Marc Almond
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Peter Mark Almond (born 9 July 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He is the lead vocalist of the
synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...
/ new wave duo Soft Cell. He has a distinctive soulful voice and
androgynous Androgyny is the possession of both masculine and feminine characteristics. Androgyny may be expressed with regard to biological sex or gender expression. When ''androgyny'' refers to mixed biological sex characteristics in humans, it often r ...
image. He has had a diverse career as a solo artist. He rose to prominence in the early 1980s with Soft Cell's hit "Tainted Love" (1981), which became a defining track of the new wave and synth-pop movement. After Soft Cell disbanded in 1984, Almond pursued a solo career, incorporating elements of pop, cabaret, and electronic music. His hits include a duet with
Gene Pitney Gene Francis Alan Pitney (February 17, 1940 – April 5, 2006) was an American pop and country singer, songwriter, and musician. Pitney charted 16 top-40 hits in the United States, four in the top ten. In the United Kingdom, he had 22 top-40 h ...
on the 1989 UK number one single " Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart". and "Tears Run Rings". He has released numerous albums and collaborated with artists such as Jools Holland, Nico, and Siouxsie Sioux, exploring diverse musical styles ranging from torch songs to Russian folk music. Almond's career spanning over four decades has enjoyed critical and commercial acclaim, and he has sold over 30 million records worldwide. He spent a month in a coma after a near-fatal motorcycle accident in 2004 and later became a patron of the brain trauma charity Headway. He was appointed
Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
(OBE) in the
2018 New Year Honours The 2018 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Hono ...
for services to arts and culture.


Early life

Almond was born in
Southport Southport is a seaside resort, seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. It lies on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain, West Lancashire coastal plain and the east coast of the Irish Sea, approximately north of ...
, Sefton, the son of Sandra Mary Diesen and Peter John Almond, a Second Lieutenant in the King's Liverpool Regiment. He was brought up at his grandparents' house in Birkdale with his younger sister, and as a child suffered from
bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...
and
asthma Asthma is a common long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wh ...
. When he was four, they left their grandparents' house and moved to Starbeck, Harrogate. Two years later they returned to Southport, and then moved to
Horsforth Horsforth is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, five miles north-west of Leeds city centre. Historically a village within the West Riding of Yorkshire, it had a population of 18,895 ...
, Yorkshire. There, he attended Horsforth Featherbank Infant School. At the age of 11, Almond attended Aireborough Grammar School near
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
. He found solace in music, listening to radio pioneer John Peel. The first albums he purchased were the soundtrack of the stage musical ''
Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and ...
'' and ''Benefit'' by Jethro Tull, and the first singles were " Green Manalishi" by
Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1967 by the singer and guitarist Peter Green (musician), Peter Green. Green named the band by combining the surnames of the drummer, Mick Fleetwood, and the bassis ...
and "Witch's Promise" by Jethro Tull. He became a great fan of Marc Bolan and
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...
, and got a part-time job as a stable boy to fund his music listening. After his parents' divorce in 1972, he moved with his mother back to Southport where he attended King George V School. He gained two O-Levels in Art and English and was accepted onto a General Art and Design course at Southport College, specialising in Performance Art. Almond applied to Leeds Polytechnic, where he was interviewed by Jeff Nuttall, also a performance artist, who accepted him on the strength of his performing skills. During his time at art college, he did a series of performance theatre pieces: ''Zazou'', ''Glamour in Squalor'', ''Twilights and Lowlifes'', as well as
Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...
inspired mini-movies. ''Zazou'' was reviewed by '' The Yorkshire Evening Post'' and described as "one of the most nihilistic depressing pieces that I have ever had the misfortune to see", prompting Almond to later refer to it as a "success" in his autobiography. He left art college with a 2:1 honours degree. He later credited writer and artist Molly Parkin with discovering him. It was at Leeds Polytechnic that Almond met David Ball, a fellow student; they formed Soft Cell in 1977. As a child, Almond listened to his parents' record collection, which included his mother's " Let's Dance" by
Chris Montez Chris Montez (born Ezekiel Christopher Montañez; January 17, 1943) is an American guitarist and vocalist, whose stylistic approach has ranged from rock & roll to pop standards and Latin music. His rock sound is exemplified in songs such as hi ...
and " The Twist" by Chubby Checker, as well as his father's collection of jazz, including Dave Brubeck and
Eartha Kitt Eartha Mae Kitt (née Keith; January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American singer and actress. She was known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song "Santa Baby" ...
. As an adolescent, Almond listened to
Radio Caroline Radio Caroline is a British radio station founded in 1964 by Ronan O'Rahilly and Allan Crawford, initially to circumvent the record companies' control of popular music broadcasting in the United Kingdom and the BBC's radio broadcasting monopol ...
and Radio Luxembourg. He listened at first to
progressive music Progressive music is music that attempts to expand existing stylistic boundaries associated with specific music genre, genres of music. The word comes from the basic concept of ":wiktionary:progress, progress", which refers to advancements thr ...
,
blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...
, and rock, and bands such as Free, Jethro Tull,
Van der Graaf Generator Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester by singer-songwriters Peter Hammill and Judge Smith, Chris Judge Smith. They were the first act signed by Charisma Records. They did not experience much ...
,
the Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...
, and
the Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, comprising vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts ...
. He bought the first ever issue of ''Sounds'' because it contained a free poster of
Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician and producer who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin. Page began his career as a studio session musician in Lo ...
. Almond became a fan of Bolan after hearing him on ''The John Peel Show'', buying the T. Rex single " Ride a White Swan". From then on, Almond "followed everything Marc Bolan did" and it was his obsession with Bolan that prompted Almond to adopt the "Marc" spelling of his name.Sinclair, David (2007
"Marc Bolan: the celebration"
''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'', 17 September 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2010
He discovered the songs of Jacques Brel through Bowie as well as Alex Harvey and
Dusty Springfield Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien (16 April 1939 â€“ 2 March 1999), better known by her stage name Dusty Springfield, was a British singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano voice, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, Pop mus ...
. Brel became a major influence.


