worth seeking out the original vinyl.

In the post-punk disco-not-disco milieu the two tracks that make up the 12 Inch Single,
'Twilights + Lowlifes'
and 'Twilights + Lowlifes (Street Walking Soundtrack)' should be classics and yet are hardly known. The avant-garde dance track and its stripped down remix, though recorded at Trident Studio in London definitely have their spiritual home in New York and the MDMA inspired Non-Stop Ecstatic Dancing album. Interestingly the tracks sound very similar to the then contemporary NY disco-not-disco experimental dance tracks created by Arthur Russell, Peter Zummo, Peter Gordon and would not have sounded out of place on the Sleeping Bag record label.

If there is someone to fit the "drama queen" tag among the 80s crooners, it is undoubtedly Marc Almond. Well, one of, and just as exceptional in terms of genuine talent. When expected by the industry to continue exploiting his own massive successes with a certain Soft Cell, Almond continually fought the cliché of becoming a "pop star", despite the fact he actually - and deservedly - became (a dark) one.

In parallel to his creative partnership with Dave Ball (at the time the duo were on a slight hiatus before going producing "The Art Of Falling Apart"), Marc took his restless spirit for a ride through the desolated soul landscape, soaking it in black and red, fighting his own creative demons. The pathos in his voice, the arrangements and the kitch factor of "Marc & the Mambas" is downright adorable from start to finish, making both their studio records an exceptional body of work that paved way to Almond's equally diverse and fascinating solo-career afterwards.

There may be some inconsistency in "Untitled", though. On one side, there is the beauty of its minimal arrangements (mostly augmented by the piano), accentuating Almond's obsession (or identification) with Jacques Brel, Scott Engel, Lou Reed and/or Syd Barrett - each given a decent hommage with an honest, warm-hearted re-interpretation (and how can one not love "Caroline Says" or "If You Go Away"?). Moments recorded in collaboration with the one and only Matt Johnson are also beauties and audibly Johnson's playing trademark left its shine through.

On the other, the aura of the soft-cellish synth-pop (and the presence of Cindy E only adds extra honey for the bees) is hard to ignore, albeit heading more for the experimental territory; the entire 45 bonus disc - "Twilights & Lowlifes" especially, could very easily be confused with Soft Cell's "Non-Stop"-era catalogue at any time, both versions clocking well over 11 minutes. While dangerously bordering the tedious, the two closing counterparts successfully avoid the trap of sounding like a leftover, providing space for a trance groovy improvisation that is neither dub, disco - nor all that jazz... but all at once more like (with a slight taste of The Residents that never were).

one of the most important albums in my life.