Reviews (page 4 of 14)
Je découvre que j'aime vraiment bien Depeche Mode !
Cool and atmospheric. Slightly passed me by in parts partly just because it feels quite long. I think I prefer the other Depeche mode I heard. Interesting and good though
For me 1 or 2 Depeche Mode songs are enough. Their sound is interesting and a little different but it also grates on me
First listen = 3, Second listen = 3.5, Third listen = 4. What I like best about Depeche Mode is the vocals and their synthy sounds. Dave Gahan’s lead vocals with Martin Gore’s backing vocals harmonize really beautifully into a single "voice" that is Depeche Mode. And accompanying the vocals is some pretty creative synth composing. Even the songs that I didn't like that much on this album were still musically interesting.
I like Depeche Mode and gave this a few listens in hopes that I would really get into it. I never got there, but it was cool enough music. I was familiar with Strangelove, and the rest was new to me. The only other song that grabbed me was Never Let Me Down Again.
Choutte
Alright, pretty boring
This did very little for me. I'm not against some solid 80's synths, but I just couldn't find something that I connected with throughout.
3 stars, not bad
Better than Coldplay
It was ok. Didn't really blow me away but I'm not a massive fan of this band.
The album they made just before they released their masterpiece and you can hear it. Not every track excels, but their sound is undeniable. Loved it.
This was pretty good. Don't know how much it will stick with me, but I really enjoyed it while listening to it. Edit: I have come back to this fairly regularly. I was incorrect. It's great Favorite Songs: Never Let Me Down Again, Little 15, I Want You Now
8.5/10 - I love this album. It’s dark, it’s moody, it’s interesting. I think the album is a bit too long and tails off at the end. I think if the album ended after “Nothing” we would be looking at a High 9. Great Album.
I like the dark synthpop, but there's a few choices on here that make me scratch my head. I don't understand the use of moaning on I Want You Now. I don't have anything against Pimpf or Agent Orange, and really like the latter, but I wish they wouldn't have put them back to back. Strong 7/10
6/10
A transitional album. There's some classic tracks here -- "Never Let Me Down Again" being the most obvious, but also "Behind the Wheel" and "The Things You Said" -- and some favorites like "Nothing," too. These showed the direction they'd be heading with Violator. Having not heard this album in over 20 years, I had forgotten that "Never Let Me Down" again was here and not on Violator. Those tracks feel relatively timeless. "Strangelove," "Sacred," and "Little 15" though, feel dated to me now, and haven't aged so well. 3.5 stars. I go back and forth on rounding up or down.
I liked this album but not so much
Legal mas achei meio creepy
Good album for background music
Pimpf??
Ok
Depech Mode gets moody and dark on Music for the Masses. I've been a Depeche Mode fan for a few years because my ex was a fan. I do have a few favorite Depeche Mode albums, but this one has never been among them. This particular listen is changing that. Think New Order, but sadder and sexier. Music for the Masses still isn't a top 3 Mode album for me, but the songwriting is noticeably better than some of their previous efforts, and the change in tone towards darker sounds absolutely works for them. This absolutely influenced Nine Inch Nails.
Not something I’d listen to in my own but I enjoyed it. ⭐️⭐️
10/10 Best songs: Never Let Me Down Again, Strangelove, Sacred, Little 15, Behind The Wheel I am a big Depeche Mode fan, and this album contains (starts off with) what I consider to be their all-time best song: Never Let Me Down Again. Beyond that, the album is full of absolute bops. The 80s synths, terrific pacing, goth vibes, and Dave Gahan's distinctive voice make this a fantastic album.
I’ve enjoyed this from day one.
-tragend, sehr entspannt -nicht dieser Depeche Mode stil den ich kenne -5/10
how is this popular
I'm enjoying this, I am. makes me want to explore more Depeche Mode. don't know if this is the cream of the crop of Depeche Mode, but it was a nice little intro. saved a few songs.
Same as The Smiths really.
I like Depeche Mode pretty good. I’d say I’m easily more of a Violator fan (can’t imagine there are too many dissenting opinions there), but Music for the Masses is pretty decent. The thing is, I totally would understand why this record wouldn’t turn anyone into this band. It’s pretty decent, but it doesn’t ever switch gears and the songs all sound pretty similar and sloggy. And I’d normally gripe about the rich tapestry of shitty 80’s synths, but it’s Depeche Mode, and that’s kind of been their whole shtick from the beginning. Honestly, they’re one of the only bands that I feel like can really pull that off. I guess all that is to say that I like this record, but I understand why it could bore someone to tears. 7/10
its a good album
I’m not sure I like Depeche Mode, but I respect that they’ve created a sound for themselves that is certainly of its era but distinct from other 80s pop.
3.2 Not the biggest Depeche Mode fan but like this more than others. That brooding droning on can get tiresome after a while
I heard it from my friends about the things you said I heard it from my friends about the things you said But they know me better than that They know me better than that They know my weaknesses (I never tried to hide them) They know my weaknesses (I never denied them) I heard it from my friends about the things you said I heard it from my friends about the things you said How can a view become so twisted? How can a view become so twisted? They know my weaknesses (I never tried to hide them) They know my weaknesses (you tried them) I get so carried away You brought me down to earth I thought we had something precious Now I know what it's worth I heard it from my friends about the things you said I heard it from my friends about the things you said I've never felt so disappointed Never felt so disappointed They know my weaknesses (I never tried to hide them) They know my weaknesses (thought that you liked them) They know me better than that
Maybe my mood, but didn't connect with this at all
clean
my fav album from DM
yo this is so fire (I Want You Now is very creepy thou but all the song transitions are cool) fav song: Strangelove
Chill
Has to catch me in the right mood but is fun when it hits. Kind of a slog when it doesn't. A little creepy and haunting at times. Surprised this of the albums is the one on here.
