Music for the Masses
Depeche Mode
1987
Album Summary
Music for the Masses is the sixth studio album by English electronic music band Depeche Mode, released on 28 September 1987 by Mute Records. The album was supported by the Music for the Masses Tour.
WikipediaOh, boy. Here we go, again. Crappy 80s synths. Hideous echoey drums emphasizing the backbeat. Inconsequential melodies and song structures. We don't even have the saving grace of interesting rhythms or song lyrics. This is self-serious, humorless tripe, the dullest of dull pop. It's not even danceable. It makes me want to curl up and die. Not even the moderately original album closer Pimpf, with it operatic vocals, comes close to redeeming this dreadful album. 1 star out of 5 and only because I can't give it less. I'm beginning to have my doubts about the curators of this list.
This is my first time hearing Depeche Mode and I must say that I loved this album. It is brooding and driving with interesting instrumentation and song construction. There's an expansiveness to this music that I really enjoy. British New Wave is quickly becoming a favorite of mine.
1. thought the 1st track was like a cute platonic friendship type thing, nope-- drugs lol. 2. good i think, i forgot, need another listen. 3. STRANGELOVE SLAPS. 4. sacred also a bop. imma mishun-airyyy 5. good, lotta drama. lyrics hmm, needa re-listen. 6. ooooooh. 7. SEXY. 8. also good, eerie, needa another listen tho. 9. bop. nothaaaaang 10. spooky piano/orchestra/choir instrumental, me likey!!! DELUXE 11. MORE SPOOKY-MOODY PIANO & other sounds, I LOVE. 12. bop. periodt. i could dance to this 13. it's aight, not a fave. 14. more moody piano--hell YEAH. more of a calm vibe this time. still got drama. 15. it's moonlight sonata, c'mon. gorgeousness. overall thoughts: on first listen I'd give the album a 4/5. i think with more listens it'll become more perfect to me. i love the eerie vibe of it all, some bops here and there. def got tracks I can come back to which is poifect.
I get why it is here and I appreciate it but I don’t wanna listen to it anymore
I’m not sure I know why but this album just ticked every box for me. Dark, moody synthesizers, driving beats, interesting multipart harmonies, it all just works. I enjoyed this way more than I was expecting to.
This was Depeche Mode's bridge album between their more classic 80's synth period (Black Celebration) and their all time classic Violator. But from the album cover to the music, this album is both a classic and truly iconic in its own right. There is not one bad song on here. 5/5
"Music for the Masses" is the 6th album by Depeche Mode. It was produced by David Bascombe and the album title was meant to be tongue-in-cheek as the band thought the music was anything but for the masses. And, on the surface I would agree with the music dark and the songs about sex, sin and drugs. However, this album (and the previous one "Black Celebration") pretty much taking these guys beyond sort of cult status to playing in front of 60,000 people. The music is eerie, hypnotic and I must say I enjoyed more and more with repeated listens. The songs switch lead singers between David Gahan and Martin Gore with a definite flow to this album. The album contains some of their bigger hits. "Never Let Me Down Again" starts things off with a great dark and hypnotic intro and appears to be about drug use seeking euphoria. Obviously, Gahan at the lead here. "Strange Love", another big song and great intro, adds more of a dance beat. An interesting take on probably sinning (cheating) and keeping a relationship. "Behind the Wheel" adds even more of a dance beat and really sounds like early Depeche Mode to me. I love it when a song has an emotionless feel and is good. This is one of those. Not having a dance beat but creating an eerie, almost Goth feel is "I Want You Now". Martin Gore takes the lead here with Gahan groaning in the back. Lust the theme here. It has been awhile since I listened to this album and I thought it might sound dated, being of its time. I get some of that but it still sounded great and you can see why they became so big.
Contrairement à l'avis totalement à côté de la plaque de mon compère elrodriguez, je n'ai pas été subjugué par cet album.
I feel like this is the sweet spot for Depeche Mode's music. It is moving past the poppier sound and headed more towards brooding. An amazing album.
This is one of the biggest loves of all time! Unparalleled, gets to the bones..
