Nothing seems fair about including Depeche Mode in this series. Even the best bands I’ve covered on Make It New have some era of fizzling out. Except for maybe Madness, no band has really had the longevity akin to Depeche Mode, and even then, it pales in comparison to where their career would go. For starters, the song I associate most with them (“Enjoy the Silence”) came out in the 1990s. There are some in the 2000s that came out when I was in high school that I’d rank among my favorites. While they can easily get lobbed in with more electronic styles, I’d argue that this is the quintessential New Wave band. What they have done has produced record sales of over 100 million albums. Their singles have charted on Billboard every decade since the 80s… an honor only the bands Red Hot Chili Peppers and U2 share with them.
The fact of the matter is that “Music for the Masses” is an album of mythic proportions. I’ve covered a lot of music that’s withstood the test of time, but none like this. When I was growing up, there was a Rose Bowl concert that was spoken of as if it was Woodstock ’69. Maybe it’s because D.A. Pennebaker directed a documentary about it called 101 (1989), but they remain an inescapable group. When they came to town last year to promote their 2023 album “Memento Mori,” the commercial prominently featured, “Don’t Let Me Down Again.” They could’ve chosen any of their 60 singles to sell this show. Then again, I don’t think you needed more than the name. At this point, they are more than the average New Wave band staging a reunion tour for a low-selling comeback album. They are still as vital as ever.
Which is to say that despite the omnipresence and fondness for their music that I have, “Music for the Masses” was my first album listen. What I’ve discovered is far and away one of the best records on this list so far. Even if it could be more lobbed in electronic genres, I’d argue the subversiveness – especially in the late 80s – is one of the most New Wave things imaginable. It’s dark with morose explorations of sex and religion. The opening song is a cryptic tale of what is probably drug addiction. Unlike goth rockers, Depeche Mode had hints of optimism. Their mix of pop hooks with neo-classical techniques is so unique and distinctive that I can understand why this is the band that’s still chugging along. Love or hate them, they know how to make a style all their own.
The band’s early days could be found when Vince Clarke and Andy Fletcher formed a band called No Romance in China. After a few line-up changes, they landed on the name Composition of Sound with Clarke taking vocals and guitar while Fletcher was on bass along with Martin Gore. However, they admitted they were embarrassed by the name and decided to change it to Depeche Mode, French for “hurried fashion.” Along with the accessibility to synthesizers, the band began to shift directions to something more synth-pop. They were influenced by groups like Siouxsie and the Banshees as well as Talking Heads. There is a plaque commemorating an early gig at James Hornsby School in Basildon, England where Gore and Fletcher were cohorts. Their first recording would arrive in 1981 with “Some Bizarre Album” with the debut song being “Photographic.” Their first studio album was “Speak & Spell” from the same year.
By 1987, they were a moderate hit though not to the levels that they would be later. Even if they released such standards as “Just Can’t Get Enough,” “People Are People,” and “Blasphemous Rumors” by this point, their sound was still evolving. Along with their 1986 album “Black Celebration,” their sound was moving into sampling and away from the synth-pop that defined their earliest work. It proved to be more experimental and resulted in a sound that mixed more conventional rock with classical instrumentation. They were all moody, creating a unified vision that would help to catapult the record to global success.
Despite this, the album’s name was meant as something ironic. Gore claims that it was designed as a joke based on an old album he found called “Music for the Millions.” As a result, it’s tongue-in-cheek that their sound lacked a commercial appeal. This isn’t to say that the success wasn’t appreciated with it continuing their streak of every studio album they produced having significant charting in their U.K. homeland. In the United States, the record would go platinum and sell a million copies.
To be honest, the songs on here aren’t necessarily the Depeche Mode songs I recognize the most. This isn’t to say they’re bad, but when compared to their larger cultural footprint, this isn’t exactly what I think about when their name comes up. The best way to put it is that this is a testament to how substantial their career became. I’m not sure why this record was chosen save for it being arguably their biggest impact on the 80s during New Wave’s peak. I’m not saying any of the music is bad, but upon first listening, I’m eager to hear more because I believe they probably have better albums out there. With all that said, I absolutely love it free from that larger context.
It's hard to not put on some headphones and crank up the album from the opening chords of “Never Let Me Down Again.” There’s an immersion to their sound that is beyond confident at this point. I love Dave Gahan’s deep, commanding vocals that guide you into this perverse mystery. It’s not a love song, and yet there’s something that feels romantic about going on a ride with your best friend. Who is this person? As an opening line to the album, I’d argue it sets the mood perfectly. It’s downright cinematic in how the atmosphere carries you into the haunting corners. The slow realization that something isn’t right makes you feel tuned into their worldview. There is also a sense of hope in the lyrical desperation that Gahan will be moving onto some greater ecstasy, possibly even on this album.