Career


1980s

Almond and Dave Ball formed the synthesiser-based duo Soft Cell and signed to the Some Bizzare label. Their hits included " Tainted Love" (UK No. 1), " Bedsitter" (UK No. 4), " Say Hello, Wave Goodbye" (UK No. 3), "
Torch A torch is a stick with combustible material at one end which can be used as a light source or to set something on fire. Torches have been used throughout history and are still used in processions, symbolic and religious events, and in juggl ...
" (UK No. 2), " What!" (UK No. 3), "Soul Inside" (UK No. 16), and the club hit "Memorabilia". Soft Cell's first release was an independent record (funded by Dave Ball's mother) entitled "Mutant Moments" via Red Rhino Records in 1980. "Mutant Moments" came to the attention of music entrepreneur Stevo Pearce, who at the time was compiling a "futurist" chart for the music papers Record Mirror and '' Sounds'' which featured young, upcoming and experimental bands of the new wave of electronic sound. He signed the duo to his Some Bizzare label and they enjoyed a string of nine Top 40 hit singles and four Top 20 albums in the UK between 1981 and 1984. They recorded three albums in New York with producer Mike Thorne: '' Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret'', '' Non Stop Ecstatic Dancing'' and '' The Art of Falling Apart''. Almond became involved with the New York Underground Art Scene at this time with writer/DJ Anita Sarko, which led him to meet artists including
Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...
and perform at a number of Art events. "Tainted Love", a cover of a Gloria Jones
Northern Soul Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged in Northern England and the Midlands in the early 1970s. It developed from the British Mod (subculture), mod scene, based on a particular style of African American music, Black American ...
classic, was number one in the UK and in many countries over the world, and was in the ''
Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...
'' for a while as the record that spent the longest time in the Billboard Top 100 chart in the US. It also won the best-single award of 1981 at the first Brit Awards. Soft Cell brought an otherwise obscure Northern Soul classic to mass public attention and their version of the song is, to date, the UK's 59th best-selling single of all time, selling over one million copies in the UK. Marc also became friends with JG Thirlwell and, in 1983, as Clint Ruin, Thirlwell performed with Soft Cell on the
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
show The Switch. Marc travelled to New York with Thirlwell and
Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian musician, writer, and actor who fronts the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Known for his baritone voice, Cave's music is characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety ...
, where they became part of The Immaculate Consumptive with
Lydia Lunch Lydia Lunch (born Lydia Anne Koch; June 2, 1959)Martin Charles Strong. ''The Great Indie Discography''. 2003, page 85 is an American singer, poet, writer, actress and self-empowerment speaker. Her career began during the 1970s New York City no ...
. Almond and Thirlwell continued to work together, ultimately culminating in the Flesh Volcano single in 1987. In 1982, Almond formed Marc and the Mambas as an offshoot project from Soft Cell. Marc and the Mambas was a loose experimental collective that set the template for the artist that Almond would become. The Mambas at various times included Matt Johnson, Steve James Sherlock, Lee Jenkinson, Peter Ashworth, Jim Thirlwell and Annie Hogan, with whom Almond worked later in his solo career. Under the Mambas moniker, Almond recorded two albums, '' Untitled'' and the double-album '' Torment and Toreros''. He disbanded the collective when it started to feel too much like a regular band. Soft Cell disbanded in 1984 just before the release of their fourth album, '' This Last Night in Sodom'', but the duo briefly reunited in 2001 and again in 2018. Almond's first proper solo album was '' Vermin in Ermine'', released in 1984. Produced by Mike Hedges, it featured musicians from the Mambas outfit, Annie Hogan, Martin McCarrick and Billy McGee. This ensemble, known as The Willing Sinners, worked alongside Almond for the subsequent albums '' Stories of Johnny'' (1985) from which the title track became a minor hit, and '' Mother Fist and Her Five Daughters'' (1987), also produced by Mike Hedges. The latter album was highly acclaimed in reviews, with Ned Raggett writing that the 'Mother Fist' album "embraces classic European cabaret to wonderful effect, more so than any American or English rock album since Bowie's ''Aladdin Sane'' or Lou Reed's ''Berlin''." McCarrick left The Willing Sinners in 1987 to join
Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees ( ) were a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. Post-punk pioneers, they were widely influential, both over their contemporaries and later ...
, from which point Hogan and McGee became known as La Magia. Almond signed to EMI and released the album '' The Stars We Are'' in 1988. This album featured Almond's version of " Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart", which was later re-recorded as a duet with the song's original singer
Gene Pitney Gene Francis Alan Pitney (February 17, 1940 – April 5, 2006) was an American pop and country singer, songwriter, and musician. Pitney charted 16 top-40 hits in the United States, four in the top ten. In the United Kingdom, he had 22 top-40 h ...
and released as a single. The track reached No. 1 in the UK. It also reached number one in Germany and was a major hit in countries around the world. ''The Stars We Are'' became his biggest selling solo album in the US, and the single " Tears Run Rings" became his only solo single to peak inside the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Almond's other recordings in the 1980s included an album of Brel songs, called '' Jacques'', and an album of dark French chansons originally performed by Juliette Gréco, Serge Lama and Léo Ferré, as well as poems by Rimbaud and Baudelaire set to music. This album was released in 1993 as ''Absinthe'', and was initially recorded in the late 1980s then finished in Paris in the early 1990s.