Depeche Mode knows that if you're going to use "again" to rhyme with a word ending in an "ane" sound, you need to pronounce it "a-GANE". I'd be tempted to give it five stars just for not cocking it up like everybody else. Thankfully the album is also very good.
Never really been a fan of DM I think mostly because they were an 80s band that, outside Personal Jesus, didn't really have any radio ready songs. I feel like they were more of an MTV band and by the time MTV was in most households I was out of high school. Also, rural America didn't get MTV until decades later. My point being, DM was not a band I had ready access to. That's why I love this site. It's got me to listen to and really enjoy a band I previously little interest in hearing. These guys are good. They are excellent, and most importantly, creative composers.
Put this on again recently around Andy's untimely death. Absolutely terrific album, some of their greatest ever songs, an easy 5. Also the Depeche Mode album I think which most influenced the glorious Turrican and Turrican 2 soundtracks.
Depeche Mode is one of the few bands I will go to great lengths to experience live. They were part of my bucket list - see one of my favorite bands on their home turf - and that I did. I saw DM in London at Queen Elizabeth Stadium surrounded by an English audience in 2017. The pinnacle was the first track of this album, Never Let Me Down Again. It started raining, the entire audience was swinging their arms back & forth, and the energy was electric. Fast forward to 2022 and I get to see an epic lineup at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA - Cruel World Fest. I couldn't help to think about the infamous 1989 Depeche Mode show at the same venue - Depeche Mode 101. They pulled heavily from Music for the Masses (arguably one of the best live shows in modern history). If you've never experienced 101, I highly recommend it. It will make you wish you could travel back in time. Depeche Mode, my 4th favorite band & my favorite band to see live, will always get high ratings from me.
I got into Depeche Mode after doing an episode of "my one track mind" and I really enjoy most of their material. This album is no exception. They sound like a link between Kraftwerk and Nine Inch Nails at times. Sucks that some of the track transitions seem to get flubbed by awkward pauses in-between songs on spotify (or maybe it's just my settings)? I love the 3 song run at the beginning of the album best. Listened to the 2006 remaster w/ bonus tracks.
For me, Depeche Mode is "Just Can't Get Enough", "Personal Jesus" and the time in the late 80s when a reporter on an American entertainment show unironically called them "America's favourite rock 'n' roll band". Their Music for the Masses phase is interesting. It's an edgier sound and makes me think a little of Joy Division. "I Want You Now" was the most memorable track, with its disturbing respiratory sounds mixed with the loving but dark lyrics. It feels like a good stage in the creative life of la Mode.
Somewhere between New Order and Pet Shop Boys. Not as exciting, funny, or danceable as them, but roughly a hundred times better than I expected. Fey, melodramatic, and infectious.
It's Depeche Mode's Music for the Mases featuring none of their greatest hits! Buy now and you can get all this maudlin synth pop absolutely free because absolutely no one else wants it!
2/16 "Relocate to Fresno bumpin' Depeche Mode in the enzo..." Standout Tracks: Strangelove, Behind the Wheel, Pimpf, Agent Orange, Pleasure Little Treasure, Route 66, Stjarna
Bombastische muziek als deze kan ik wel smaken. Het volume ging duidelijk omhoog hoe verder ik kwam in het album, en dan moest 'Pimpf' nog komen: Wat een knaller die compleet in contrast staat met de rest van het album!
better than I thought - probably a 4.5 but I'm rounding up for the surprise. Very cool early electronic.industrial stuff!
No és perfecte, perquè cap al final de la segona cara comença a baixar el nivell, però els temes que sí ho són, que es són molts, eleven el nivell del disc per sobre del 90% de la producció musical de la década. A 'Violator' es van refinar definitivament com a compositors, però aquí els agafa en el seu millor moment d'inspiració, culminant una ratxa de sis discos en trajectòria ascendent (començant ja el primer d'ells des de molt a dalt!)
Knew a couple of tracks - lots of good stuff on this. 1st one to make 3 listens by day 2.
