Depeche Mode Revisited

Depeche Mode announced a new album Memento Mori and I thought I revisit their entire discography and hot-take each of their 14 previous studio albums on how they've aged over the past 4 decades.  

(1981) Speak & Spell

The late Andy Fletcher, who recently died from a sudden aortic dissection, would often joke during press events for an upcoming release, "Best album since Speak & Spell," drawing chuckles from fans as well as the rest of the group, suggesting they no longer take their debut title seriously.  Perhaps the cheery pop songs of their youth are too sugary for their aged palette, or maybe it's because most of the songs were penned by Vince Clarke, who left the band just after it found widespread success. Whenever asked about the departure, the PR answer we'd get is something along the lines of creative differences, but after revisiting their early catalogue and a bit of digging, I have a different theory.

Lyrics were never Vince's strong point, which is obvious throughout most of album, including their bubbly breakthrough hit "Just Can't Get Enough."  This is not necessarily a bad thing, as much of their simple wordphrases mix well with the clean and polished synthesizer sounds that allows the melodies to do the speaking, but listening to the first two singles "Dreaming of Me" and "New Life", the former being left off the UK pressing, I question whether or not Clarke actually came up with lyrics, and so do an increasing fraction of Depeche Mode's enormous fanbase.  Not only are these more philosophical and complex than most of their other songs, a childhood friend of Clarke recently posted old recordings with very different musical arrangements of him jamming with Vince and singing these lyrics.  I can't imagine a reason why someone would turn down the opportunity of a lifetime and leave a band that just penetrated the mainstream market, unless he was worried that his artistic credibility would be inevitably be challenged down the road.

Clarke's immediate departure is what I wonder about most when I listen to Speak & Speak, that and why the B-Sides "Ice Machine" and "Shout" are so damn good. This started a trend of Depeche Mode's singles being some of the most highly regarded collectors pieces, usually filled with elaborate remixes and albumworthy additions, never leftovers.  Some fans might tell you not to start with S&S if you want to hear Depeche Mode, referencing is silly nature.  I disagree.  Lyrically questionable at some points, the synths have a healthy spectrum of kick and punch that sounds great on the 2006 Remaster and 2020 Definitive MODE Boxset.  "Puppets" and "Photographic" hold up well in shared company, but you'll need a higher threshold for absurdity to enjoy tracks like "Boys Say Go" and "What's Your Name?", the latter which has been officially denounced by the band as their most despised recording.  I personally find it hilarious, and whether you listen to it as curio or a product of its time will determine the level of cringe your find acceptable in taste.  "Tora Tora Tora" is probably the most moody composition, one of two pieces penned by Martin Gore, the other being "Big Muff," an instrumental about a woman's vagina, or something.  

A Broken Frame (1982)

It's pretty weird for the principal songwriter to disband and hand off his creative duties to another member just before their second album.  If this were a normal musical group, the story would end here, but Martin Gore's innate ability to string words together that roll off the mouth of frontman Dave Gahan is immediately apparent on the opening track "Leave In Silence."  A Broken Frame sounds like a natural maturing of Depeche Mode, not only in terms of lyrics but in exploration of sounds like those found on "Monument," which I have trouble finding words to describe, maybe ping pong queefs, but perhaps that was the entire point, these new found sounds created an ambiguity that make you want to listen closer as to what the hell they were actually soundscaping.

"See You" was the first single off a Broken Frame.  It was never a favorite of mine, but then again it's probably more fitting for a female audience.  "The Meaning of Love" sounds as if it's following in the footsteps of their previous poppier record, and mostly succeeds in connecting that bridge with its driving hooks, minus a few corny fills.  "A Photograph of You" would have been a better choice for a single, if only they hadn't already released a song with the word photograph in the title.  Comparing Dave's voice at this point in the album to their previous endeavor, he's either gaining more confidence in his performance, or he's more enthusiastic about singing from Martin's songbook, probably a combination of both.