1990s

Almond's first release in the 1990s was the album '' Enchanted'', which spawned the UK Top 30 hit "A Lover Spurned". A further single from the album, "Waifs and Strays", was remixed by Dave Ball who was now in the electronic dance band The Grid. In 1991, Soft Cell returned to the charts with a new remix of "Say Hello Wave Goodbye" followed by a re-release of "Tainted Love" (with a new video). The singles were issued to promote a new Soft Cell/Marc Almond compilation album, '' Memorabilia - The Singles'', which collected some of the biggest hits from Almond's career throughout the previous ten years. The album reached the UK Top 10. Almond then signed to WEA and released a new solo album, '' Tenement Symphony''. Produced partly by Trevor Horn, the album yielded three Top 40 hits including renditions of the Jacques Brel classic "Jacky" (which made the UK Top 20), and "The Days of Pearly Spencer" which returned Almond to the UK Top 5 in 1992. Later that year, Almond played a lavish one-off show at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...
in London, which featured an orchestra and dancers as he performed material from his entire career. The show was recorded and released as the CD and video ''12 Years of Tears''. In 1993 Almond toured Russia (including
Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...
) by invitation of the British consul in Moscow. Accompanied only by Martin Watkins on piano, he played small Soviet halls and theatres, often without amplification, and ended at the "mini Bolshoi" in Moscow. Transmitted live on television Almond made a plea for tolerance of gay people. The tour was fraught with troubles, which Almond detailed in his autobiography, but it marked the beginning of his love affair with the genre of Russian folk torch songs known as Romance. Almond's next album ''Fantastic Star'' saw him part with WEA and sign to Mercury Records. Much of ''Fantastic Star'' was originally recorded in New York with Mike Thorne, but later after signing to Mercury, was reworked in London. Almond also recorded a session for the album with John Cale, David Johanson, and Chris Spedding; some made the final cut. Other songs were produced by Mike Hedges and Martyn Ware. Adding to the disjointed recording process was the fact that during recording Almond also spent several weeks attending a treatment centre in
Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
for addiction to prescription drugs. However, on its release ''Fantastic Star'' gave Almond a hit single with "Adored and Explored", and also minor hits and stage favourites such as "The Idol" and "Child Star". ''Fantastic Star'' was Almond's last album with WEA and also marked the ending of his managerial relationship with Stevo Pearce. Almond signed to Echo records in 1998 with a more downbeat and atmospheric electronica album, '' Open All Night''. This featured R&B and
trip hop Trip hop is a musical genre that has been described as a psychedelic music, psychedelic fusion of hip hop music, hip hop and electronica with slow tempos and an atmospheric sound. The style emerged as a more experimental music, experimental var ...
influences, as well as torch songs for which he had become known. The album featured a duet ("Threat of Love") with Siouxsie Sioux as well as one ("Almost Diamonds") with Kelli Ali (then of the Sneaker Pimps). "Black Kiss", "Tragedy" and "My Love" were the singles from the album ''Open All Night''.


