John Freeman looks back at the album which saw Martin Gore find his voice against a backdrop of inter-band tension.

According to his family, Martin Gore was a shy, introverted child. But that was then. By his mid-twenties, he had taken to wearing rubber fetish gear and singing ‘A Question Of Lust’ (containing the couplet “My weaknesses / You know each and every one”) to hundreds of thousands of people with his band Depeche Mode. It’s always the quiet ones…

Artistically, Gore had come a long way by 1986. Black Celebration is a fine and kinky record that signaled a transition in Depeche Mode’s career; they became darker, sonically more adventurous and sweetly subversive. “If you call yourself a pop band,” remarked Gore at the time, “you can get away with a lot more.” It was the record on which Gore’s burgeoning writing skills thrust him deeper into the epicentre of an already successful group. He provided lead vocals on (an unprecedented) four tracks, including the angst-infected ‘World Full Of Nothing’ and the fabulous dirge of ‘A Question Of Lust’. But more than that, Black Celebration was perhaps a turning point for the band in the UK. While America seemed to already ‘get’ Depeche Mode (they succeeded as a new-wave pop band who could also fit snugly next to REM on a college radio playlist), they still possessed the whiff of ‘guilty pleasure’ in their home country. Black Celebration winkled a legion of Mode fans out of the closet.

Five years earlier, Depeche Mode had lost their principal songwriter, Vince Clarke. As one of Britain’s most prolific hit-makers, Clarke’s were big shoes to fill – he already had written the synth-pop classics ‘New Life’ and ‘Just Can’t Get Enough’ for the Mode, and would go on to further success with Yazoo, The Assembly and Erasure. Gore stepped up to take the main writing duties and if, perhaps, it took him a couple of albums to truly find a groove, Black Celebration was the point that the Basildon quartet became very, very interesting.

Martin Gore was undergoing an intense period of personal change in 1985-86. He had moved to Berlin, and enjoyed the freedom and creativity of the art scene. He experimented in fashion – with a particular penchant for women’s clothes – and was intrigued by sex clubs and the S&M scene. He could be wildly foppish – claiming to be inspired by “Camus, Kafka and Brecht” – but was rooted in the mind-numbing nature of the everyday struggle. He was keen that Black Celebration was not seen as a self-indulgent, depressive record – the title track itself being a call to rejoice the end of another humdrum day.

And it is not to say that Gore hadn’t been pivotal to the evolution of Depeche Mode during the intervening years that followed Clarke’s departure. Both 1983’s Construction Time Again and the following year’s Some Great Reward generated more hits and strengthened their fanbase in Europe and America. However, even the big singles suffered from clunky sixth-form poetry (see ‘People Are People’ and ‘Everything Counts’) or mildly embarrassing displays of sexuality, as on the clumsy S&M metaphors of ‘Master And Servant’. While Gore’s writing, coupled with keyboardist Alan Wilder’s increasing influence, had taken the band away from their fluffy electro-pop beginnings, there was still an ungainliness about the Depeche Mode sound.

Black Celebration saw Depeche Mode step out of their ‘gangly teenager’ phase, even though the album was created in an extremely difficult period for the band. By late 1985, the newly-married Dave Gahan was sober and judgmental of Gore’s hedonistic Berlin lifestyle. The stop-gap single ‘It’s Called A Heart’ had been a weak offering and the band were unsure of their next musical step. When record company suits began to vet Gore’s embryonic new material, he “freaked out” and disappeared for a week, holing up with an old school exchange friend in rural northern Germany, complaining that “the business did my head right in.” Gahan would later state that if Depeche Mode were ever to have split up “it would have been at the end of 1985.”

The method of recording Black Celebration also shoveled on extra pressure. The album was produced by Mute’s Daniel Miller and Gareth Jones (who had worked with the band on previous albums) and recorded at London’s Westside studios and at Hansa in Berlin. Miller – inspired by German film director Werner Herzog’s idea of ‘living the art’ – suggested recording in one continuous session spanning four months, with no days off. While this undoubtedly added to the intense, claustrophobic feel to the songs, it left Jones emotionally shattered – “I’d never do anything like that again,” he would later remark. Also, Alan Wilder was becoming progressively more proficient as the ‘studio techno-bod’ and began to muscle in on the role previously taken by Miller and Jones. Four months, no break, toes being trodden on – sounds like one long party.

The lead single for Black Celebration was ‘Stripped’. It’s an ominous and intriguing pop song – the lines “You’re breathing in fumes / I taste when we kiss” exude the opaque carnality typical of Gore’s lyrical style at that time. Sonically, ‘Stripped’ relies on the heavy use of samples to generate its metallic jaggedness – the song starts with a sample of the ignition from Gahan’s Porsche, while the backbone of the track is the splutter of an idling motorbike.