Rating: 9/10 Best songs: Never let me down again, The things you said, Strangelove, Sacred, Behind the wheel
Favorite tracks: Never Let Me Down Again, Strangelove, Nothing, Agent Orange, Pleasure… Little Treasure, Route 66,
This album is great! Not my favorite Depeche Mode album, but definitely solid throughout
Very good and easy listening. I had a great experience. I can’t think of anything other than the title and how fitting it is. Somebody made it and it’s art so I like it
Strangelove clássica. Little 15 é linda. I Want You Now, tem respirações interessantes. Sons interessantes em Agent Orange. Bass de Never Let Down Again é top!!
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never let me down never let me down never let me down never let me down
A classic, building on the promise shown in "Black Celebration". Backed up by a legendary tour and live album.
When this came out, it made realise what I'd been missing One of the best lobe bands
It is not the kind of music you would expect for an album like that, but at every time is great.
Excellent album. Literally listened like 100x Seen them 10x Has a great instrumental, Agent Orange. Never let me down Strangelove Sacred Little 15 Behind the wheel Nothing
Þessi er ein af mínum kjarnaplötum. Ég kann hvert einasta hljóð utanað og fæ ekki nóg. Hef ekki fengið nóg í 35 ár! Stórkostlegt electro-pop verk!
Amazing. Despite the usual complaints about only british pop music being on this list, I actually agree with this one - Everyone should hear this album (especially catholic high school girls!). 5/5
Black Celebration is better and I absolutely resent the shade the book throws at it, but this album still absolutely rules. Depeche Mode was one of the first bands I ever loved and I still can't get enough.
Awwwwe yeah, here's my jam! Love me some DM That was great!! As much as I love DM I'd never heard that album!
Great album, love Depeche Mode Saved tracks: Never Let Me Down Again, Strangelove, Behind The Wheel, Nothing
Pretty good. Interesting atmosphere on a lot of the songs, and I really like the use of synths/ electronics.
What does Depeche Mode mean? Cool album tho, one of those bands where I should listen to more but I never do
I need to give this a second listen. I really liked a lot of it, feels very ahead of its time imo, but definitely some filler songs that I think could have been cut to keep the runtime down. Like, you don’t need the instrumentals or the moonlight sonata on there. Very harrowing, unique vocals, great synths, very atmospheric.
Deler er sgu god elektro-pop. Fede hits og lækre rytmer. Har dog et par meget lange rene instrumentelle numre som er lidt ligegyldige. Men starter rigtigt godt
Man, Depeche Mode. IMO, one of the most under-appreciated bands of the millennial/x generation. It has all of the sound that you'd expect us 'youngins' to like. It's my goal to listen to more of them. I love this album. Great to work to.
Tja, äh - ich finde das gut, worüber ich ein ganz klein wenig überrascht bin! DM gehörten in den 80ern und 90ern nicht unbedingt zu meinen Favoriten, obwohl ich Personal Jesus und Enjoy the Silence von der Violator auch immer schon ganz groß fand. Vorher nie ein Album von denen durchgehört.
Wasn't looking forward to it, but was surprisingly good. Lots of catchy stuff.
Depeche Mode when they started to get REALLY big. Personally I prefer Violator, but this is a solid listen. Dark synth-pop that filled stadiums all around the world. I could come back to this one. Favorite song: Sacred Least favorite song: Behind The Wheel
Este disco es menos sombrío que el otro que ha aparecido en esta lista (Violator) y es más fácil de consumir. Este fue el primero que oí completo y creo que sin haber pasado por aquí el otro me hubiera costado más trabajo. Strangelove y I Want You Now son mis favoritas. Ninguna canción suena a relleno aunque tampoco me voló la cabeza. Sólido 4.
Stylistically/conceptually/artistically wonderful. Not easy listening.
Hah hah, yes! Moody, gothy synthy not-pop. Enjoyed this a lot. Fave track - "Behind the Wheel", maybe? "Never Let Me Down Again" was great, and I enjoyed the weirdness of "Pimpf", too...
3.7* some good songs but not my style. very 80s sounding but i guess that makes sense for an album that came out in 1987
I had both the CD and the cassette. Definitely listened to this every week. Now?
Some tracks stronger than others (not a fan of the instrumentals) but overall a really enjoyable listen
Que nostalgia, algunos temas épicos pero otros nada, en todo caso agradable de escuchar