Soft Cell Album: “Twelve Inch Singles [1999]”

Brought back very fond memories of trying to do the obligatory 'Robot Dancing' in Summer of '83. Nicely Packaged (3 - Discs take up the same space as a single!). Brought back memories of Big Hair, Lots of Make-up, trying to dance with the Ra-Ra Girls in Newcastle Night Clubs in England c 1982-3. Remembered the Monologue in 'Torch' word for word! Now married with three kids and it seems so long ago!! This is much Better Than a Straight 'Best Of' Album. Digi-Mastering is good too.

The crowning glory of this three CD set is the incredible 14 minute remix of 'Tainted Love'. It brings this classic track up to speed with the nineteen nineties. Using the original strained Marc Almond vocal from the spring of 1981, and all the effects available in the autumn of 1998, the blend is awesome. 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'. All the great songs are hear, including "Persuasion", "Facility Girls", "Barriers" and "Disease and Desire". The sound quality kicks, and the packaging is nice. I agree with the above reviewer that the cardboard packaging kinda sux, but just grab yourself a jewel box that holds three Cd's! Hats off to Mercury for having the class to issue this great package and a big thanks to Club '69 for thier great remix of Tainted Love. Now if they would only release 1980's 'Mutant Moments' on CD. (And the Some Bizzare Album.)

Okay, I own this and I am in complete infatuation! I love the songs and can never put it down for long. It is a must have for any new wave and/or industrial fan. This is where industrial started! The beginning of dark wave, electro, and industrial.

Fans of Soft Cell have certainly been aware of the original 12" Single Box Set that was released at the duo's peak of popularity in the early 1980's. It was collectible and rather rare even then, *especially* for American audiences, and as a devout listener who never really put down the "Torch" all these years, it was a sheer delight to find that Mercury Records was going to issue the Soft Cell 12" Box on CD. In America, no less! I purchased the item on the day of its release, and aside from the paper digi-pack presentation (which I abhorr, no matter how much I admire the music,) the little package contained all of Soft Cell's little adventures, streched out in remixed and extended versions ready for the collector to proclaim an enthusiastic "Eureka!" upon first sight. They're all here, kids, with a few tiny exceptions. All of the original 12" versions issued in the first box set, plus newer remixes which have kept Marc and Dave in the limelight for all these years. This collection is really quite a deal. What Soft Cell fan wouldn't hand out $10 for a CD of Soft Cell's remix library? If you consider that the set retails for little over $30, these three discs contain some pretty difficult-to-obtain material nicely summed up. Hats of to Mercury for offering an item so stunning, I can still scarcely believe it can be found readily on any trip to a record store. Let's hope that Soft Cell's imminent reunion will find these copies leaving the stores at an alarming rate...