Wilder’s all-consuming and often tortuous quest for samples did create the Bladerunner-meets-techno vibe on the superb ‘Fly On The Windscreen – Final’. While Gahan intones that “Death is everywhere,” the song squelches, burps and bleeps like a Synclavier set to apocalyptic mode. Sampling guru DJ Shadow quotes Black Celebration as one of his favourite ever albums, claiming the band gave him his “interest in synth music.” Depeche Mode’s influence on electronic dance music is, perhaps, hugely underrated.

Arguably the best song on Black Celebration is the track that relies least on studio alchemy. ‘A Question Of Lust’ sees Martin Gore’s growing lyrical confidence explore the covert paranoia of sexual relationships. Over a distinctly conventional melody, Gore reveals his vulnerabilities – “I need to drink / More than you seem to think / Before I’m anyone’s.” It’s a beautifully constructed song – Melody Maker called it the band’s “greatest moment.”

Indeed, lyrically, Gore seemed at his best when exploring the more desperate elements of relationships and the tension between sex, trust and love. He claimed that “70 per cent of my songs are about sex,” and the assertion seems to hold for Black Celebration, be it the promise of one last shag before obliteration on ‘Fly On The Windscreen – Final’ or the hopelessness of “She doesn’t trust him / But he will do” on the deceptively corrupt ‘World Full Of Nothing’. However, Gore struggled when his words veered away love and lust. The soap-boxing on ‘New Dress’ – which rallies against the nation’s obsession with Princess Diana’s latest fashion statement, set amid a backdrop of shocking news headlines (“Girl, 13, attacked with knife”) – was delivered with the subtlety of a sonic boom.

The final single from _Black Celebration was ‘A Question Of Time’. It is a fairly standard Depeche dance chugger (although apparently about a predatory male trying to corrupt a minor) and is more notable for its promotional video. It was the first time the band had worked with Dutch photographer Anton Corbijn (who had previously thought they were “sissies” and only agreed to the project because it allowed him to film in America). Corbijn would go onto produce many of Depeche Mode’s promo videos, including those for ‘Personal Jesus’ and the iconic ‘Enjoy The Silence’.

Black Celebration elevated Depeche Mode to arena-tour status in the UK, while cementing their popularity in America (where they partied their way through a 29-date tour). It also began the trio of career-defining albums including 1987’s Music For The Masses and the crossover, stadium-filler Violator (1990). This run of form perhaps captures the band’s musical zenith, before their subsequent output became bogged-down and fractured by Dave Gahan’s spiraling drug use. Martin Gore was central to this period of creative highs – the quiet, introspective boy had developed into a brutally honest and sonically expansive musician.

Source: The Quietus

Playing 102 shows in 40 countries, Depeche Mode’s acclaimed Tour Of The Universe saw Dave Gahan, Martin Gore and Andrew ‘Fletch’ Fletcher performing to over 2.7 million people.

Their epic trip across the globe was one of the most successful tours of recent history and saw them playing a host of stunning material spanning their impressive 30 year history.

‘Tour Of The Universe – Live In Barcelona’ contains 21 tracks recorded over two sold out nights at the Palau St Jordi in Barcelona on November 20th and 21st 2009, both shows being highlights of the celebrated tour.

Released on Mute, this spectacular DVD release comes with a host of bonus content including four bonus tracks recorded across the two nights, a tour documentary – Inside The Universe – two tracks filmed at tour rehearsals in New York and Anton Corbijn’s specially created ‘screen films’ for seven tracks plus further bonus montages created from the on-stage screens.

In addition the four promotional videos from 2009’s acclaimed ‘Sounds Of The Universe’ album including the Grammy nominated Wrong, directed by Patrick Daughters, are included.

‘Tour of the Universe – Live In Barcelona’ comes in three formats:

Super deluxe 4-disc version (2xDVD, 2xCD):
DVD1 (a 21 track live performance plus four alternate/bonus tracks)
DVD2 (extra bonus content including documentary and promo videos)
2 x CD (audio of the 21 tracks from DVD1)

Deluxe version (1 x DVD, 2 x CD):
Contains DVD1 and the two audio CDs

Blu-ray (2x Blu-ray discs)

Depeche Mode – Tour Of The Universe Barcelona 20/21:11:09

DVD1
1. In Chains
2. Wrong
3. Hole To Feed
4. Walking In My Shoes
5. It’s No Good
6. A Question Of Time
7. Precious
8. Fly On The Windscreen
9. Jezebel
10. Home
11. Come Back
12. Policy Of Truth
13. In Your Room
14. I Feel You
15. Enjoy The Silence
16. Never Let Me Down Again
17. Dressed In Black
18. Stripped
19. Behind The Wheel
20. Personal Jesus
21. Waiting For The Night

Bonus tracks
World In My Eyes (20th)
Sister Of Night (21st)
Miles Away / The Truth Is (20th)
One Caress (20th)

DVD2
Inside The Universe
Tour documentary with subtitles: English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Hungarian and Czech.