2000s

Almond relocated in 2000 to Moscow where he rented an apartment. With the encouragement and connections of executive producer Misha Kucherenko, he embarked on a three-year recording project of Russian romance and folk songs, called '' Heart on Snow''. Featuring many Russian stars old and new such as
Boris Grebenshchikov Boris Borisovich Grebenshchikov (; born ) is a prominent member of the generation which is widely considered to be the "founding fathers" of Russian rock music. He is the founder and lead singer of the band Aquarium which has been active since ...
, Ilya Lagutenko of the Russian band Mumiy Troll, Lyudmila Zykina and Alla Bayanova and featuring The Rossiya Folk Orchestra conducted by Anatole Sobolev, it was the first time that such a project had been undertaken by a Western artist, many of the loved Soviet era songs sung in English for the first time. The album was produced by musician/arranger Andrei Samsonov. Almond performed many times at the famous, and now demolished, Rossiya Concert Hall with Lyudmila Zykina and Alla Bayanova, and with the Rossiya Folk Orchestra. In 2001, Soft Cell reunited briefly and released their first new album in 18 years, '' Cruelty Without Beauty''. Two singles came out of this album, "Monoculture" and a cover of the
Frankie Valli Francesco Stephen Castelluccio (born May 3, 1934), better known by his stage name Frankie Valli, is an American singer and occasional actor, best known as the frontman (lead singer) of The Four Seasons (band), the Four Seasons. He is known for ...
's "The Night", which led to a
Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...
appearance for the band, their first since the mid-1980s. Almond also presented '' New Music Television'' that year. Almond released ''
Stranger Things ''Stranger Things'' is an American television series created by the Duffer brothers, Duffer Brothers for Netflix. Produced by Monkey Massacre Productions and 21 Laps Entertainment, the Stranger Things season 1, first season was released on N ...
'' in 2001. In October 2004, Almond was seriously injured in a motorbike accident near
St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Paul the Apostle, is an Anglican cathedral in London, England, the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London in the Church of Engl ...
, London. Near death and in a coma for weeks, he suffered two huge blood clots and had to undergo emergency surgery twice. He also suffered serious head injuries, multiple breaks and fractures, a collapsed lung and damaged hearing. He began a slow recovery determined to get back on the stage and in the studio. In June 2007, Almond released an album of cover songs, '' Stardom Road''. Picked to tell a story of his life and career, the album featured songs as diverse as "I Have Lived" by Charles Aznavour, to "Stardom Road" by Third World War, Frank Sinatra's " Strangers in the Night", and "Kitsch" by Paul Ryan. The album featured his first new song since the motorbike accident, "Redeem me (Beauty Will Redeem the World)". ''Stardom Road'' was to be one of three albums for the
Sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine, protected by ecclesiastical immunity. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This seconda ...
label, the UK's largest independent record label up until 2007 when it got itself into financial difficulty and was sold off in June 2007 to
Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...
. In July 2007, Almond celebrated his 50th birthday on stage at the
Shepherd's Bush Empire Shepherd's Bush Empire (currently known as O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire for sponsorship reasons, and formerly known as the BBC Television Theatre) is a music venue in Shepherd's Bush, West London, run by the Academy Music Group. It was original ...
in London and in September performed at a tribute show to Marc Bolan, his teenage hero. At the concert he dueted with Bolan's wife, Gloria Jones, on an impromptu version of "Tainted Love". In October 2007, the fashion house ''Yves Saint Laurent'' picked Almond's "Strangers in the Night" to represent their show at London's ''Fashion Rocks''. Almond performed for the event at the Royal Albert Hall. In 2008 and 2009, Almond toured with Jools Holland throughout the UK as well as guesting at shows by Current 93, Baby Dee and a tribute show to the late folk singer
Sandy Denny Alexandra Elene MacLean Denny (6 January 1947 – 21 April 1978) was an English singer-songwriter who was lead singer of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention. She has been described as " guably the pre-eminent British folk-rock sin ...
at the Festival Hall. In October 2009, Almond released his second album of Russian romances and gypsy songs entitled '' Orpheus in Exile''. The album was a tribute to gay Russian singer Vadim Kozin, who was exiled to the gulags of the Arctic Circle. The album was produced by Alexei Fedorov and features an orchestra arranged by Anatole Sobolev.


