Untitled (Marc and the Mambas album)

Background

Untitled was Almond's first album away from Soft Cell and was made concurrently with the latter's The Art of Falling Apart album. Almond collaborated with a number of artists for this album, including Matt Johnson of The The and Anni Hogan. The album was produced by the band, with assistance from Stephen Short (credited as Steeve Short) and Flood.

Jeremy Reed writes in his biography of Almond, The Last Star, that Untitled was "cheap and starkly recorded". He states that Almond received "little support from Phonogram for the Mambas project, the corporate viewing it as non-commercial and a disquieting pointer to the inevitable split that would occur within Soft Cell". An article in Mojo noted that "from the beginning, Almond and Ball had nurtured sideline projects, though only the former's - the 1982 double 12 inch set Untitled - attracted much attention, most of it disapproving." The article mentions that Almond "who preferred to nail a song in one or two takes" stated that it was all "about feel and spontaneity, otherwise it gets too contrived" when accused of singing flat.

Simon Price of The Independent quotes Almond as calling the album "the deluded ramblings of self-indulgence fuelled by too much acid".

The album was released on gatefold double vinyl with the first record playing at 33rpm and the second at 45rpm. The album reached number 42 in the UK Albums Chart.

Critical reception

Neil Tennant, then a journalist at Smash Hits, reviewed the album saying that the band "have obviously enjoyed producing some intriguing, if self-indulgent, new music and their own versions of some old favourites". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic also calls the album "intriguing" but states that Untitled "doesn't ever add up to anything cohesive", whilst acknowledging that Almond has "made a conscious departure from Soft Cell".

Personnel