Playing the Angel

ListeningEar · Oct 17, 2005

Anyone got the new Depeche Mode album yet?

What are your comments???

robert_cyrus · Oct 18, 2005

again, preordered the hybrid sacd / dvd cos i thought the 5.1 dts version might be interesting. hopefully amazon will hurry up and post today ! will post back when i have it ..... watch this space.

robert_cyrus · Oct 18, 2005

guardian online, 3 stars out of 5

The website Artist Direct.com suggests that people who buy Depeche Mode's 11th album might also like the "similar albums" Live in London by Duran Duran and We Are the Eighties by A Flock of Seagulls. The average Mode fan would probably rather eat glass than admit such poppy chinks of light into his grotto, but it does pose the irrefutable point that, for all their dallying with the dark side, there's a part of Depeche Mode that will be forever Basildon synth-chavs. It's 24 years since their debut LP, but there's a sense of the electronica trio still being on their guard against their boyhood selves popping up to scupper the black-goth-lord image they've diligently cultivated.

But Dave Gahan, Martin Gore and Andy Fletcher should thank their lucky stars for those plinky beginnings, because the melodic skills acquired in the early days remain their saving grace. Beyond the "pain and suffering" (Gore's inviting words) that mark this (and every) album are big, majestic tunes that prove the old saw about dysfunction being no impediment to a great hookline. Gahan - who has songwriting credits for the first time - and main writer Gore just can't help themselves. Their dark nights of the soul always produce the shiniest melodies, rather than the Nick Caveish atonality they probably strive for.

There's a Cave moment in their decision to cover a 1930s blues song, John the Revelator; true to form, however, rather than keeping it minimal, they lift it with a gospel choir that has you punching the air. Does that defeat the object? I don't know. It's good, though. The single Precious has a similar effect. The lyric may say lugubrious remorse ("Things get damaged, things get broken ... My God, what have they done to you?"), but the lilting synths say, "Shake your black-dyed tailfeather."

There are no alarming musical innovations, unless you count the tempo having been stepped up a bit since 2001's Exciter album. Suffer Well skirls into life with old-school analogue action, and maintains a breathless pace throughout. And when Gahan intones, "I'm gonna need a miracle to help me this time" on Nothing's Impossible, he does it to a percussive chug-chug that belies his pessimism. It may be grim round Depeche's way, but they don't let it get in the way of a good melody.
Click to expand...

and apparently u can listen to samples here:
http://www.mtve.com/article.php?ArticleId=5948

Anex · Oct 18, 2005

I only have speak and spell, what else is worth a go?

robert_cyrus · Oct 18, 2005

try "songs of faith and devotion"
also
"some great reward", "violator" - all good places to fill in with the back catalogue

Anex · Oct 18, 2005

cheers, will have a look for them

michaelab · Oct 18, 2005

"Some great reward" is excellent.

robert_cyrus · Oct 18, 2005

yeah, that's where my mode-philia started (1984?) - the singles were people are people, master and servant, blasphemous rumours / somebody double A side.

was followed by the 81->85 singles, with shake the disease and it's called a heart the in between singles.
next up was stripped, as a pre-cursor to the very dark "black celebration" album.

in fact, they're all good ! (except "exciter")

ListeningEar · Oct 19, 2005

Really like the new album, can't wait to see them live with this new material. I think the weakest Mode album to date has to be 'Some Great Reward'. It was way too short and really did not develop good album tracks that Mode are well known for. Could have been much better IMHO.
Exciter grew on me but now I think that's great too

robert_cyrus · Oct 19, 2005

listening to it now ....... now track 8 .......

robert_cyrus · Oct 19, 2005

oooh, it's good ! let's start again ......

ListeningEar · Nov 5, 2005

Just one small thing, the deluxe version if this album contains two discs, one with the regular two-channel stero mix and the second with a 5.1 surround sound version.

I din't run a surround system anymore but did play it on my budget DVD player (Pioneer DV-565), and it sounded terrible. I half expected it to anyway but just been over to as friends place who has a very nice surround sound set-up (top of the line Onkyo DVD and amp, active Meridian sub and Jamo Concert 8 series speakers all round), and it still sounded terrible.

I am just not convinced with this whole surround sound music thing, for a good movie then great but all the music discs I have heard seem to be muddled, thin and painful to listen to in my experience and humble opinion!

Don't think the Depeche Mode 5.1 mix will be coming out of the case ever again...

lordsummit · Nov 6, 2005

Going to see them next year. Am looking forward to it immensely

Legzr1 · Nov 6, 2005

ListeningEar said:

Just one small thing, the deluxe version if this album contains two discs, one with the regular two-channel stero mix and the second with a 5.1 surround sound version.

I din't run a surround system anymore but did play it on my budget DVD player (Pioneer DV-565), and it sounded terrible. I half expected it to anyway but just been over to as friends place who has a very nice surround sound set-up (top of the line Onkyo DVD and amp, active Meridian sub and Jamo Concert 8 series speakers all round), and it still sounded terrible.

I am just not convinced with this whole surround sound music thing, for a good movie then great but all the music discs I have heard seem to be muddled, thin and painful to listen to in my experience and humble opinion!

Don't think the Depeche Mode 5.1 mix will be coming out of the case ever again...
Click to expand...

I agree.Totally.
This is the reason i've sold all of my DVD-A discs - surround (whether hi-res or DD/DTS) just doesn't do 'it' for me.
I'm keeping the SACD's as they all contain hi-res 2 channel mixes

Dynamic Turtle · Nov 18, 2005

Really starting to like this album. There are 4 killer tracks on it. Glad to see them return to form.

DT

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