2010s

In June 2010, Almond released '' Varieté'', his first studio album of self written material since ''Stranger Things'' in 2001. The album marks Almond's 30th anniversary as a recording artist, a fact he celebrated with a new concert tour in Autumn 2010. Also in the summer of 2010 Almond was named Mojo Hero, an award given by the music magazine Mojo. The award was presented to Almond by Anohni who flew from New York for the occasion. In 2011, Almond released the '' Feasting with Panthers'' album, a collaboration with musician and arranger Michael Cashmore. It featured poetry set to music, including works by Count Eric Stenbock, Jean Genet,
Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau ( , ; ; 5 July 1889 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost avant-garde artists of the 20th-c ...
, Paul Verlaine and Rimbaud. Later in the same year Almond took part in a music-theatre work ''Ten Plagues'', held at Edinburgh's Traverse Theatre, as part of the 2011 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, from 1 to 28 August 2011. ''Ten Plagues'' is a one-man song cycle based on
Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; 1660 – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, merchant and spy. He is most famous for his novel ''Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its number of translati ...
's '' Journal of the Plague Year'' (which dates back to 1722), with metaphors of AIDS and epidemics. It was written for him by Mark Ravenhill and Conor Mitchell. ''Ten Plagues'' was awarded a Fringe First Award. In 2012, Almond took the role of the Roman Stoic philosopher Seneca in the Paris Théâtre du Châtelet's experimental rock adaptation of '' Poppea'', based on Monteverdi's original 17th-century opera ''The Coronation of Poppea''. The production also featured ex- Libertines member Carl Barât, French singer-songwriter Benjamin Biolay, Swedish singer Fredrika Stahl and was directed by ex- Clash drummer Peter Howard. Later that year, on 9 August 2012, Almond performed at Anohni's Meltdown Festival in London's Southbank Centre, reforming Marc and the Mambas to perform their second album ''Torment and Toreros'' live for the first time. Anohni has stated that ''Torment and Toreros'' was her favourite album throughout her teens and that it became the starting point for
Anohni and the Johnsons Anohni and the Johnsons (previously known as Antony and the Johnsons) is a music ensemble originally based in New York City that presents the work of English singer-songwriter Anohni and her collaborators. The band released its self-titled de ...
. Anohni joined the band on stage for one song, singing "My Little Book of Sorrows" with Almond. In 2013, Almond revived ''Ten Plagues'' and performed it for a month at Wilton's Music Hall in London. He also performed with Jethro Tull's
Ian Anderson Ian Scott Anderson (born 10 August 1947) is a British musician best known for being the chief vocalist, Flute, flautist, and acoustic guitarist of the British rock band Jethro Tull (band), Jethro Tull. He is a multi-instrumentalist who also p ...
on stage performing Tull's concept album "Thick as a Brick" at The
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...
. That year Almond also received The
Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...
Inspiration Award which was presented to him by longtime friend and co-Manager Vicki Wickham, and was also awarded the Icon Award from ''
Attitude Attitude or Attitude may refer to: Philosophy and psychology * Attitude (psychology), a disposition or state of mind ** Attitude change * Propositional attitude, a mental state held towards a proposition Science and technology * Orientation ...
