Untitled (Marc and the Mambas album)

Untitled
Studio album by Marc and the Mambas
Released September 1982
Recorded Trident Studios
Genre Alternative rock, new wave
Length 60:35
Label Some Bizzare Records
Producer Marc and the Mambas
Marc and the Mambas chronology
Untitled
(1982)		 Torment and Toreros
(1983)

Untitled is the first studio album by the British singer/songwriter Marc Almond's band Marc and the Mambas. It was released by Some Bizzare in September 1982.

Background

Untitled was Almond's first album away from Soft Cell and was made concurrently with the latter's The Art of Falling Apart album.[1] Almond collaborated with a number of artists for this album, including Matt Johnson of The The and Anni Hogan.[2] The album was produced by the band, with assistance from Stephen Short (credited as Steeve Short) and Flood.[3]

Jeremy Reed writes in his biography of Almond, The Last Star, that Untitled was "cheap and starkly recorded".[4] He states that Almond received "little support from Phonogram for the Mambas project, the corporate viewing it as non-commercial and a disquieting pointer to the inevitable split that would occur within Soft Cell".[5] An article in Mojo noted that "from the beginning, Almond and Ball had nurtured sideline projects, though only the former's - the 1982 double 12 inch set Untitled - attracted much attention, most of it disapproving." The article mentions that Almond "who preferred to nail a song in one or two takes" stated that it was all "about feel and spontaneity, otherwise it gets too contrived" when accused of singing flat.<ref name"mojo">Paytress, Mark. "We Are The Village Sleaze Preservation Society". Mojo (September 2014): 69. </ref>

Simon Price of The Independent quotes Almond as calling the album "the deluded ramblings of self-indulgence fuelled by too much acid".[6]

The album was released on gatefold double vinyl with the first record playing at 33rpm and the second at 45rpm. The album reached number 42 in the UK Albums Chart.[7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Smash Hits6/10[8]

Neil Tennant, then a journalist at Smash Hits, reviewed the album saying that the band "have obviously enjoyed producing some intriguing, if self-indulgent, new music and their own versions of some old favourites".[8] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic also calls the album "intriguing" but states that Untitled "doesn't ever add up to anything cohesive", whilst acknowledging that Almond has "made a conscious departure from Soft Cell".[2]

Track listing

Side A
No. TitleWritten by Length
1. "Untitled"  Marc Almond, Matt Johnson 4:54
2. "Empty Eyes"  Almond, Annie Hogan 5:03
3. "Angels"  Almond, Johnson 8:34
Side C
No. TitleWritten by Length
9. "Big Louise"  Scott Walker, from Scott 3 5:05
10. "Caroline Says"  Lou Reed, from Berlin 3:39
11. "Margaret"  Hogan 3:45
12. "If You Go Away"  Jacques Brel, originally "Ne me quitte pas" 6:28
Side C
No. TitleWritten by Length
1. "Terrapin"  Syd Barrett, originally "Terrapin" 4:18
2. "Twilights & Lowlifes"  Marc and the Mambas 11:29
Side D
No. TitleWritten by Length
8. "Twilights & Lowlifes (Street Walking Soundtrack)"  Marc and the Mambas 11:08

Personnel

Chart performance

Chart (1983) Peak
position
UK Albums (OCC)[7] 42

References

  1. ↑ Reed, p. 33.
  2. 1 2 3 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Marc and the Mambas Untitled review". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  3. ↑ Reed, p. 168.
  4. ↑ Reed, p. 50.
  5. ↑ Reed, p. 54.
  6. ↑ Price, Simon (12 August 2012). "Marc and the Mambas, Royal Festival Hall, London". The Independent. Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Marc and the Mambas | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  8. 1 2 Tennant, Neil. "Albums". Smash Hits (October 14, 1982): 23.
  • Reed, Jeremy (1995). Marc Almond - The Last Star. Creation Books. ISBN 978-1840680065. 
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