Music For The Masses has a cool industrial electronic pop feel. Easy to see where some bands like Nine Inch Nails drew some inspiration. I thought the songs were a little slow paced though and the album as a whole didn't keep me fully interested. It's very cool to see how this type of sound has evolved over the years though. Standout tracks were "Never Let Me Down Again" and "I Want You Now" A solid 3/5
I like the harmonic choices, and the vocals. The overall style isn’t really my bag but I didn’t hate it.
Man, Depeche Mode could just crank this stuff out. Forgettable, mindless, meaningless, nihilistic. But I don’t actively hate it as much as some other stuff.
Excuse me, I need to flip my shit into "Depeche" mode. I'm usually in "survive" or "waiting for global collapse of capitalism," but I believe I owe this record the switching of uhh ah jeez this sucks. I got nothin. I just want to catch up on my reviews, but I refuse to half-ass this. You may be wondering; "You write these with your whole ass?" The answer? Yes. You couldn't tell most of these reviews were the result of sitting on the keyboard and hoping for the best? In all seriousness, I am rather stupid. This record kicked off like a really fast car with shoddy craftsmanship as it went off like a shot and then skidded to a calamitous terminus about 90 seconds in. I'm sorry. I'm too dumb for Depeche Mode. Or maybe, I'm just not cool enough. One of those. I just can't find the appeal of these moody, ashen twinks crooning over the dulcet tones of a 99 pound (sterling) Casio. A record that feels like standing outside a West Midlands rock club, fighting the frigid air with the help of a cigarette I bummed off an even paler girl who seems to have a tragic backstory. The night fades to morning, just as the days bleed into one another. Everything is numb. Nope. Still can't get in the mindset. Take this leather jacket back and get me the eye makeup remover. I'm not cut out for this. 1 HIGHLIGHTS: Not cool enough for leather jacket? Reviewer stuns in latest embarrassing summary of British music that eludes him.
it's a bit boring for me, but I can't say anything bad about the music. I'll try it later at the right time
Nope, cancled, didnt like it
2 sterne
Great album
Incredible vibes. Depeche mode is absolutely great at what they do.
4/5 Depeche mode how I love you so. SO iconic 80s, every song had something fun about it. I'm so glad I listened to this album in full. Also how do you manage to be so effing queer while only having straight dudes on your roster?? Crazy.
Норм
Nearly gave it 3 as quite enjoyable for the most part. Just didn’t have enough of an impact on first listen.
Det hørtes ut akkurat som forventa, så det gjorde ikke nokka særlig inntrykk fra eller til, nei.
Couldn’t get through it unfortunately.
I was about 13 when this album first came out. Depeche Mode always intimidated me. People who listened to it were cool and weird and though interested I stayed away. I learned to appreciate them later. I can really enjoy Violator and some of their later works but not this album.
I did not vibe with this at all. 1.7/5
I can see where She Wants Revenge got their influence! This was pretty good too, I'd like to hear more!
I really liked this. It sounds like video game music from late 80s to late 90s in the best possible way. Great album to listen to on the train at night. Standout tracks: - Never Let Me Down Again 4.5/5 - Nothing 4.5/5
Didn't even need to listen to this album since it is one of the most listened albums in my life. Depeche Mode is the band of my life, and Music for the Masses is the essence of Depeche Mode.
I'm a latecomer to Depeche Mode, this album was a lot more enjoyable than I expected.
Love this album. Quintessential synth pop album full of anthems.
2+ Stars (6/15)
Man depechai nelimpa
Not really for me.
Very cool, I like it.
Slaps
A good listen, an important band. Definitely feels dated, but not in a bad way! I just don't think it's for me and that's ok.
3.0 RYM
Gotta respect it for what it was but hasn’t aged well. The drum machine noises on this album are a rough listen in 2026.
“Nothing” was probably my favorite, but otherwise I didn’t click too much with the album on the whole. I think other entries in the genre might fair better.
6 - Depeche Mode - Music for the Masses - Rating = 5 Big album for me - In 1987 as my musical tastes were fully veering from the radio and pop into much more alternative. This album was a big early block in that. The opening notes to Never Let me Down Again… just a grabber for me. It’s a driving brilliant opener and I love this song. The Things you Said is a vibe that this album is going to have a different mood than previous Depeche Mode offerings, a little richer/less poppy. Strangelove has a great opening riff and is just good and an ear-worm. Sacred is mildly catchy if not a standout. Little 15 is haunting and moody. Behind the Wheel… love this song, driving, cool (and the Route 66 remix is epic). I Want You Now… the opening breathing is sort of off-putting but it comes around as it’s a nice crooning, simple love song. Moody, heavy, like the vocal / helps add to the overall depth of the sound on the album. Nothing is one of the better 9th song of the albums around. Nice, cool moody keyboards and fits nicely with the overall. Pimpf is a sorta-nice moody dramatic piano outro to cap it. This album also fed 101… which is a top album.
3.8
Depechian Mode
Alright
Fine. Just too 80s for me.
It's depeche mode... come on ofc its good
VERY nice Smooth - creepy voice 5/5 Dark vibes Strangelove IS A F BOP
Definitely music for me
While the album is pleasant to listen to and has some good songs on it, it is unclear to me what this album is trying to achieve. It's just there in its place being good, but it's not trying to really be anything. 3/5
Perfectly fine album. Couple of really good and good sounding songs... The rest didn't move the needle.
I have never heard of this band! First song is promising. This album gives a very specific goth vibe that I thing is very cool! I dont think I would listen to the album again, but several songs will probably make my Playlist.
Cool
Would give 2.5 if I could. I think violator is a stronger album.
My second Depeche Mode album and it’s another great one. I didn’t enjoy it as much as Violator though. The synths here give the record a much darker feel than I was anticipating. Never Let Me Down Agian was my favourite and the Aggro Mix really lets the synths shine
83. hmm
Music for my asses
I'm a fan but I don't think this is consistently great. 6.8 Fav track: Never Let Me Down Again Least fav: Little 15
I mean it doesn't get any more classic for Gen X than this album. Arguably their best release. Musically everything is on point and meshes well. Songwriting is perfect and vocals weave nicely in and out of the synth lines. The song Little 15 has always given me the ick though.
