An Introduction to Depeche Mode

I love Depeche Mode, so much, in fact, I named this very blog after one of their songs. I first encountered them way back when the radio was decent enough to listen to. After hearing “People Are People,” I quickly looked up the song to figure out who the hell this amazing band was. After finding out, I finally went onto IHeartRadio and surrounded myself in Depeche Mode’s unique sound. Since they have just released their thirteenth studio album, Delta Machine, I’d like to introduce the most definitive electronic act of all time, before I review Delta Machine later this week.
Depeche Mode originally consisted of Martin Gore, David Gahan, Andy Fletcher, and Vince Clarke. Clarke left after the first album to form Yazoo and Erasure, and was replaced by Alan Wilder; Wilder left after the release of Songs of Faith and Devotion, and the band has consisted of Gore, Gahan, and Fletcher ever since.

Depeche Mode were, by no means, the first band to use synthesizers. Indeed, the first use of synthesizers in popular music would probably be considered to be the Beach Boys in “Good Vibrations,” released in 1966. The Beatles followed in Abbey Road in 1969, along with Pink Floyd with Ummagumma. While these first songs did feature synthesizers, they did not play a big part in the sound of the groups, with the guitar being the driving force behind the songs. It was not until Kraftwerk was founded in 1970 that the synth sound was created. Kraftwerk was, and still is, the flagship of early synthpop, and the genre remained basically the same until 1981, when Depeche Mode released their first album, Speak and Spell, containing the infective hit “Just Can’t Get Enough.” This is the number one song people recognize when I play it to them, the “So that’s Depeche Mode” song.

This was before the Pet Shop Boys came to the east end with “West End Girls” and Tears for Fears yelled at the world with “Shout.” However, these two groups served to foreshadow what synthpop could do, with a hint of the dark lyrics and drippy synthesizers that Depeche Mode is now famous for. Their style changed quickly, with the loss of lyricist Vince Clarke and the failure of Martin Gore’s first attempt at an album in A Broken Frame. “Everything Counts” off Construction Time Again was the band’s first single of their darker era, and strayed away from the happier dance-pop of Speak and Spell and A Broken Frame, this time focusing on a serious, mature subject matter, in this case the record industry itself.

Their next album, Some Great Reward, containing the ever famous song of nondiscrimination and peace between minorities, “People Are People,” was another shade darker than Construction Time Again, and also pushed them into mainstream culture. While taking on even more mature subject matter, it still hinted at Depeche Mode’s dance-pop roots, especially in “Something to Do,” with its light “Just Can’t Get Enough”-style beat.

Black Celebration was the end of the development period for Gore’s songwriting, cementing Depeche Mode into the darker side of synthpop. It included the appropriately dark title track, “Black Celebration,” with its rather haunting lyrics, “Stripped” of Say Anything… fame, and “But Not Tonight,” a lighter end to a dark album. “Stripped” was really the only song that received major airplay, while the rest of the album, much darker than the Say Anything… soundtrack, went unnoticed. It was still, however, a groundbreaking album.

The sixth studio album, Music for the Masses, was the true beginning of the dark, popular era of Depeche Mode, with “Strangelove” and “Never Let Me Down Again.” While never seeing much acclaim, its successor, Violator, was the premiere Depeche Mode album, going triple platinum. Containing “Personal Jesus” and “Enjoy the Silence,” it was undoubtedly the most popular album over the band’s lifetime. Three years later, Songs of Faith and Devotion was released, creating the golden duo of Depeche Mode, with these two albums influencing Delta Machine, their latest release. Their content was dark, full of drippy synthesizers and blues guitars, from the social warning of “Policy of Truth” off of Violator to the classic “Walking in My Shoes” from Faith and Devotion.

Ultra, Exciter, Playing the Angel, and Sounds of the Universe have only served to further the image of Depeche Mode’s darkness and signature sound, propelling the already famous band into the spot of best electronic band of all time. Delta Machine will enhance this even more, as Gore, Gahan, and Fletch move their group into the twenty-first century.

Later in the week, I’ll put up the review of Delta Machine. For now, however, enjoy the music.