If any song reminds me of what’s appealing about Depeche Mode, it’s “Strangelove.” To me, the darkness also has an edge of sexiness to it that makes you feel willing to give into Gahan’s dark obsessions. A lot of Gothic rockers were making these types of songs that featured longing for connection, but there’s something different when Depeche Mode does it. There’s a sense of seduction, and also introspection and tenderness mixed in. As they’ve suggested, they didn’t want to write romantic songs but instead intrepid numbers that had a fleeting sense of optimism. This lustfulness comes with embracing something that feels scary. It feels like diving deep into your soul, having the worst tendencies being forgiven as human nature as you finally give into this level of pleasure you’ve never known. It’s hard to say because “Strangelove” isn’t conventionally erotic, and yet it feels so sexually charged in how it recognizes a full person and the appeal of, as the title suggests, a strange love.
That’s the nature that makes Depeche Mode appealing. They feel like an adult form of electronic music in a time when it was blissful and teenybopper. It’s not to suggest that early records weren’t accused of appealing to the youth market, but by 1987 they were producing something that spoke to a more mature audience. Their version of love was much more complicated and not willing to dive headfirst into an affair. It’s what I love about songs like “I Want You Now” or “To Have and to Hold.” There is a longing that is unlike any band I’ve covered here or heard from a 1980s release. There’s something that still feels fresh and new when listening to “Music for the Masses,” and I think it’s largely because they have a complicated view of passion. We’re driven by desire, whether it’s sex, religion, or something in between. It’s not as despairing as something like The Cure. Instead, it’s beautiful and strange without diving too forcefully into the esoteric.
Another corner of the album that I love is their emphasis on experimentation. Every few songs, I discover something that I don’t think many bands were going for. It was as much about these provocative lyrics as they were about orchestration. Even if it has traces of synth-pop in it, I’m more drawn to these lingering pieces that feel more cribbed from classical music. There’s a build-up that creates this powerful mood. On songs like the closer “Pimpf,” you find them shifting to moody instrumentals that wade through several progressions until they land on this subdued finale. Even on the extended versions, some of their instrumentation like “Stjarna” and their Beethoven cover “Moonlight Sonata” is a testament to how excellently they were able to construct melodies that challenged the idea of Top 40 pop. This was music for the patient listener, serving as a gateway not only to what was trendy then but also connecting Depeche Mode to a larger musical history.
Outside of this record, I think there’s a lot that’s interesting about this era for the band. As mentioned, their subsequent tour was considered legendary. It resulted in a Pennebaker documentary that influenced future documentarians like Chris Hegedus and emphasized the importance of crowd interactions. Pennebaker also considered it one of his favorite works. The show in question was on June 18, 1988, at the Pasadena Rose Bowl in California. The show drew 60,453 attendees which was one of the venue’s highest turnouts in several years. 101, named for being their 101st show and the end of their current tour, also led to a live album. They would also be one of the very few bands allowed to perform in Communist countries like Budapest and Prague during the Cold War in 1988.
From here, it’s difficult to really break down everything that the band has done in the nearly 35 years since. Among the more pertinent details is that Vince Clarke would eventually leave the band to start his own prominent New Wave groups Yaz and later Erasure. Their following album, 1990’s “Violator” would become one of their biggest hits. As of 2024, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and are often considered one of the most successful electronic bands of all time. In fact, VH1 has listed them as one of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. They were also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020, only two years after becoming eligible.
As of this publication, they have released 15 studio albums that have gone on to influence several generations of musicians. While they have had many line-up changes, Gahan and Gore remain the two who have been present in almost every incarnation since 1977. Without doing substantial research, I can say that they’ve clearly found a great musical partnership because they keep producing work. Whereas most New Wave bands would’ve fizzled by 1987, they were reaching their zenith. There is no reunion tour to speak of nor really a comparative resurgence. They have steadily released music with the longest (and now average) gap being four years. They clearly are doing something that works for them, and if their recent concerts are any indicator, they still pack houses.
Personally, I am a bit embarrassed that it took me until this column to listen to a full Depeche Mode album. I am glad that it’s one as concrete and interesting as “Music for the Masses,” though I think the allure of “Violator” lingers more in public discourse. With that said, I do enjoy that they’re a band that hasn’t gone out of style. Along with U2, they’re arguably the only bands of their generation who never went away. They’re still around and as cool as ever. The fact that I’d list “Wrong” from 2009 as one of my favorite singles from them is a testament to how concrete their craft is. They may not be my favorite band on this entire list (they’re still coming up), but they may be jumping up the ranks soon enough. Everything about them is exciting and challenges New Wave in ways that I’ve been clamoring for. It’s almost going to be bittersweet to continue onto smaller bands who have faded with time, if just because of how rare this success story is.
Coming Up Next: A-Ha – “Hunting High and Low” (1985)
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