Oh, this was actually a vibe
dark, moody synthesizers and great vocals. beat switches r awesome and it really makes me feel something while listening to it. very great album, very great music by a very good band. melodies and chord progressions r really solid its just great man i love this thing
Very poppy british music. I’m not a huge depeche mode fan but this album is pretty nice 8/10
Great 80s electronic sound. Don't know if I'll return to it, but didn't hate it either.
I'm definitely into synthpop, yet I haven't listened to a lot of Depeche Mode in my life. The first 3 songs on the album were standouts, and I also enjoyed the horror sounds of the closer Pimpf, and a few of the other songs throughout the album were fun to listen to. Overall I enjoyed this album.
Ofcourse aclassic depeche mode has a lot of amazing singles
I enjoyed it, but no exactly what I would choose to listen to on my own.
Didn’t hear any hits on this one
Not so good smiths
### Depeche Mode – Music for the Masses (1987) Bloody hell. Having just spent the previous review contemplating the virtues of listening as openly and without prejudice as possible, I get this thrown at me. The album had barely been playing for two minutes when I thought: *I already know what I think of this.* And then there’s the rather awkward fact that the opening track, **“Never Let Me Down Again,”** is by far the best song on the album. So what made me reach a verdict quite so quickly? Well, this is a pop album. Depeche Mode gets filed under all sorts of labels: post-punk, synthpop, electronic music. But some sources, unbelievably, even classify them as new wave. Fair enough, perhaps for their early years, but this is already their sixth studio album. To me, though, this is simply pop music. There isn’t a sharp edge anywhere to be found — although, to be fair, that’s not entirely true, as we’ll get to in a moment. Mostly, there are pleasant, easily digestible tunes that, back when music was apparently still played at a more leisurely pace, were probably reasonably danceable. More importantly, the music is built around the vocal melodies. **Vocal-centered**, in other words. There is remarkably little actual music to discover. Almost nothing happens. There is no instrumental virtuosity, nor even much of an attempt at it. They clearly didn’t feel the need to get Jean-Michel Jarre out of storage, because yes, this is heavily electronic. And that doesn’t exactly increase the musical content: it’s mostly dull synthesizer sounds and flat electronic drums, or acoustic drums subjected to electronic processing. Apparently Martin Gore also plays guitar on the album. Well, if there were such a thing as an audio magnifying glass, you might be able to go looking for it. As I said, **“Never Let Me Down Again”** is a perfectly decent pop song. It has some drive and a genuinely compelling melody. Then comes **“The Things You Said,”** which is still pretty good: a heavy, ominous song that evokes the atmosphere of the eve of a war, built in part around a Kraftwerk-like synthesizer figure. After that, it’s mostly crap. Just… nothing. Nothing happens. Nothing grabs me. It sort of bubbles along without ever really going anywhere. Until the closing track of the original album, **“Pimpf.”** Even the original CD release already had bonus tracks, which I’m ignoring here — among other reasons because one of them is a remix of an album track. “Pimpf” also contains some sort of hidden track, because apparently one strange little surprise wasn’t enough. *Sigh.* There is actually more music happening here than on most of the rest of the album, with another rather ominous motif at its centre. But it doesn’t stick. I don’t think Depeche Mode is necessarily a bad or uninteresting band. But the two albums of theirs I’ve had to listen to have done absolutely nothing to convince me — and this one least of all.
It has the grandiose electronic soundscapes Depeche Mode is known for, but other than the opener there weren’t as many peaks as I needed.
Never Let Me Down Again - 4.5/5 The Things You Said - 3.5/5 Strangelove - 4.5/5 Sacred - 3/5 Little 15 - 3/5 Behind the Wheel - 4/5 I Want You Now - 4/5 To Have and to Hold - 3.5/5 Nothing - 4.5/5 Pimpf - 3.5/5 The transitional period between the poppy synthpop of "I Just Can't Get Enough" to the more darker tones of what Violator would become. There were a couple of duds but was really solid throughout. Overall: 4/5 Favorites: Never Let You Down Again, Strangelove, Nothing
Perhaps the lowest 3 stars I’ll ever award. 3/5
Listened to this in the car while concentrating on GPS directions do probably didnt give it the attention it warranted. Nothing stood out for me.
every song sounded exactly the same and was hella gloomy
Yeah
reminds me of my dad. fave song is never let me down again, its a classic for a reason
Okay, unremarkable, a few interesting moments, but there were other people doing more interesting things with the same equipment in this era.
Ooooh, yessss!
Music for the Masses is my shit on paper: industrialized robot pop, expensive gloom, synths humming like a sexy appliance, I don't even mind the sad boi vibez. Reality? It just washes over me. Nothing really pops. Nothing sticks. And repeated listens unearth no mysteries. It's polished, very moody, very "come stand in this dimly lit fog and despair" but the songs never really sink their claws in. I don't hate it, which honestly makes it worse. I just sit there thinking "yeah...yeah" while the album quietly slips out the back door. Great wallpaper for a depressive European nightclub. Stinks like vomit and cigarette butts.
Give me a black eyeliner, a fringed caftan, crimped cockatiel haircut, and cue the fog machine – because we’re about to make a moody entrance into a smokey bar. Menacing, synthy, danceable. “Pimpf”, “Agent Orange” are delightfully ominous, but ultimately disappointing. Like… huh?
Great!
