uploaded on 12/29/25
Depeche Mode - My Top 25 Songs
(written for alankane.neocities.org)
(began at some point in December, concluded on 12/10/25)
Depeche Mode have always been one of my very favorite bands. In fact, one of these days I'll dedicate a little section of this site just for a DM shrine where I can talk about how much I love the band and how much they've made my existence better over the years. But... that day is not today, and today is the day for a Depeche Mode ranking.
After being inspired by hearing numerous band song/album rankings, whether written or some middleaged fan rambling over a Youtube video (don't watch much Youtube, more like listen to an occasional video essay on a weekend while running or playing guitar). Seeing as how I love DM so very much, and I have around 30-40 songs that I could say I love a ton, but I thought that now was the time that I make the list, the definitive list.
A couple of things before we begin. First off, this is based purely on my opinion. Not on some other ranker's (that's not a word, is it?) preference or even popular opinion. This is what I think. I can respect other opinions to a point, but if you disrespect anything on this list I don't think we can be friends anymore. Another thing is that seeing as how I'm a living human being who is still learning or developing (because let's be real; you really don't quit developing. Have YOU ever met someone who is finished learning?) and in short these opinions are elligible for change in the future. I had to replace the #25 track midway through this list's compilation if that tells you anything. I may go back and make another 5 or 10 years later if we all live that long, but only time will tell.
Now that that's out of the way... let's begin, shall we?
The ranking:
25 - Policy of Truth (single from Violator, 1990) We're beginning the list today with a classic track from DM's most legendary album. Policy of Truth (the slightly longer single version is what I go off of today) is a great tune and one of the band's biggest hits in America, and for good reason. In the single version only, I love the first few seconds of the kind of ambient intro, like sunlight reflecting off of a clear pond or lake. It's got a great keyboard hook that has always sounded almost like an acoustic guitar, before the more exciting and varying synth parts enter, one of which sounds also like a slide down a guitar. Policy of Truth is a very rich, alive sounding song, and has some great instrumental breaks in it with Martin sounding like he's playing electric slide guitar again that just breathes ambience in the most "Heroes" way. Beautiful. Lyrically it speaks on the subject of dishonesty and lying in a relationship but that's not why I love it. Even though the mix of accusation and advice is a compelling compound, it's the music that gets me. A fine way to begin the ranking I do think.
24 - Light (b-side from Sounds of the Universe, 2009) Likely the first upset of this ranking. The casual (or even experienced) fan of Depeche Mode may very well be unaware of this song's existence. It is the amalgamation of "hidden gem", included as one of the denizens of bonus tracks from the infamous Sounds of the Universe deluxe box set, which was more known for its selection of demo versions of classics. Light is a song that I believe is better than anything on the final record. It is a spacey sounding electronic song set to a pop beat bemusing on existential topics, almost as a homage to the band's early work in a kind of nostalgic yearning. There is something about it that sounds very sincere and profound, and it is an enjoyable experience for a quick listen. It earns its spot here because while the former is technically superior, this is a list formed by personal preference, and so it sits at number 24.
23 - Death's Door (from the soundtrack for the film Until the End of the World, 1991) Another obscure track and criminal offense on my part, but I cannot help but include this song on the list. Death's Door was written during the Violator-era but never recorded until DM were asked to share an original song for the German movie, Until the End of the World. To be totally fair, I still haven't heard the version that is on the soundtrack (nor have I seen the film), and maybe I shouldn't include this here until I have, but I have listened to both the Jazz Mix (track on the Condemnation single) and the live piano version playing during the credits of the concert film Devotional. Again, if this were the live version, it would place higher, but unfortunately it is not. The live version, which consists solely of Martin, the backing vocalists, and Alan Wilder on piano, is positively stunning. The lyrics are some of Martin's finest: "Well I'm knocking on death's door/Will I take my rest/Among the blessed/Mother are you waiting/Father are you pacing/I'm coming home". It's just that the Jazz Mix doesn't come near to the glories of the live version, despite being a good tune in itself.
22 - Personal Jesus (single from Violator, 1989) If the prior wasn't an upset, this definately is. I am well aware that this is a classic track, beloved by fans for decades. And it has earned its merits, undoubtedly. Combining a bluesy guitar riff that persists throughout the track with electronic beats and textures, it was an exercise in experimentation for the band that was incredibly successful and inspired most of their work since. It is a great song, do not get me wrong. Again, list made by personal preference. I just found the repitition of the same guitar riff and electronics/percussion that only build slightly, broken up by the occasional "Reach out and Touch Faith!" a bit to much to make it a truly great track. The album version provides a breakdown, but the problem with that is that the song never really kicks back in. At least, not on the album/single version. Were this a live DM tracks ranking, this would soar up about 20 places. Maybe another time...
21 - When the Body Speaks (album track from Exciter, 2001) As many fans of DM who have ever stepped foot within a band fan site or the Mode subreddit know, Exciter is an album that is almost universally slept on, with the exception of a few tracks. This being one of them. When the Body Speaks represented the beautifully relaxed album that Exciter could have been, instead of the weird electro-ambient hodgepodge that we have. The majority of this track is just Gahan singing in a low register over Gore's clean guitar, played softly. And then the positively gorgeous electronics come in, sounding like a violin in the most beautiful way, and then the drums - really just a soft click in the background of this gorgeous piece - enter subtly. It is a truly magnificent piece in a quiet way, that comes only after a few listens. Putting this after Personal Jesus is blasphemous for most people, but I couldn't care less. Chef's kiss to this one.
