THE LP LUCKY DIP (1) : SOFT CELL : *HAPPINESS NOT INCLUDED (2022)

The idea being to look at albums not really given much mention, if any at all, on the blog.

*Happiness Not Included was the first new Soft Cell album in twenty years.  It was one I was really looking forward to, given the magnificence of the live show in Glasgow some six months earlier.  The gig had been to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Non Stop Erotic Cabaret, but a number of new songs, destined for what was then a forthcoming album, were also aired.

I had come away from the gig with the thought that the new songs hadn’t sounded out of place among the older material, which meant my expectations here high.  The first advance digital single, released in November 2012, and particularly the accompanying PR blurb did nothing to diminish such expectations, with Marc explaining:-

“‘Bruises On My Illusions’ is a mini film noir Soft Cell story about a disillusioned character with everything against him or her who still has hope for a better future, despite the odds. A darker ‘Bedsitter’. Dave’s ominous yet punchy defiant chords inspired the song.”

And yup, it proved to be a later-era classic.

mp3: Soft Cell – Bruises On My Illusion

OK….it was quite different sounding from the 1980s material, but then again production techniques and values had changed greatly, plus the fact that Marc Almond and David Ball were now writing music from the perspective of men in their 60s whose hedonistic days were almost but a bunch of fading memories.

Fast-forward to March 2022.  And the next new song, came with a video.

There were plenty of fans who had long wondered what a Soft Cell/Pet Shop Boys collaboration would sound like, and now we were finding out.  Absolutely fabulous.

And so, finally in May 2022, the album arrived.  Mine was the yellow vinyl version.

First impression was that the live takes from six months earlier had seemed more energetic and buoyant.  It also seemed strange and kind of disappointing that the version of Purple Zone was slower and less clubby than the version that had been issued as a single. It all led to a feeling that the comeback album was something of a disappointment.

A few weeks later, I returned to the *Happiness Not Included.  And, to my delight, this time it clicked – helped in particular by the closing track on Side 1

mp3: Soft Cell – Light Sleepers

An ode to growing old gracefully but defiantly at the same time, with a wonderfully gentle contribution on sax from their old pal Gary Barnacle.

Listening to and appreciating the sentiments of Light Sleepers acted as a release valve.  My mistake had been listening to the Soft Cell songs of 2022 and immediately comparing them to their songs of the 80s – a stupid thing to do, as life was totally different back then and their music then had a certain purpose that was no longer applicable to how I went about my every day business.  I hate the idea of scoring albums, but this is one that I would have no qualms about awarding it a solid 7/10.  There’s a couple of tunes I could do without, but I’m more than willing to listen again and again to I’m Not A Friend Of God, their ode to atheism which certainly resounds here in Villain Towers (and apologies to those who have faith – I respect those who have and will not argue about it, but it’s not for me), while there’s the occasional tune that would make for a great wee dance down the electro club if such venues still exist:-

mp3: Soft Cell – Nostalgia Machine

But I’ll leave what I think is the highlight of the album to the end, and it comes courtesy of its closing track.

mp3: Soft Cell – New Eden

It’s Soft Cell, but not as we best know them or expect from them.  A song I imagine Marc and David couldn’t really have written back in the day, but then again, with age comes wisdom.

 

JC