Depeche Mode's sixth studio album. Released in 1987. "Music For The Masses" is a series of synth-pop songs. Critiques of the time seem pretty mixed, none really giving it a negative score. They instead seemed to feel it was fine yet missing something while other give it an incredibly glowing review. This felt quite new for the album reccs up till now as either critics or retrospectives had been mostly or overwhelmingly glowing. Retrospectives seem to agree with the critics of the day who view it as fine though often highlight its legacy. I did come across a retrospective review that talked about how it did get negative perception in the press for being too depressing. Which felt surprising as I listening to the album. It's not positive but it's not THAT depressing to my ear. Though in saying that, I couldn't find more than one interview by the French and that was it. I'll probably keep this one brief for how I feel. It was fine. Nothing really moved me. It feels like a pretty stock standard synth-pop album from the 80's. Perhaps the lens of hindsight is cruel but there is no other lens on which I can view it from. Perhaps I could play a mental contrarianism in my mind for its benefit, yet I feel no drive there because of how little moved I was by the album. We got a song about drugs, a song about driving, and the rest are about some kind of sad love song in some way, shape, or form. Little 15 is probably the only song that stands out however and not for a good reason. Listen/read the lyrics and you'll see what I mean. The songwriter himself even mentions the song was partially inspired by a classmate he once had, who had an affair with a middle-aged woman when he was 15. The song doesn't glorify or condemn the relationship. It instead simply has the middle-aged woman telling the 15 year old about how much life will suck in future for him. So you're left with a strange context to a song that doesn't have much of a message other than life is hard. And after typing that out, I think I know what my conclusion for that song and this album are. It's directionless. The songwriter was in this limbo state emotionally and mentally, while that can be fun to explore I do not think this album actually explores those feelings or state. Instead it sadly declares them in this listless and low energy way that leaves me feeling bored of the album the longer it goes on.
Music for them asses lmao
Scary The title couldn’t be further from the truth, which surprised me since I mostly knew them from their super popular synth pop stuff. There was some pretty cool stuff about this one. Honestly didn’t particularly like the first song, and then each song got better than the last. There are some genuinely unsettling parts of the album, which is definitely new to me. Not usually my type of music but it still sounds pretty solid. I do think there’s a little bit of a clash between the vibes the albums going for and the vocals but there’s plenty of instrumental stuff that really absorbs you. I feel the album could have been just a tad shorter, but I don’t think it overstays its welcome too much. Definitely on the higher side of 3s, but there’s enough nitpicks where I don’t think I could give it a 4.
I love scary moody synths rrrragaghhrgaghhrgaghagagagaggghhhh
OK, full disclosure... I dated this one girl long ago, and I told her that I liked Depeche Mode because I knew SHE liked Depeche Mode. Figured it was a white lie and no one would ever know the difference... Fast forward 37 years, and now I have to do a critical listen of possibly the most important record Depeche Mode ever had... ...and I hated it. How these guys ever recorded the number of albums they did or kept their careers going with essentially 2 songs IS BEYOND ME. And worse, I now have to basically confess this to my children (borne of that previously mentioned girlfriend) that I lied about this specific band just to get closer to their eventual mother... Oh what a tangled web we weave... Anyway, hated it. Probably a 1, but I'll notch it up to a 2 because I did win the girl in the end... Debatable whether it was due in part to my lie about Depeche Mode.
This album is weird and I kind of vibe with it because of that. Of course, some songs sound similar to each other and I didn’t even notice the album end, but I liked it as I was listening to it.
I think this is a solid example of the principal eighties sound. That being said, this is probably not something I'd revisit again, mostly just because I find other records to fill the same niche for me in a better way than this one does. The opening track, Never Let Me Down Again is by far my favorite and it had me excited for the remainder of the record, but I felt sort of let down as it went on. Is this a bad album? Absolutely not, but I struggle to understand what makes this record better than some of the work by other bands around the same time. Tears for Fears comes to mind, ironic because this album had the same producer as Songs From the Big Chair. Anyway, this was fine, not something I'd seek out, but not a bad time by any means. Did I need to hear this before I die? It's definitely a quintessential 80s album.
Fine, very 80s.
Good
Not my cup of tea
It wasn't a conscious effort to be cool (that's way beyond anything I am capable of), but just as Depeche Mode went stratospheric, I sort of went off them. I'd loved them throughout the eighties, but this is the last album I bought by them. Much as I love it, I didn't connect with it in the same way I did with the previous five. There are some outstanding tracks, the opener in particular remains one of my favourite Depeche Mode songs, and Behind the Wheel and Sacred also have that classic Depeche feel to them, but there were also a fair few duller moments that were missing from their previous efforts (Little 15, To Have and to Hold, I Want You Now). It was good to listen to this again, and I should probably listen to Violator one day but for me, Construction Time Again is peak Depeche Mode.
Never quite got on with Depeche Mode and I don't really know why - do they sound dated or just of their time - is there a difference? Something rather drab about them, and I like plenty of miserable music.
Great music for walking the halls of my Gothic mansion
Pues muy aburrido, no le veo algo que haga bien o mal. Es el tipo de canciones que tiene un edit de anime cyberpunk de los 80s o 90s. No se te queda nada de la canción, la escuchaste y pasaste de página a los 5 minutos. Vacío.
Competent but dull
One of my all-time favorites. I was surprised and thrilled to see this album come up today.
I love modern Ulver so I should love this.
Its no Violator. But it's pretty good.
Had never heard them before. I dig it. You can definitely hear where they influenced bands that would come later.
Very seranading Saved: The things you said Strangelove Sacred Little 15 Nothing
Not really sure where this album went at the end but the first half or so is solid. Saved (4) - The Things You said - Strangelove - Little 15 - Behind the Wheel - To Have and To Hold
These guys are better than I thought they would be. I've always heard of them but I never sat down and listened to any music by them except for Personal Jesus and only because Johnny Cash covered it. An excellent example of post New Wave.
There are a lot of excellent tracks here. One that I found unsettling but overall solid.
This is high-school Trey's least favorite music on Earth. 34-year old Trey kind of digs it. Is it dramatic and emotional? Yes. Is it cool regardless? Also yes. "Strangelove" made me immediately bob my head. Gets a little depressing after a while.
