Depeche Mode's SOUNDS OF THE UNIVERSE : A Personal Review

It’s hard to believe that four years have already elapsed since Depeche Mode released Playing the Angel, which represented a return to form of sorts for a band that many (including myself) had more or less written off. For this longtime fan, 2001’s Exciter was a serious disappointment, particularly after the surprise brilliance of 1997’s Ultra, which itself constituted something of a minor miracle (I won’t recount the history here; suffice to say, the band was more or less presumed dead after 1994’s Devotional tour and the departure of Alan Wilder). I will confess that the years have been somewhat kind to Exciter, and I can now listen to it without wincing (much). But the more recent Playing the Angel was a truly great album, evoking all their previous work while simultaneously sounding fresh (don’t even get me started on “Precious,” a song so deeply beautiful that I frequently choke up when listening to it). I couldn’t help but wonder if PTA represented a new lease on life for the band, or if it would ultimately serve as their swan song. Had it indeed been their last album, it would’ve been a fitting and satisfying end.

But here we are, in 2009, and a new Depeche Mode album has reappeared with a new album: Sounds of the Universe. “Wrong,” the first single released a few weeks ago, certainly showed promise (it didn’t hurt that its companion video showed that the band hadn’t lost its black comic edge). How is the rest of the album? I’ll go track-by-track.

01. “In Chains”

The album begins with roughly one minute of random analogue synthesizer sounds, with no discernible melody or structure. It serves as a clarion call of sorts, informing the listener that the band is way into retro analogue sounds these days. Thing is, retro synths have ALWAYS been part of the DM sound but, on this album, they absolutely dominate (in a documentary video about the making of the album, Martin L. Gore gushes about his new hobby of buying up old analogue gear on eBay, and cramming it someplace into their studio setup). The intro is actually a bit difficult to sit through more than once, and it ultimately is a pointless exercise. Now, had they isolated it as an independent track, it could be skipped through. No such luck. So, if you want to enjoy the actual first song on the album, you’ll have to sit through this intro first. Thanks, guys. After this minute-long annoyance (which actually feels much longer), the first proper song begins. “In Chains” is soulful and moody, and Dave Gahan’s vocals are predictably great. My only complaint (aside from the above-described intro, which I really wish they’d either omitted entirely or assigned its own track) pertains to Gore’s lyrics. I haven’t confirmed this, but I’m pretty sure most of the words have appeared in previous DM songs. So lyrically, nothing original here. But overall, a good song.

02. “Hole to Feed”

This song was leaked a few weeks prior to the album’s release, but surprise! The version on the album is completely different. The song’s opener sounds like a mid-90’s Björk track: bassy and bouncy, like nothing DM has ever done before. After listening to the slower and moodier (and spacier) advance version, I’m having trouble accepting the album version as the final “official” version. It’s faster, not moody at all, even a bit irritating. I think the advance version would have worked much better, especially sequenced right after “In Chains.” This is the first of three songs written by Gahan (instead of Gore, who typically writes all of DM’s songs), so the lyrics aren’t quite up to DM standards. But sadly, as you’ll see, most of Gore’s lyrics fall short as well this time around.

03. “Wrong”

A great song. Just great. No complaints whatsoever. In your face, manically paced, with a classic Gore lyric (probably the best lyrics on the entire album, in fact).

04. “Fragile Tension”

Man, I don’t know. It’s okay. It’s not great, it’s not terrible. As always, solid vocal work from Gahan. Really awkward lyrics (I don’t think the phrase “there’s something magical in the air” needs to EVER be used in a song, much less in a song by my favorite band of all time).

05. “Little Soul”

Musically, this song is gorgeous. Lush, a bit alien, quite spacey (on a side note, the tag line for the album is “Songs in the Key of Space”). What ruins the song are lyrics that verge on the absolute ridiculous. “My little soul will leave a footprint,” one of the worst lines ever in a DM song, is repeated about a dozen times. A tragedy because, again, the song itself is a thing of beauty, and deserving of much better lyrics.

06. “In Sympathy”

A standout track. The music throbs and shimmers. Reminds me a bit of “Precious” from Playing the Angel, so I guess it’s a foregone conclusion that I’d love it. One of the best songs on the album, period. Should be a single.

07. “Peace”

Ha! The opening bass (synth) line sounds almost exactly like “See You,” a DM song from way back (1982!). I have to believe this was intentional. Part of the melody also sounds a lot like “Any Second Now (Voices),” an even older DM track (1981). I wonder if this song is meant to celebrate their really old stuff (maybe Gore scored the same vintage synths they used back then on eBay and couldn’t resist dropping some old school sounds on our unsuspecting asses, I dunno). The lyrics are pretty trite (“I’m going to light up the world.” Really? REALLY???). Not one of the better songs on the album. Probably could’ve been an okay b-side.

08. “Come Back”

Another song that was leaked in advance, and turned out to be something completely different on the official album. However, this one fares much better in its album incarnation. It is faster and busier, and it totally works. The opening music just plain excites me. A great song (one of Gahan’s contributions) in either version. An absolute highlight.