The final track is "The Sun and The Rainfall," a personal and fan favorite for all the reasons. Haunting and harmonizing, with a contrast of elegant and enigmatic, leaving you lingering with a sense of wonder whether it's just getting starting or all is said and finished.  You might not have known about the band's personnel shakeup at the time having just listened to the recordings, as they were able to retain the tones of their formation while unfolding an additional layer of emotional intelligence.  I wasn't born yet when A Broken Frame was released, and when I listen Depeche Mode's sophomore album, I think about what it must have been like to been alive back then.  It's seems like a blissful time, but not in a way that lacks authenticity or enables ignorance.  There were occasions of seriousness and silliness throughout, and changes happen so fast the living in the moment was the only way to embrace it.

Construction Time Again (1983)

Depeche Mode's third studio album is much more sampler driven, which I'm finally releasing is probably related to the title.  These aren't samples in a contemporary sense where they just steal random soundbites and loop them as a chorus. Samples back in the day meant going around with a field recorder and smashing on garbage cans and screaming in tunnels.  These methods are scattered percussively throughout the album, ranging from subtle smacks on tracks like "More Than A Party," while front and centered for the composition of "Pipeline."   At this point, Alan Wilder had officially joined the band and contributed a handful of strong tracks including "Two Minute Warning" and "Fools," which was relegated to become the B-side to "Love In Itself'", and was never played live.

Another song they left off Construction Time Again was "Get the Balance Right," a non-album single that sits somewhere between the 2nd and 3rd studio records.   Maybe it was lack of runtime or they wanted some pressings to have aura of exclusivity to them, but there were bunch of tracks that didn't make the cut that should have.  "Everything Counts" is probably their most famous song from this release, continuing the theme of ultra uppity pop performances to placate the radio masses, but I still like to listen to its B-Side "Work Hard" even harder, and is, as far as I know, the only song with vocals jointly cowritten between Martin Gore and Alan Wilder. I already get a sense that Gore felt encroached on his status as songwriter, which is a shame as there could have been a lot more content that came out as the result of these two working more closely together.

Speaking of "Shame," that's another hidden gem in the Depeche Mode catalogue that doesn't get many mentions, along with "Told You So," and "The Landscape is Changing"-- another Wilder track. When I listen to the third record, I can't help hearing an ever increasing potential with some oversights on song selection and mix levels.  Overall the record is a tad too harsh, probably down to the nature of the industrial scraps and clanks they used as transients.   It also seemed like the honeymoon period for songwriting as a band, going outside and searching for sounds, without the sense of protecting one's territory, but rather expanding their reach far into the horizon.

Some Great Reward (1984)

Depeche Mode's fourth studio album is a evolution of their previous work, with more sonic polish in spite of some contradictory and competing themes.  Some Great Rewards tackles a wide range of topics from racism on the quintessential hit "People Are People," to BDSM on their follow up single, where they proudly proclaim to forget all about equality-- let's play "Master & Servant."  Martin mentions in several interviews that he no longer enjoys "People Are People", I likewise find it a little too cheesy, although I appreciate the scattered and trippy beat they make out of banging toilets or whatever they did.

When Depeche weren't sampling the city dump, Martin found himself singing nude in the studio during the recording of the piano-vocal ballad "Somebody."  Fletcher reports they needed to sample a whipping sound for some tracks, so he bent over and let the boys beat his ass while pointing a microphone at him in humiliation. It's unclear if this was during the naked singing sessions, but the mixture of heartbeats, synths, and found sounds make for a compelling listen all the way through. Even the engineers got lost in the mix, forgetting to unmute the snare drum on "Master & Servant."

Tracks like "Stories of Old" and "If You Want," remain some of my favorites although they are rarities when mentioned among catalogue enthusiasts, the former never even played live, while the latter being the only Alan Wilder penned track on the album.  "Blasphemous Rumors" makes for a proper finisher, fatality and all, which garnered mixed reviews depending on which side of the pond you were on, or how much sentiment you have for Christianity.  You can tell the boys were still in and out of the studio on a regular basis, because they released two non-album singles shortly after Some Great Reward was internationally released.  "Shake the Disease," now a cult classic, and "It's Called a Heart" were thrown on a compilation album the following year, probably as a way to push more product. I often find myself forgetting they weren't on the record, which only makes it harder to rank the Depeche Mode discography.