Finally got an album by one of my favourite bands. Easy five stars. The run of the first four songs is incredible and Nothing is one of my favourite songs by them. That said, the fact their best album (Songs Of Faith and Devotion) isn’t included on this list does make me think the author chose their albums more for the singles than the albums as a whole. This one does get slightly weak in the middle for a bit. Still love it.
not bad
Liked this more than anticipated.
good album for the background, will need another listen to really describe how it is. 2.5 rounded to 3
Pretty good, though I like other albums of theirs better. You can see a lot of inspiration for bands like Nine Inch Nails in their music.
1/3. Maybe I just wasn’t listening closely, but this never caught my ear at all. I feel like based on my music taste I should like Depeche Mode, but these guys just bore me. The voice, the general muted sound; this is a high offense to them but I imagine I’d get a similar album if I asked AI to generate a dark wave album for me.
You know what, I've clowned on so much britpop that I just can't give Depeche Mode a free pass. I appreciate them, I think they broke new ground in the synth-driven '80s, but this isn't the album to nominate here. Shoulda been Construction Time Again imo.
Fun album! I didn’t have a favorite, but I enjoyed the piece!
p568. 1987. 1 star. Pretentious mid-80s electro wank with no redeeming features. It's like punk never happened.
Love ittt
They certainly have a sound. Not very dynamic though. Its fine.
No. It just sounded like a durge. Odd track was ok
Sin duda no es mi fav, pero empezar un álbum con don’t let me down again debería de estar prohibido
A bit too emo but entertaining. Kings of dread infused techno.
Tem coisas interessantes. Mas provavelmente não ouviria de novo.
Good album. Maybe not their absolute best, but it features some of my all-time favorite Depeche Mode tracks, like “Strangelove” and “Behind the Wheel.”
Depeche Mode are a band I should like. They are of my time. They criss genres i like. But i think i like the a-side of the best of rather than liking Depeche Mode. Their clean minimalist electronica bores me and Martin Gore has a voice i want to punch for aome inexplicable reason. In fact people bang on about the contradt between him and the other singer but there is little difference to me - probaly the production doing a lot of work in this respect (make them sound like they are singing in an empty gothic church, make the backing track punchy, but the vocals floaty). The Dave guy vocalist does have a signature vibrato, but thats just annoying. And what’s with the laying of a beat and just leaving heaps of the bar empty apart from that? Don’t have enough melody to go around, you got to use it sparingly? Honestly, bored the shit out of me.
Nie lubie tego głosu wokalisty, muza tez srednia
One of my favorite albums from all the way back to my college days. It's still it's still a fine listen today. Definitely the hits "Strangelove", "Never Let Me Down Again", and "Behind The Wheel" stand out the most, but backed up dark a beautifully with the likes of "Little 15", "Nothing" and "PIMPF" (9.6) ★★★★½
Synrh pop with some cool textures. 3.5 stars
Not really into this. A few of the songs are okay -- notably "Never Let Me Down" and "Sacred" -- but overall, I don't really like the sound of this band, which I feel is mostly just corny synth sounds and a drum machine. 2.5 stars.
I dunno about this one apart from it being very deeply mediocre, ploddy, ghoulish n dour synthplop. Strangelove was OK because the sound of it made me want to play Goldeneye 64. Few other highlights though and last song was actually kinda ghastly. This album should be called Music For The Long Grasses because in terms of essentialness I’d kick this album off the list and into the long grass.
One amazing song on this record, maybe two really good ones. Not my favorite record of theirs. Can't give more than three because there are better Depeche Mode records in my opinion. This one is just ok.
i want you now like what omg loved it
Listened to it on the flight to Malaga. Solid as expected
Not chirpy music by any means, but feels like one piece of art rather than a lot of songs.
Better than I expected
Not bad that. I really enjoyed the beginning but got a bit bored. I liked almost every individual track but a whole album was a bit much
Loved this darker sounding tone. It feels like the climax of a movie and singularly unique.
A few good songs didn’t catch on
Never let me down: big gay vibes I guess bo Burnham is trying to sound like them sometimes lol This is early emo lol. Sad boi hours. What in the phantom of the opera. Why does it feel like im being inducted into a secret society. (Pimpf) (Upon further research "Pimpfe" refers to a subgroup of children recruited to Hitler's youth, so apropro i suppose). Would make good sci fi music (Agent Orange) (LOL the Wikipedia article says they were asked to score "some dodgy sci fi films" and they declined)
I'm not a fan of anything too drenched in 80's production and culture. Its probably because i came of age musically in the 90's and this was other peoples music. Im sure there is merit in there and i can see style and melody, but it left me entirely numb.
Excellent
Yup, this was a Depeche Mode album.
Big, dark, and moody like you would expect. Def in my rotation, but wasn't ground-breaking.. but maybe i've listened to it too much historically.
skipped a lot
Weird even by the standards of the time. I don’t like the weird breathing and mumbling- creepy.
Sounds like my dad’s car. I don’t hate it but I can’t say I love it either. Not a huge synth fan.
Seeee. Gran álbum. Oscuro y entretenido electropop. 8/10
Enjoyed it
I was a fan of Depeche Mode back in the early-mid 80s. Haven't really listened to a full album of theirs since Black Celebration - except the occasional play from a co-worker at the record store. I think by the time this one came out, I wasn't listening to much synth-based stuff. Listening to it now, it's not bad. It's also not something that really grabs me. The album starts strong with "Never Let Me Down Again" and "Things You Said", then things get comfortable, not bad just okay, until it ends strong with "Pimpf". The stuff in between is enjoyable but somewhat forgettable.
I'm taking a ride with my best friend!
Cool in that new wave way
very dated in not connecting much especially with the preacher voice
Boa música de fundo. Nada excepcional
Pretty good. Not their best
héél lekkere plaat. Route 66 waarschijnlijk favoriet maar veel nummers zijn bangers
music for the masses its me im the masses
a bit middling. much like jared leto tron ares, i also like depeche mode, but primarily through the lens of their popular hits played at clubs or via whichever trans person i am hanging out with who has control of the aux. in other words, i've never actually sat down to listen to an album in full outside of maybe their seventh album "violator", and this is precisely Okay. it's enjoyable to listen to yet at the same time it's just.... There. i don't know if there's anything that really stands out here to me. i'm a fiend of 80s synth but i don''t think this has aged overly well, all things considered.