09. “Spacewalker”

DM usually throws us a short little instrumental on each album, and SOTU is no exception. “Spacewalker” is a nice quick interlude, something I wished they’d expanded on (I felt the same way about “Introspectre” from Playing the Angel, which was criminally brief).

10. “Perfect”

Perfect? Perfectly middle-of-the-road, actually. This doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad song, but it’s not one of the better tracks on the album, and in the vast pantheon of DM songs, it’s not terribly impressive. It’s kinda bouncy and upbeat, perhaps a touch too… I dunno, sunny for a DM song. I’ve already spotted some internet buzz suggesting that this will be the next single (which is kinda ironic, since it would follow “Wrong,” which is its conceptual --- and musical --- opposite; I dunno, maybe that’s the whole point?).

11. “Miles Away / The Truth Is”

Fucking rocks. Gahan’s third and final contribution. Evokes the bristlier, grungier side of DM, which one of those trancelike circular guitar lines DM does so well. A very good track, and great backing vocal work from Gore.

12. “Jezebel”

Well, this could’ve been a standout track. Great torchy vibe, brooding and melancholic, dripping with atmosphere. It’s the only song sung by Gore (which is odd, since he usually sings two or three songs on each album), and a Gore-sung song is usually great. So everything seems great… and then he goes and totally wrecks it with some of the worst lyrics he’s ever inflicted on the world (“They call you Jezebel, whenever we walk in, you’re going straight to hell, for wanton acts of sin”). Honestly, WTF, man? Ugh. What an utter waste. Maybe an instrumental version will surface somewhere.

13. “Corrupt”

The album closer. Um, bad choice, guys. Usually DM puts something pretty epic at the end of each album (think back to “Clean” from Violator, or “The Darkest Star” from Playing the Angel; hell, even “Goodnight Lovers” from Exciter was pretty great). This is actually a decent track, seething and sinister, with that wonderful distorted guitar sound that pervaded Songs of Faith and Devotion, but it’s sorely misplaced. After a few minutes of silence, we’re treated to a thirty second reprise (of sorts) of “Wrong.” Just the synth melody, dialed way down in volume. One of those cute no-apparent-reason things.

Overall, the new album is a fairly solid effort. Is it better than Exciter? Yes, though in retrospect Exciter seems more cohesive somehow. Sounds of the Universe is a bit scattered, the track order somewhat arbitrary, and cursed with some pretty terrible lyrics (Gore, what the hell has happened to you? This is the guy that wrote “Fly on the Windscreen” and “Strangelove,” after all). Is it better than Playing the Angel? Decidedly not, but I must point out that my comments are initial reactions. Time tends to change my mind some (see Exciter, which I absolutely loathed upon release). This is a worthwhile release, a no-brainer for any DM fan. Any album that includes brilliant songs like “Wrong,” “In Sympathy,” and “Come Back” deserves to exist. But is it one of their legendary albums (a la Black Celebration, Music for the Masses, Violator, Songs of Faith and Devotion, etc)? No, not quite. Unfortunately. I sincerely hope that this ISN’T their last album.

In a calculatedly shrewd marketing move, the new Depeche Mode album is available in several different editions, the most comprehensive (and expensive) of which includes five additional tracks apparently not available anywhere else. I love the band, but I refuse to reward this bullshit. So, armed with the internet and the magic of torrent downloads, I snagged the tracks. Yes, I’m a pirate. Yaaaar, matey.

01. “Light”

Yeah, not bad. Laid back, all electronic, no guitars to be found. Reminds me of an 80’s song by somebody else, but for the life of me I can’t remember what it is. Lyrically it reminds me a bit of their earlier “Sacred” (1987).

02. “The Sun and the Moon and the Stars”

Okay, now this is a beautiful fucking song. Gore does the vocals, which tells me that at some point it was intended to appear on the album. A heartfelt ballad, simple and fragile. It’s exclusion from the album is just plain criminal.

03. “Ghost”

Oh man. This song is AWESOME. Brooding, ominous vibe, great morbid DM lyrics. The lengthy end makes me wonder if it was originally intended to be the album closer. Had it been used in that capacity, the album would’ve been markedly better (it’s certainly a better closing song than “Corrupt”). Love love LOVE this track. I can imagine it playing over the end credits of a movie.

04. “Esque”

Another short little instrumental. Nothing of serious consequence, but it’s pleasant enough.

05. “Oh Well”

A club-ready dance track. So… not really my thing. Not bad, but I don’t mind it being left off the album.

Wanna know what pisses me off? A CD holds 80 minutes of music. In its present form, SOTU is about 57 minutes long. They could’ve included more songs, instead of banishing a few really great songs to almost certain obscurity by making them next to impossible to acquire by honest means. Bad move, blokes. My generally-positive review of the album stands, but it’s bothersome knowing that it could’ve been that much better, simply by swapping out a couple of tracks or simply making the album longer. Shit, they could’ve made it a double-length album and included ALL the songs, plus the pre-release leaked versions of “Hole to Feed” and “Come Back,” and maybe a few remixes too. I guess that’s why computers and iPods are so great: it’s easy to customize your own version. That’s what I’ll be doing.