Black Celebration (1986)

Black Celebration was an acoustic inflection point, with heavier themes and sounds pervading throughout the atmosphere, and is immediately heard on the eponymously titled opening track.  It's followed up by a differently mixed version of "Fly On The Windscreen," which was the B-side to the previous non-album single.  The clever use of samples for creating beats and rhythms is still here, the most emblematic being the ignition and windshield wipers used on the lead single "Stripped," along with Gore's signature not-so-subtle, boundary pushing lyrical decisions.

The entire record is more centered around the songwriter than any of DM's other works, with Gore penning all of the tracks and dedicating vocals to four of the songs entirely, plus two halves with Dave on "Here is House" and "Dressed in Black."  I wonder if Martin was posturing replace Dave full time, or if they just had different schedules, but as like most of the Martin sung pieces, they are dialed-back ballads with less instrumentation and more sonic experimentation, with the exception being the second single "A Question of Lust."  Not to be confused with the third single "A Question of Time," which is much more poppy and uplifting, reminiscent of their earlier work, plus an extra layer of mass that could be heard as ahead of it's time.  Low-end was sometimes ignored in the formative years of electronic music, but Depeche Mode made great use of the full frequency range early on.  

The final song on the UK edition is "New Dress," which is pretty edgelord considering what happened to Princess Diana later on.  At the time, the group opted to leave "But Not Tonight" off the record until America demanded it because of some movie or radio station or something, prompting the label to add it as bonus track stateside.  In recent interviews they admitted to liking it more as time passed, probably because they were trying to butch up their image during this chapter, and it was seen as too cheery for the new badass Depeche Mode coming into maturity. 

Music For The Masses (1987)

Their sixth studio album starts with a stoney anthem "Never Let Me Down Again," a clear choice single and one of the group's favorite songs to play live, usually getting the crowd to flail their hands back and forth.  The Earthy drums and spacey synths were programmed mostly at Alan's house.  I get sense at this point, most if not all the production and arrangement was being done by Alan and the engineers, with the rest of the guys coming in and out of the studio as time permitted leaving him to labor over the recordings.  By this time, all of their music videos were being filmed by Anton Corbijn, who would also serve as art director for much of their album and promotional material from here onwards. 

There's a lot of instrumentation and embellishments to be heard on Music for the Masses, from the lead single "Strangelove" to the eclectic and captivating "Behind the Wheel."  To get an idea of much work went into creating tones, when asked about the bassline, Wilder recalled using a combination of three different sounds: A hand striking the end of a hoover tube, a guitar pluck sampled and pitched down, and a minimoog for added bottom end.  The B-Side was a cover song of "Route 66," and the final single being a France exclusive release, "Little 15."  Barely making the album cut, even the band thought it was an odd choice and wouldn't have much of an impact on French radio, even though it further showcases Alan Wilder's contribution to the band in terms of orchestration and musicianship. 

You can't revisit Music for the Masses without mentioning the live concert documentary released shortly after their world tour concluding at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA in the summer of '88, entitled "Depeche Mode 101."  The film follows a group of fans going on a bus tour to see Depeche Mode, which was definitely a weird flex, but comes across as authentic and likeable, and even surreal watching it decades later. Life was better without cell phones.  Up until this time, Depeche hadn't played many stadium-sized venues, and it's quite an impact hearing a crowd of 60,000 sing along with Dave, not to mention the overall comradery on full display among the fans.  Even though I would consider this one of the best times to be DM fan, I somehow feel sad looking back at this, probably because I know we'll never see this kind of massive embodiment of human beings inextricably linked by the sights and sounds of their favorite musical artists ever again, thanks to invasive technology, lockdowns, and mandates which have likely permanently ruined Western civilization, if not the entire planet as a whole, but I digress.