I have a soft spot for the synth heavy sounds of mid-late 80s new wave, but I don't feel this album has aged very well. It really feels like a middle of the road synthpop album that doesn't really do much to stand out to me. The slower songs like "The things you said" reaaaally drag for me especially with the weird proclivity for repeating the same lines back to back. That's not to say there's nothing on here I don't like, I think Strangelove 88 is pretty great. On the other hand... Little 15 is a song that clearly is meant to be unsettling but just comes across as unenjoyably gross seemingly being about a relationship between a 15 year old and someone significantly older which, ew. Idk by the end of this one I was happy it was over, but its certainly not without any merit.
me escuché 3 canciones solo, no era mi estilo chat im sorry
very cool 80s synth rock.. would rate 3.5 but i cant
Nice
Depeche is actually my MO
that was legitness
Actually liked this album better than violator
favs: strangelove, little 15
First listen Saved 2/11 Top track: Never Let Me Down Again
3/10
The good songs are good unfortunately I could only identify 3 on the album with the best being sort of standard vaguely industrial electro pop. Nothing on it is bad per se it’s just not particularly great 2.7
I didn't like this as much as I thought I would. Just didn't jump out at me with any memorable tracks. It's not bad at all. Just not to my taste.
It’s just too weird, even for me.
Enjoyed most of this! I do like that whole dark 80s synth pop sound when done well, and for most of this I thought was canny. Never really listened to these before, apart from the big hits. Pleased I took the time!
Dark electronica, loved the way most of the drums and synths fitted together. Not quite as good as violator and I find the blokes voice a shade too croony but the music nearly always makes up for it. The things you said best of the bunch.
Not quite as entertaining as Violator, and it got a bit dark and church-esque at the end. Never Let Me Down Again and Strangelove were the standouts.
Ah, I mentioned 80s synth nonsense in yesterday's album review..... And here it is rearing it's moody head! Speak of the devil and all that. Anyway, I hated it. It's boring, it's too slow and i feel there is good reason people aren't still making music like this. It certainly is not music for the masses... 1
🥱
4.5 - really, really close to a 5, but I’m grading on the DM scale, and I want to preserve Violator as their peak. “Never Let Me Down Again”, “Strangelove”, “Behind the Wheel”, “To Have and To Hold” - these songs are as good as it gets. Eerie, gothy, but still great pop music. DM are a one of one, and this is a great record with just a couple songs that are “just fine” that keep it from 5 status.
This was kinda crazy but I liked it
I owned this album at one point, as well as Violator. I remember their being a bit of a slog outside of the hits. This leans that way—it really fades at the end—but DM does their thing well.
Never really listened to Depeche Mode and even when they were kind of very mainstream in the early 90s I never quite got it, i.e. I Feel You. But since moving to LA I have become aware they have an incredibly disproportionate influence in LA, which is pretty cool - apparently because KROQ pumped them for years and the people responded, and they played a sold out Rose Bowl touring for this album, which is really kind of crazy. This was a lot more interesting than I expected. Will have a significanly more positive attitude towards Depeche Mode going forward.
Looking at my Spotify "Liked Songs", I have 6 songs from Depeche Mode liked across 4 different albums - and only 1 song from this album - so it's fair to say I am aware of Depeche Mode but have only slightly dabbled in their music. I did see a Depeche Mode cover band one time like 10 years ago and thought it was a very good show. So, I'm curious to see what I think of this whole album. The one song I had already "liked" is "Never Let Me Down Again" - which seems to have been the hit song from this album and the one that I remember hearing on the radio. It's pretty cool. After the first listen through, the 2 additional songs I "liked" right away were the 2 instrumentals - "Plimpf" and "Agent Orange". They were a nice break from the voice which seems to annoy me. The music is good though. Funny how they are the least played songs on this album - according to the Spotify stats. Do people not generally like instrumental songs?? Also, apparently "Agent Orange" isn't part of the original 10 song release - oh well, still like it. After 3 listens, these 6 other songs grew on me - "The Things You Said", "Little 15", "Behind the Wheel", 'I Want You Now", "To Have and To Hold", and "Nothing". For some reason, I could not get into "Strangelove" and "Sacred". I'm glad this website/book got me to actually sit down and listen to this. Definitely digging Depeche Mode. Funny thing is, when this was new in 1987, I wasn't really into this type of music - but as time goes by it's grown on me. This also led me to discover a bunch of covers of Depeche Mode songs by other bands, and I really like the Smashing Pumpkins version of "Never Let Me Down Again". Liked songs on Spotify: 9/11 (10 on the original release, but I am counting "Agent Orange" even it it wasn't on the original release - so that makes 11) Rating: 4/5
No private session used for Spotify. Normally 80's heavy keyboard/drum track music sets me off on a rant about synth music, but for Depeche Mode gets a pass. I think its because their music is more complex and interesting than a lot of other synth bands from the 80's.
Despite being British and growing up with Depeche Mode as a constant presence both in the pop charts and in the type of "alternative" discos I used to frequent, I've never listened to one of their albums. I assumed I wouldn't enjoy 45 minutes of their goth-synth sound. I was wrong. This was ace! It turns out that 45 minutes of synthpop in one sitting isn't too much, after all. The goth phase must have come later. I still don't think I'd like that, but I'll probably give it a chance at some point.
i don’t think i realized this album was from the 80s
eigentlich ganz cool
I consider Depeche Mode's next album "Violator" to be one of my all-time favorites, but this one doesn't quite reach the same heights for me. 3/5
2/3
sort of cool, very familiar. impressive sound. didn't floor me.
