Marc And Mambas* – Torment And Toreros

Catch a Fallen Star
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcfrSeW0b-g

A friend of mine was talking about scatological writers and I immediately thought of Marc Almond’s music. Marc’s work covers a vast range, perhaps even more than David Bowie. He has worked with all sorts of artists from the ‘gutter’, to stars, like Nico and Gene Pitney. Continuing the tradition of the Decadents, Marc is dedicated to merging the gutter with the stars. The title of one of his albums Vermin in Ermine is a hilarious example.

Obviously we know about the Soft Cell side. Whilst he was still with David Ball, he started working with other artists. His first significant project outside of Soft Cell was Marc and the Mambas. I it coming out, and thought, “what’s this?”. It was very different. Music at that time was in the post punk era. Music had gone through a thorough kind of slamming purge with punk mocking rock, break it up and rebuild (thank God, rock was getting tired). That’s why punk is hugely important, it’s not just the punk music itself, but the way it informed the course of music to proceed from that point: music was revitalised and redefined. So the indie 80s had some incredibly challenging music – Echo and the Bunnymen is a good example, Ian McCulloch was a genius song writer and singer with their first few albums.

So, musicians were challenging and discovering what music could be. Marc and the Mambas were strange, an odd combination of freeform and strict tempo. The new introduction to Marc was Annie Hogan, a classically trained pianist, and the string section (who would stay with Marc for a few albums as the Willing Sinners). It was liberating for classical artists to have the option to play with Marc rather than a formal British orchestra. So, the strings and piano on the Marc and the Mambas albums are brilliant. It’s a new kind of music. And on top of that you have the cutting anger of Marc’s lyrics (I don’t know where the anger comes from – he seems like a nice chappie . . . ).

The first Mambas album is special, but I think it’s Torment and Toreros where the real genius all comes together to create an unworldly double album of music. Punk, classical and Spanish flamenco fuse here to create a frenzy of melody and disc(h)ord. Marc’s voice isn’t perfect, but his ion pushes it way beyond his capabilities. What clinched this album for me were the classical bits in Catch a Fallen Star. Marc starts ranting in the song – I was used to that – they are intelligent lyrics, difficult to put to music. Suddenly I was caught off guard by the powerful strings. In the above link they appear at 1:08, 2:46 and magnum opus 4:17. The effect of the strings on the coruscating lyrics is transcendent. Do also listen to Annie Hogan’s piano throughout the song, it brings the song together, the words would be foul without her – it’s all a perfect fusion of opposites.

I write this as a Soft Cell fan. At the time Cell's Tainted Love was blaring from every clothes store, I actually didn't like TL then (I do now, for what it is . . . ), its omnipresence was irritating and seemed against the theme of Soft Cell ‘underground’. TL was a successful pop song, not Soft Cell and whether or not it was good (which it was), it wasn’t the heart of Soft Cell. For me, Soft Cell was more about Bedsitter, Torch, even What, but more importantly the darker tunes . . .

In the time of Bananarama, Marc, as alternative, was always interesting. So, I when the Marc and the Mamba albums came out, I had high hopes. Untitled seemed a bit all over the place, though of course I liked it, I was hoping for more with the second Mambas. On picking Torment and Torreros up and looking at the cover, I thinking what the hell is this? Where is Marc going? Flamenco? But, I definitely was excited with the prospect of a new Marc album.

On playing it, there was the awesome, intensifying thrill of discovering a classic album. This was truly unlike anything before. T n’ T remained true to its punk ethos, but massively pushing ahead post-punk; it had beautiful instrumentation, sometimes of classical beauty – Annie Hogan on piano, the string section; all coupled with an almost savage rawness. Marc Almond’s anger and ion were very concentrated and the lyrics cutting. There were many discoveries and surprises.

The Animal in You is wild. So many tracks (a double album!), a favourite being Catch a Fallen Star, beautiful music with the harshest condemning lyrics imaginable. Catch a Fallen Star? Marc Almond is certainly in the ascendant; remaining so for many years and exploring many different sounds.

The track Torment appears as a version on The Glove’s Blue Sunshine deluxe cd (disc two, extras). Credits to Smith/Severin. Hmm, curious who’s song is it?!

a monumental album.