Depeche Mode
Sounds of the Universe
‘I was Maring to the wrong drum/With the wrong scum/Pissing out the wrong energy,’ sings Depeche Mode frontman Dave Gahan on the song ‘Wrong.’ And it feels so right. As lead singles go, this one – featuring the admonitions of an apocalyptic preacher atop careening tone tracers – makes a compelling point as it reintroduces the downturned keen of this retro-futuristic group on its 12th album, Sounds of the Universe. That same ‘wrong’ energy doesn’t flow through each of the 13 tracks. But there is some good material for newly minted ’80s revivalists and long-time fans of the Basildon, England survivors’ mid-’80s Black Celebration and mid-’90s Songs of Faith and Devotion eras.
These analogue synth-toting scum – Gahan alongside main songwriter Martin Gore and their long-time stage companion Andy Fletcher – have gotten so good at using all the wrong lines and the wrong signs with the wrong intensity for so long they have only their own benchmark to compete against. And classic SOTU isn’t. However, it is classy, full of burbling synth-swept questioning (’Perfect’), squall-washed spirituals (’Peace,’ ‘Come Down’) and pop-industrial drum machines scrawled with bruised guitar blues (’Hole to Feed,’ ‘Little Soul’). Melody at times seems submerged by the hum of rediscovering vintage gear, and guitars are more compressed than crusted, but the overall treatment of lateral space and themes of cleansing mark this album as an obvious sequel to 2005’s Playing the Angel. Depeche Mode have produced another album fit to fill headphones and stadiums, leaning more towards a muted commercial than perverted side, but for 30-year veterans there’s really nothing wrong with that.
Starting with “Playing The Angel” and continuing on with this one they seem to be back on the right track.