This album is like living as a tortured genius of synth pop, cursed with a disfigured face and forced to live underneath the English nightclub that is frequented by the acid-fiends that dance to your music. By chance, you happen to meet a young French synth prodigy named Roxanne. You form a bond with this woman as you impart your musical genius upon her, and in turn she grants you the kindness of treating you like a normal human. To your dismay, Roxanne meets Phil - an American heartthrob with a rebellious style. Roxanne spends more and more time with Phil, even beginning to miss classes with you. To show her that your teachings are the one true path to synth nirvana, you start attacking other known stars. You kill Jedrick and Patricio, and in a mad panic you end up kidnapping Roxanne. However when you take her back to your lair, she looks at you with tearful eyes that betray fear. You realise you can never be with this woman, so you let her go, and leave town.
Was a bit same same in parts but otherwise a great listen
Just listen to Violator
No. 1.5
não me agrada
Sounds like Depeche Mode. In a good way, not a bad way. But Pimpf stuck out like a sore thumb from the rest of the tracks.
Clint eastwood…
A little to emo for me. But still a strong album.
3.5 stars. Synthpop but with dark undertones and an expansive production. The leadoff "Never Let Me Down" is great, and unexpectedly heavy for synthpop, helped by the driving sampling from Zeppelin's "When The Levee Breaks". Other standout is "Nothing" and the rest of the album doesn't really do it for me. Liked Gore pushing 'pop' boundaries with minimalist composer-inspired "Pimpf" but there are some real duds (like porno breathy "I Want You Now"). Overall an album I appreciate more than I enjoy.
Close your eyes, it's 1987. Regan is president, the wall still stands and you're in the mall sipping an orange julius...this is what is on your walkman.
Like Architecture and Morality, I'm tempted to give this one a five, you hardly can get a better pop album than this. Never Let Me Down is my favorite off of this, but every song up until Nothing is really good! I've made new second favorites on this relisten.
I’ve never listened to depeche mode before but I really liked this album. It was moody and had super interesting sound. Loved it! Favorites: Strangelove, never let me down again, behind the wheel, pimpf
Started off really strong. This album was such an interesting sound.
A belter of an album from a period where music was great
J'ai bien aimé c'était cool la musique et l'ambiance est vrm bien gérée et cristallise plutôt bien l'identité du groupe. Je me suis fait un petit kiff pour écouter la version extended c'était vraiment sympa ! Enfin bref, bon album
Actually listened to this one — pretty goated
3/5
Didn't pull me in to a full focused listen - probably deserved a better rating from the parts that I am recalling but.
A little weird for my taste but I managed to listen to it. An OK album.
Pretty good. Just barely a 4. Some songs pretty good, some songs dated blahness. Their other album Violator definitely deserves to be on this list but this one I’m not so sure about.
I liked this, but it didn’t fully grab me. I might come back to it again and revise my feelings but for now, I’ll say 3.
I never go in to Depeche Mode. I’m not mad I listened to this, but I don’t think it’s a revisit.
3.5/5
Favourite Songs: Never Let Me Down Again Behind The Wheel To Have And To Hold Nothing
Not Adam of synth pop.
This was great. Four stars.
I can't
Not one bad song. Could listen this album over and over.
I like the overall gothy sound. It's why I like the cure. This has more electronic sounds incorporated but still a good moody listen. I think there's a bit of filler (pimpf) but I'm glad I got to give Depeche Mode a shot
Never Let Me Down Again - 5/5 The Things You Said - 4/5 Strangelove - 3.5/5 Sacred - 4/5 Little 15 - 3.5/5 Behind The Wheel - 3/5 I Want You Now - 4/5 To Have And To Hold - 3.5/5 Nothing - 4.5/5 Pimpf - 3/5 Agent Orange - 2.5/5 Never Let Me Down Again - Aggro Mix - 2/5 To Have and to Hold - Spanish Taster - 2/5 Pleasure, Little Treasure - Glitter Mix - 3/5
Very strange music. Honestly, I can't tell what genre this is, but I don't like it.
Depeche Mode for me is all about the singles I have no patience for the millions of remix collections or inferior-audio live performance albums I was hoping for some gems hidden on this album, but I found nothing that came close to the very high bar set by the single releases This is certainly not the DM album I would have chosen for this list!
Not bad, I expected to like it less than I did because I've heard depeche mode before and didn't love it. I still don't love it, but it was fine.
i don’t usually like synth pop because a lot of the time it isn’t done right and just feels like 80s overload but i was pleasantly surprised by this. best track is sacred. would definitely listen again!
Decent album, I definitely like the first half more than the second half, at the end it got a bit wonky and I was turned off, over all nice listen
I'm coming to enjoy Depeche Mode the more I hear and whilst this didn't hit the heights of _Violator_, I enjoyed the contrast of its accessibility vs its experimentalism. Musically there are moments where you can hear this and the results are something that would have surely influenced a young Trent Reznor writing _Pretty Hate Machine_.Vocally, David Gahan shines as he often does and gives a warmth and humanity to the cold starkness of the music.
It's okayish, nothing really stood out with anything special, but as kind of background noise I did not hate listening to it. However, listened to the first bonus track and almost fell asleep.
Wow that's definitely 80s. Lots of synth, almost-spoken vocals with some reverb. Kinda reminds me of Pet Shop Boys. Reasonable amount of variety - though most of the instrumental variety is different synthesised sounds rather than actually different instruments, the tracks do sound different enough. Highlights: "Never Let Me Down Again" - does a lot despite the vocal range being about 2 notes "Little 15" - just like the vibe "I Want You Now" - bit of an interesting one. Didn't like everything it did but it got my attention. "Pimpf" - totally different from everything else on the album, built up in quite a cool way. I think with all of the above they're arguably a bit slow to get going.