''. Almond released three albums throughout 2014. First was '' The Tyburn Tree'' with composer John Harle, a concept album about dark historical London. This was followed by '' The Dancing Marquis'' album, made with a number of collaborators including
Jarvis Cocker Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963) is an English musician. As the founder, frontman, lyricist and only consistent member of the band Pulp (band), Pulp, he became a reluctant figurehead of the Britpop genre of the mid-1990s. Cocker h ...
, Carl Barât and Jools Holland, featuring production from Tony Visconti on some tracks. Finally, Almond released a studio recording of his 2011 show, '' Ten Plagues – A Song Cycle''. In 2014 Almond was awarded a fellowship from Leeds College Of Music and performed several concerts with the colleges Contemporary Orchestra And Pop Choir. 2015 saw the release of '' The Velvet Trail'', an album of original material co-written and produced by Chris Braide. Almond also worked on a
song cycle A song cycle () is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in sequence, as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice or an ensemble, or rarely a combinat ...
to accompany the filming of a multi media performance of '' À rebours'' (translated as ''Against Nature'') by Joris-Karl Huysmans. The score for this project was written by Othon Mataragas with words from '' Feasting with Panthers'' collaborator Jeremy Reed. Reed states that he wrote 15 songs for the project commenting that ''Against Nature'' is "still probably one of the most decadent books ever written" and that Almond had always wanted to perform it, stating that "now we're both jaded aesthetes we could do it". In 2016, Almond landed his first major label deal in 20 years, signing a two-album deal with
BMG Rights Management BMG Rights Management GmbH (also known simply as BMG) is an international music company based in Berlin, Germany. It combines the activities of a music publisher and a record label. BMG was formed in October 2008 after Bertelsmann sold its st ...
. In 2017, the compilation album ''Hits and Pieces / The Best of Soft Cell & Marc Almond'', debuted at number seven in the UK album chart. In September 2017 the album ''Shadows & Reflections'' was released, entering the UK chart at No.14. In 2017 Almond was presented with an honorary Doctorate in Philosophy from Lancashire's Edgehill University, and delivered that year's graduation address. In September 2018 Soft Cell played the O2 Arena in London celebrating the band's 40-year career.


2020s

Almond's next solo album, ''Chaos and a Dancing Star'', also written with Braide, was recorded in Los Angeles and released in January 2020.
Ian Anderson Ian Scott Anderson (born 10 August 1947) is a British musician best known for being the chief vocalist, Flute, flautist, and acoustic guitarist of the British rock band Jethro Tull (band), Jethro Tull. He is a multi-instrumentalist who also p ...
played flute on the album. During COVID-19 lockdowns, Almond and David Ball wrote a new Soft Cell album, '' Happiness Not Included'', which was released on 6 May 2022. The album contained 12 new tracks, including a collaboration with the Pet Shop Boys on the track "Purple Zone", which reached number one in the Official Physical Singles Chart and also the Official Vinyl Singles Chart. In early 2022, Almond supported Ukraine and released an English-language cover of the Ukrainian folk song, "What A Moonlit Night".


