Editing Soft Cell (section)

{{short description|English synthpop duo}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name            = Soft Cell 
| image           = Soft Cell (1983 Sire publicity photo) 02.jpg
| caption         = Soft Cell in 1983; Marc Almond (left) and David Ball (right).
| background      = group_or_band
| origin          = [[Leeds]], [[West Yorkshire]], England
| genre           = {{hlist|[[Synth-pop]]|[[New wave music|new wave]]|[[Minimal wave|minimal&nbsp;synth]]|[[electronic music|electronic]]|[[dark&nbsp;wave]]<ref name="Elferen">Isabella van Elferen, Jeffrey Andrew Weinstock: ''Goth Music: From Sound to Subculture''. Routledge Studies in Popular Music, 2015, p. 25. {{ISBN|0-415-72004-4}}</ref>}}
| years_active    = 1978–1984, 2000–2005, 2018–present
| label           = [[Some Bizzare]], [[Mute Records|Mute]], [[Sire Records|Sİre]]
| associated_acts = [[Marc and the Mambas]], [[the Grid]]
| website         = {{URL|softcell.co.uk}}
| current_members = [[Marc Almond]]<br />[[David Ball (electronic musician)|David Ball]]
}}

'''Soft Cell''' are <!-- Per WP:ENGVAR, UK English treats collective groups plural. Please do not change "were" to "was". --> an English [[synth-pop]] duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. The duo consists of vocalist [[Marc Almond]] and instrumentalist [[David Ball (electronic musician)|David Ball]]. The band are primarily known for their 1981 hit version of "[[Tainted Love]]" and their platinum-selling debut album ''[[Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/Search.aspx |title=Certified Awards Search |publisher=[[British Phonographic Industry]] |date=15 November 1982 |access-date=30 July 2011 |archive-date=6 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171006162141/https://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/search.aspx |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Ruhlmann |first=William |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/non-stop-erotic-cabaret-r49694/review |title=Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret – Soft Cell |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=30 March 2012}}</ref>

In the United Kingdom, Soft Cell had twelve top 40 hits,<ref name=occ>{{cite web|title=Soft Cell - Full Official Chart History|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/19156/soft-cell/|website=Officialcharts.com|access-date=19 April 2020}}</ref> including "Tainted Love" (number 1), "[[Torch (song)|Torch]]" (number 2), "[[Say Hello, Wave Goodbye]]", "[[What (song)|What]]" (both number 3), and "[[Bedsitter (song)|Bedsitter]]" (number 4). They also had four top 20 albums between 1981 and 1984.<ref name="occ"/> The duo split in 1984 but reformed in 2001 to tour and release a new album. They held a reunion concert in London on 30 September 2018, stating it would be their last live UK performance as a duo but that they may still perform abroad and record together.

Soft Cell's songs have been covered by several artists, including [[David Gray (British musician)|David Gray]], [[Coil (band)|Coil]] and [[Nine Inch Nails]].<ref name="stlpd">{{cite web |title=Marc Almond loves David Gray's Say Hello Wave Goodbye cover |url=https://www.stltoday.com/entertainment/music/marc-almond-loves-david-gray-s-say-hello-wave-goodbye/article_73e9e3b5-081d-5b8f-9fd6-0a1ca0adda07.html |website=STL Today |access-date=12 December 2019}}</ref> Their track "Memorabilia" earned recognition for the band as pioneers of the synth-oriented [[techno]] genre.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tourdates.co.uk/soft-cell |title=Soft Cell |website=Tourdates.co.uk |date=26 March 2012 |access-date=30 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003003508/http://www.tourdates.co.uk/soft-cell |archive-date=3 October 2012}}</ref> The duo have sold in excess of ten million records world-wide.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tourdates.co.uk/soft-cell |title=Soft Cell &#124; tourdates |website=www.tourdates.co.uk |access-date=19 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003003508/http://www.tourdates.co.uk/soft-cell |archive-date=3 October 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>