Dark yet groovy, very enjoyable. Lyrics are a bit too simple / on the nose for the most part but it's clearly not where the focus is
Parece que nunca entenderé a Depeche Mode, está "bien" pero no me parece que haya algo demasiado extraordinario, o memorable, ni en el puro nivel de entretenimiento. Quizá tenga que darle más escuchas pero por ahora es un 2.5
Better than I thought it would be but still not my taste. The lyrics can good at times, but I don't like the music. The music is good sometimes, and the lyrics are less than stellar. The music & lyrics never match up at the same time to my taste. 2.5
great opening song - the rest was good vibes but didn't break through to me beyond that.
Catchy, sexy and erotic as fuck
I never paid enough attention to Depeche Mode, even if I like a lot of songs by them. To be fair, both this one and Violator have been among the best discoveries I've made using this fantastic website.
Very dark, I see where they have influenced other bands like Nine Inch Nails, but it's not my cup of tea. There are some good moments...but its an acquireddd taste. 2/5
Rating: 9/10 Short Review: This album has an incredible soundscape that captures you for its entire runtime. It's drenched in this almost gothic sound mixed with synthpop and every second of it is enthralling.
Too long
Started interesting and then got sick of it pretty quickly
Brilliant
Rather melancholy and a bit dated
The opener and second to last song were great. Didn't care for anything else
Way too 80’s for me
Well-made album I hadn’t heard before, the songs were congruent (recognisably Depeche Mode) but didn't seem repetitive, the patterns all sounded fresh (drums might have been same-y but didn't grate), some interesting harmonic progressions. Mood was rather melancholy but not forced. No particular song hit me as catchy or obvious hit single - intrigued to learn after listening that this was breakout period for the band. I could listen again without complaint - but not compelling. 7/10
Meilleur album pour le moment
One of the easiest 5*, legendary album, every song is a hit.
yep, same songs this 4 is veeeery light
I adore Depeche Mode but every time I listen, my hair turns black and falls into my face and I have to put on my black turtleneck and my black trenchcoat and wander the streets of London in the black of night. And airfare to London ain’t cheap! So it’s a rare treat. This album would rate just for “Never Let Me Down”, but there are so many Mode bangers on here.
Surprised how much I didn't like this. This is the 3rd of 3 synth-pop records I've had back to back (Pet Shop Boys and New Order being the other 2), and whilst this record uses it's synths the most tastefully of the three, "tasteful" on a synth-pop album tends to equate to boring
Unnecessary.
This album is pretty good. I didn't know what to expect but, once I got into it, it was a nice listening. It's not much of my like, but I've liked it and found really interesting so many aspects on here. The songs have a very surrounding atmosphere, are ethereal, but also pretty consistent and cohesive with so many layers that give them, at some points, a very cinematic flavor.
A band that seem to have been around all my life but one I’ve never really taken any notice of! I like some of their songs but none of those ones are here.
well yes.
This one did not do it for me. I like weird and different stuff, and I can appreciate that this was potentially the first of its kind when it released, but I don’t think I’ll ask someone to throw some Depeche Mode (at least this album) on for me.
I thought it sounded cool but just not really my thing. Likes a song or two but I don’t see myself playing this back.
Energetic, dark, very danceable, cool synth sounds, questionable drum sounds, cool overlapping vocals, great pop hooks. I liked this more than I expected. Favourite tracks: Never Let Me Down Again, Strangelove, Behind The Wheel, Nothing
Songs all offer something different, however none are stand outs. A good listen for synth, 80s pop.
Even as a depeche mode guy, I have to admit violator is 10x better.
This project is giving me good opportunities to figure out just why I don't particularly care for this kind of music. I didn't hate this album, and it even got my heading bobbing here & there, but the music just didn't really resonate with me and I'm not entirely sure why. Not bad, though, and there were a few standouts that I would like to hear again. Progress!
Pretty good album, like the first half a lot more than the second. Reading that this was the first where they started going a bit dark in terms of music and lyrics so interesting to see how they develop if other later and earlier albums are on the list
this is music for vampires
I got the other, significantly better Depeche Mode album way early into this whole thing, so this one is just kind of whatever in comparison. It's what you would expect, and it doesn't ascend past that like their subsequent work does.
5️⃣
Mooooooooooood
This was fine. I didn't recognize any songs off it. However, I know a few Depeche Mode songs and they have an extremely recognizable sound now that I've listened to a few more songs. It's good, but I'll stick to the hits.
Slow, psychedelic and weird, but I'm there for it actually
I respect this, but honestly 2.5.
8/10
When I was a teenager, this was the first album by DM that I *really* got into, thanks to a friend of mine who was a massive fan of theirs. He used to push me to check them out, and having mainly known the radio singles, I was intrigued by this record which I had never heard one song from. To this day, it's still close to my heart and probably in my top 3 DM releases (with "Ultra" and "Violator"). "Never Let Me Down Again" is a fantastic song -- I'm sure there'll be theories written about it still in fifty years. "The Things You Said" is wonderfully Kraftwerk, "I Want You Now" still sounds like nothing else almost forty years later. "Strangelove" and "Behind The Wheel" are brilliant dance pop songs, and the twisted "Pimpf" was a huge inspiration for my first band -- we were trying to merge these apocalyptic soundscapes with prog and post-rock influences. Great times ...
Sure! I had fun here!
Decent album overall. I’m a big fan of the synth wave sound, so this hit just right. Favorite track: Never Let Me Down Again 4
I could not get through it. I’ve heard their songs before but I don’t think this album did for me.
Their best music, in my opinion, came later. This one was okay.
Interesting even if it's not really my thing. Certain songs had a good vibe. I had to skip the song with lots of moaning. Couldn't deal with it.
First half was boring, second half had some good hooks. This project is making me realize how picky I am musically lol.
Great album. Just pure Depeche Mode vibes even though I didn't fully recognize any of these tunes. One fun thing I realized, being inspired by their early tunes (Just Can't Get Enough), these guys just love a drum machine. I know they were fairly common on the New Wave side of things but they utilize it so well and just know how to package an album. Depressing, moody, and dare I say fun
Superb album! This reminds me of my life in New York during the 80s, where I would walk briskly through the night returning video tapes and going to gothic night clubs.