The album, Chaos and a Dancing Star, will be available on 180 gram vinyl, and coloured vinyl on 31 January.
An iconic and influential figure with a career that spans almost 40 years and more than 30 million sales, Marc Almond has enjoyed a fresh renaissance in recent years. 2017’s retrospective Hit & Pieces saw him return to the Top 10 of the album charts, and it was followed by the critically acclaimed Shadows and Reflections set, which became the highest charting solo album of his career so far. He also reunited with David Ball to say goodbye to Soft Cell with an emotional sold-out show at London’s O2.
Now he’s set to release a brand new album Chaos and a Dancing Star on 31 January via BMG. The album was made in collaboration with producer, songwriter and pianist Chris Braide, who also worked on The Velvet Trail. An Ivor Novello winner and a Grammy nominee, Braide’s many high profile credits include work with artists such as Sia, Lana Del Rey and Halsey. The duo started writing for the album three years ago, their initial plan for a prog rock album evolving into something leaning more towards pop melodies.
On putting together the new album, Almond said: “I wanted to write romantic apocalyptic love songs and set the songs in the fatal end of days settings with a touch of mystic paganism yet hopelessness. It reflects the out-of-kilter world in which we find ourselves living today… Maybe it is the end of days for all of us, and perhaps this is something we should acknowledge.
Inspired by writing in Los Angeles, Almond also added some Americana to the album. Referencing the famous cemetery to the stars with which it shares its name, Hollywood Forever addresses suicide and the passing of the Golden Age. Meanwhile, Chevrolet Corvette Stingray is an unemotional, fetishistic love song about cold sociopathic beauty.
Click here to pre-order Chaos and a Dancing Star.