Veteran synth-pop act Soft Cell will stage its first U.S. tour in 18 years this November with an 11-date trek across the country. The duo of Marc Almond and Dave Ball are touring in support of the album “Cruelty Without Beauty” (Cooking Vinyl/spinART), which was released Oct. 8. It marked the band’s first album in nearly 20 years.
“I’d confined Soft Cell to the past and never considered we’d do something again,” keyboard player Ball told Billboard earlier this month. The U.K.-based act disbanded in 1984, and reconvened for what Almond described as a “rebirth.” “You wake up one day and it seems like the right time,” the vocalist said.
The tour will find the pair, best known for the single “Tainted Love,” mixing old material with selections from “Cruelty Without Beauty.” The album is currently available with a bonus CD containing three versions of the single “Monoculture,” remixed by Jan Driver, Playgroup, and Antoine 909 & Oggie B, as well as a “Monoculture” music video. The remixes are also slated to be released Nov. 5 on vinyl.
Both have enjoyed success outside of Soft Cell through the years. Almond released several solo records and singles, climbing back onto The Billboard Hot 100 in 1989 with “Tears Run Rings.” Ball found a new audience with techno group Grid and remixed such acts as the Pet Shop Boys and David Bowie.
Here are Soft Cell’s tour dates:
Nov. 20: Washington D.C. (9:30 Club)
Nov. 21: Atlanta (House of Blues)
Nov. 24: New York (Roxy)
Nov. 26: Detroit (Clutch Cargo)
Nov. 27: Chicago (Metro)
Nov. 28: Minneapolis (Quest)
Nov. 30: Seattle (Showbox)
Dec. 2: Anaheim, Calif. (House of Blues)
Dec. 3: San Diego (4th & B)
Dec. 4: Los Angeles (Wiltern Theatre)
Dec. 6: San Francisco (Warfield Theatre)
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