Tour Of The Universe / Screens
In Chains
Walking In My Shoes
Precious
Come Back
Policy Of Truth
Enjoy The Silence
Personal Jesus

Tour Of The Universe / Rehearsals
Wrong
Walking In My Shoes

Bonus tracks
Insight
Hole To Feed
Behind The Wheel
Never Let Me Down Again

Sounds Of The Universe – Videos
Wrong
Peace
Hole To Feed
Fragile Tension

Source: depeche mode dot com

Depeche Mode have announced plans to release a live DVD of two recent performances in Spain from their world tour.

Tour Of The Universe – Live In Barcelona features 21 tracks recorded over two nights at the Palau St Jordi in the city last November.

The release is set to come in three different formats, including a special four-disc version which contains the live show, a host of bonus content including four alternate bonus tracks recorded across the two nights, a tour documentary – Inside The Universe – two tracks filmed at tour rehearsals in New York and Anton Corbijn’s specially created Screen Films for seven tracks plus further bonus montages created from the onstage screens.

The super deluxe version will also come with two live CDs featuring the full 21 tracks from the performance, along with four promotional videos from their 2009 ‘Sounds Of The Universe’ album.

The deluxe version will contain the single DVD of the gig with bonus tracks and two audio CDs. Tour Of The Universe – Live In Barcelona will also be released on Blu-Ray.

The full tracklisting for the super deluxe version of Tour Of The Universe – Live In Barcelona is as follows:

DVD1
In Chains
Wrong
Hole To Feed
Walking In My Shoes
It’s No Good
A Question Of Time
Precious
Fly On The Windscreen
Jezebel
Home
Come Back
Policy Of Truth
In Your Room
I Feel You
Enjoy The Silence
Never Let Me Down Again
Dressed In Black
Stripped
Behind The Wheel
Personal Jesus
Waiting For The Night

Bonus tracks
World In My Eyes
Sister Of Night
Miles Away / The Truth Is
One Caress

DVD2 – Tour Of The Universe Screens:
In Chains
Walking In My Shoes
Precious
Come Back
Policy Of Truth
Enjoy The Silence
Personal Jesus

Tour Of The Universe / Rehearsals:
Wrong
Walking In My Shoes

Bonus tracks:
Insight
Hole To Feed
Behind The Wheel
Never Let Me Down Again

Sounds Of The Universe – Videos:
Wrong
Peace
Hole To Feed
Fragile Tension

Source: NME

Tour Of The Universe, Barcelona

Depeche Mode ‘Tour Of The Universe, Barcelona’ will hit stores across Europe in early November. Exact dates are to be confirmed, but it looks like it will be November 7 in Germany and November 10 in most other places (incl. UK, Scandinavia and France).

The release will, according to an internal EMI email which leaked via DepMod.com forums, come in three different variations:

Standard DVD edition (1DVD, 2CD)
Deluxe DVD edition (2DVD, 2CD)
Blu-ray Edition (2Blu-ray discs)

Content details are still sketchy, but are said to, in addition to the full concert film, include a 40 minute documentary, the Anton Corbijn directed films used for the on-stage screens, footage from the band’s pre-tour rehearsals in New York, as well as the promotional videos for ‘Wrong’, ‘Peace’, ‘Fragile Tension’ and ‘Hole To Feed’.

In addition there will be a 16 page booklet included with each edition, with the deluxe edition getting a second booklet.

New Remix Album

The second release already on the books is a remix album, who existence was hinted at by a notoriously “in the know” poster on a Pet Shop Boys forum, who goes by the name Flaffer. He writes: “Depeche mode have got a new remix album out next year, remixes are currently being commissioned. Sorry cannot divulge my source as he represents one of the remixers someone who has mixed PSB in the past.”

While this should still be placed firmly in the “rumoured” column, I’d suggest you don’t bet against it being true, considering where it came from.

Source: Home

Could it be that the rampant tongue-fighting is just too disturbing to handle or is it that the video simply doesn’t fit with the image the band has created over the years? Between ‘Black Celebration’ and ‘Playing The Angel’, Depeche Mode worked so frequently with Anton Corbijn (on videos, photographs and cover designs) that he might as well have been a member of the band. His sleek, seductive style became the public image of Depeche Mode, moving them far beyond the awkward early-MTV look of their earlier years. How can any director fill the void left by two decades of near-constant collaboration?

Wareheim’s borderline cringe-worthy sense of humor is at odds with what Modies have come to expect from the band. At the same time, though, the video proves that Depeche Mode isn’t afraid to push the buttons of its fanbase. Whether or not it works is still up for debate. And so, the question remains, what do you think of ‘Hole to Feed’?

Source: LA Weekly