Personal life

Almond formerly divided his time among
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
,
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
and
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
. He stopped living in Moscow following the
Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
, stating in a 2024 interview "I don't think I can see myself ever going back to Moscow now. I think as an Englishman, and as an openly gay man, I'd just be too scared." In the same interview, it was mentioned that he had recently bought a small farm in
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
. Almond has stated that he dislikes being pigeon-holed as "a 'gay' artist", saying that such a label "enables people to marginalise your work and reduce its importance, implying that it won't be of any interest to anyone who isn't gay". In his autobiography, Almond describes being invited for initiation into Anton LaVey's Church of Satan, and that "not being one to turn down a theatrical moment and a chance to be relegated to the bad book, I immediately said yes."
Noise music Noise music is a genre of music that is characterised by the expressive use of noise. This type of music tends to challenge the distinction that is made in conventional musical practices between musical and non-musical sound. Noise music include ...
ian
Boyd Rice Boyd Blake Rice (born December 16, 1956) is an American experimental sound/noise musician using the name of NON since the mid-1970s. A pioneer of industrial music, Rice was one of the first artists to use a sampler and turntable as an instrum ...
performed the simple ceremony in "a small grotto in a wood" owned by Rose McDowall close to where the
Hellfire Club Hellfire Club was a term used to describe several exclusive Club (organization), clubs for high-society Rake (character), rakes established in Great Britain and Ireland in the 18th Century. The name most commonly refers to Francis Dashwood, 11t ...
used to meet. Almond states that the ceremony involved "no dancing naked, no bonfires, no blood sacrifice", but even so "every hair on my neck stood on end and sweat broke out on my top lip." Almond later stated in a 2016 interview with '' Loud and Quiet'' that the initiation was "a theatrical joke that got a bit out of hand" and that he is not a Satanist. By 2020, Almond had converted to Druidism. In response to being appointed OBE at the age of 60, Almond said he is still a "little bit" anti-establishment, but added: "I can't really be a rebel any more. I think it's time to leave it to younger people." In his 1999 autobiography, Almond stated that he has Ménière's syndrome, which has repercussions on his hearing.


Awards and nominations

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Gene Pitney Gene Francis Alan Pitney (February 17, 1940 – April 5, 2006) was an American pop and country singer, songwriter, and musician. Pitney charted 16 top-40 hits in the United States, four in the top ten. In the United Kingdom, he had 22 top-40 h ...
)
, , , - !scope="row",
Ivor Novello Awards The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Welsh entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and Musical composition, composing. They have been presented annually in London by the The Ivors Academy, Ivors Academy, formerly called the Britis ...
,
2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
, rowspan=2, Himself , The Ivors Inspiration Award , , , - !scope="row", Mojo Awards , 2010 , Hero Award , ,


Discography


Solo albums


References


External links


Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Almond, Marc Living people 1957 births Alumni of Leeds Beckett University 20th-century English LGBTQ people 20th-century English male singers 21st-century English LGBTQ people 21st-century English male singers English male new wave singers English new wave singers English synth-pop new wave musicians British synth-pop singers Cherry Red Records artists Church of Satan Converts to pagan religions Echo Records artists English autobiographers English expatriates in Portugal English expatriates in Russia English expatriates in Spain English gay musicians English LGBTQ singers English LGBTQ songwriters English male singer-songwriters English modern pagans English people of Norwegian descent English people with disabilities English pop singers English singer-songwriters Former Satanists Gay singer-songwriters Holy Holy (tribute band) members The Immaculate Consumptive members LGBTQ people from Yorkshire Marc and the Mambas members Musicians from Harrogate Musicians from Leeds Musicians from Southport Officers of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Aireborough Grammar School People educated at King George V College People from Horsforth Singers with disabilities Sire Records artists Soft Cell members Some Bizzare Records artists Vertigo Records artists