Danceteria

The third album of Soft Cell’s extended 21st century reunion era sadly proved to be its last, as Dave Ball died literally a couple of days after signing off on the final mix. But Danceteria is a lovely unintended farewell, an interesting exercise in overlapping nostalgias thanks not only to his music but Marc Almond’s always dogged interest in detailing passions and pursuits in wider nightlife. Described by Almond later as an imagined portrait of a day and night during the duo’s experiences in New York City in the very early 1980s recording their famed debut album Non Stop Erotic Cabaret, it doesn’t attempt to clone either that album or the exact sound in the famed club that gave this album its title. Instead, it consists of a series of sleek electronic explorations reflecting the decades of club culture the two could draw on, though a concluding cover of Was (Not Was)’s “Out Come The Freaks” with Nona Hendryx guesting is an excellent tip of the hat to the time and place. Standout songs include the exuberant title track, the darkly romantic punch and pulse of “Times Square” and the sleazy burn of “What Is Your Morality.”