Violator (1990)

If there was one Depeche Mode record I had to recommend to non-believers, it would have to Violator. Although I figure about half of their records are easy to play front-to-back in mixed company, Violator is such a unique blend of strange and familiar that its perfectly fitting for someone who wants to hear something new but not necessarily disrupting their already developed tastes. So yeah I assume we're all adults here.  Likewise, Violator is full of adult themes that make teenagers want to grow up and vice versa, transcending traditional age categories, aided with the very nature of abstract synths and garnished samples that are conducive to conversation while still allowing the listener to "Enjoy The Silence."

As much as I enjoy their most popular song according to US metrics, "World in my Eyes," "Policy of Truth," and "Personal Jesus," are always welcomed surprises when they spring up in public, only because "Enjoy The Silence" has been way overplayed this side of the Atlantic compared to the rest of their vast library, and I'm taken back when this is the only Depeche Mode song people tell me they've heard.  "Personal Jesus" is a personal favorite of mine, and always induces a call and response from the crowd during live shows. They should be contractually obligated to play this at every concert as it's feels very interactive, even for someone's who's just hearing it for the first time.  

Whether it was Martin Gore's stellar songwriting, Dave Gahan's creamy vocals, Alan Wilder's perfectionate production with producer Flood, or Andy sitting in the back smoking a cigarette, Depeche Mode found a way to make a labor of love sound like an effortless attempt at a magnum opus.  It wouldn't be until a signing at a record store in Los Angeles where a riot broke out while fans waiting in 2 mile line to meet the band members did Depeche realize they were biggest than they had ever imagined. As far as fame goes, they weened into stardom considerably well, gradually garnering a fanbase locally, then in the UK, which spread across Europe, and eventually to America. The World Violation tour would see the band head East to Japan and Australia for the first time as well.  Murmurs of burnout and internal squabbling were beginning to manifest, but nothing major enough to distract from the 7.5 millions copies of Violator sold worldwide that catapulted them into "Best Of" status throughout innumerable lists by big name editorials and music journalists, which I'm not aspiring to be.  I just like Depeche Mode.  Violator is awesome.

Songs of Faith and Devotion (1993)

Dave's move to America brought him into the grunge scene, and when he returned to the studio to record their follow up hit record, it affected the band by moving their sound in that direction.  The opener and lead single "I Feel You" sounds just like heroin, with it's heavy distortions and drippy vocals.  It was admirable that Gahan was actually able to kick his addiction and continue operating as normal after several years of rehab, and his candid interviews about substance abuse are so brazenly unguarded, I encourage anyone dealing with similar issues to listen to them.  Managers today would do everything possible to shield someone like this from the press, but I find it refreshing and insightful to hear Gahan openly discuss his misadventures with Mr. Brown.

"Walking in My Shoes" is one of their most played live songs along with "In Your Room," sonically interchangeable with a similar sense of seriousness.  When I listen to SOFAD, it feels like the lyrics came directly from Dave, even though the entire record was penned by Gore. "Rush," is another song that sounds like it could be about dope. Maybe they were going through similar issues, or perhaps Dave was just better able to get inside Martin's head, or the opposite.  By the time the Devotional Tour finished, Alan had enough and formally announced his resignation, citing that his workload had been unfairly distributed.  Translation: He didn't get enough credit, in terms of both publicity and money.  It's no secret that him and Andy didn't along, and this was probably due to them being paid the same amount while Alan worked intensively with Flood and Steve Lyon on production while maintaining his multi-instrumental talents.  Meanwhile Andy wasn't a very accomplished musician and didn't really do anything in the studio, by his own admission.  

"Judas" and "One Caress" are my probably my two favorite Martin-sung DM tracks, they just seem more fleshed out compared to previous Gore song. "Condemnation" has got to be my favorite track from the record. Martin also sometimes sings this song live instead of Dave, and the single vs. LP version are different enough to warrant multiple listens.  Then there is the live version on the SOFAD Live release, which I usually don't appreciate because of the heavy noise floor, so head nod to the mixer and engineers for making this one of the cleaner live records to come out of an arena.  It would have been great to see a live documentary about the Devotional Tour, although it probably would have to have been restricted to audiences over 18.

to be continued...