20 - Sometimes (album track from Black Celebration, 1986) The merits of Sometimes are often eclipsed by that of it's fellow "some" song, Somebody. Though it will inevitably be treated the same on this ranking, the fact that it comes this far tells how much value it holds. Sometimes is short (coming in at just shy of 2 minutes), sweet, and to the point. Delivered by Martin, it is an honest confession of how the narrator tends to get carried away, before suggesting that his loved one, surely, must be as embarrassing as him... sometimes. Whether it is the lyrics or Martin's delivery or the piano (another piano only song) or the backing track that sounds vaguely like writing on a chalkboard in the most nostalgic way possible, it is a pretty, sweet, and very emotional song. A great listen and one of the better Martin songs on Black Celebration and best Mart-led tracks out there
19 - Agent Orange (b-side to Strangelove, 1987) Words are very unneccesary. They can only do harm. Another odd track that a lot of fans/listeners probably haven't heard of. In fact the only reason I know what it is is because I purchased a CD version of Music for the Masses that included four bonus tracks (2 b-sides and 2 remixes). Where do I even begin with this one? Well, it is an instrumental, and an absolutely extraordinary one. It's very downtempo, led by an Alan Wilder piano part and backed up with a thumping drum, a keyboard part imitating a flute, and whooshing sound effects, almost like... a frigid, psychological cold. The cold that you get when you hear cars driving on the interstate, and you're alone and far away from the road, but still close enough to hear it... but anyways! There's something in the piano that almost feels like a quiet despair, surrounded by a past life or passion while the world goes to hell. It is a powerful track (that doesn't need words to prop up it's emotional resonance) and one wholly worth both its place on the list and another listen.
18 - Sister of Night (album track from Ultra, 1997) If you haven't yet noticed, I do have a soft spot for the sweeter, quieter, and more melancholic songs of DM. Or any band, for that matter. But another of my favorite songs is Sister of Night, which was one of the first songs recorded for Ultra in 1996, when frontman Dave Gahan was still far from recovered from his crippling heroin addiction. You can hear the roughness in his voice, and that, combined with the desperate pleading of the lyrics and the gloom of the music, creates a wonderful track. They keyboard part, minimalist after a fashion, but works like a charm for the mood, hits like a lone streetlight after dark, illuminating the surrounding areas with an orange, soothing glow. The vocal harmonies on the chorus, "Oh sister, come for me/Embrace me/Assure me/Hey sister, I feel it too..." is simply magical, as if the songwriter is offering up his last bit of soul for some measure of consolation. By far and large a gem.
17 - Strangelove (single from Music for the Masses, 1987) Let me get one thing out of the way right now. I'm talking about the album version, not the one that is on the Singles 1986-1998 compilation. Were we discussing THAT version I highly highly doubt it would even appear on this list. If you prefer that version, feel free to navigate your cursor up to this tab and click on the litte "x" on the right side. Do us all a favor. Since that's out of the way, let's begin. First off, Strangelove has this beat that makes me want to stomp like there's a walker head underneath my foot. Also absent from the single version. There's that beat and the lead synth line that's one hell of a hook, a rumbling bassline, and then the lyrics start. "There'll be times/When my crimes/Will seem almost unforgivable/I give in/To sin/Because you have to make this life livable". There's so much energy, lyrics riddled with sexual undertones (so much so that they might be OVERtones at this point); a true blue DM classic and very definition of a "banger", though I do use this term comedically. Jokes aside, this is a great track with a frenzy that many of their other tracks just do not meet.
16 - Precious (single from Playing the Angel, 2005) Some bands simply cannot create quality material 25 years into their career. Fortunately for us, Depeche Mode are not one of those bands. They proved this to us when Playing the Angel came out in 2005, and that album was preceeded by this track. Now I'm not one of those types of guys who calls everything post-Ultra mediocre except for this album, which is good. I actually prefer Sounds of the Universe to PTA, but that's a discussion for another time. Precious is a very powerful song where Martin confesses what is obviously the failures of his first marriage. It has a great guitar/synth part (not totally sure which is which), a excellent synth solo with an intense guitar backing, and Dave singing in the high range. Despite this Precious does suffer slightly on this list for its totally out of whack production. All the wrong sounds are emphasized on here, oh, and don't turn it up too loud, or the power chords might blow your speakers out. But it is still a very quality song, and is up there with the classics.
15 - Judas (album track from Songs of Faith and Devotion, 1993) The follow-up to the colossal hit Violator had some things in common with its predecessor, namely, the quality production and refined edge. However there were stark differences at times. I feel that SOFAD had far more spirit and soul than any album that preceeded it nor any record that came after (even the one called Spirit). This track, which is the middle point of the album, has bucketsful of both. It is Martin explaining that, in a world full of hipocrites and false friends and loves, someone who wants to love him must endure some hardship. Like Somebody (we're getting there, don't worry), it is sweet and sincere, but more experienced and jaded, as it came out 9 years later. Judas begins with a Celtic-sounding pipes effect before transitioning into a minimalist electronic atmosphere. A truly wonderful song and does a lot for the album it appears on.
14 - Ghosts Again (single from Memento Mori, 2023) That bit that I said at number 16, about how 25-year-old bands can't always make good material, applies tenfold here. Few bands make it 43 years, sure, but very very few of those that do survived: the departure of the inital songwriter AFTER THE FIRST ALBUM; the departure of the production maestro and "real musician"; alcohol abuse; a near fatal heroin addiction; one terrible tour where the last 3 points all came to wretched fruition; and the death of a longtime member and group mediator. It was the last point that formed the birthing ground of DM's most recent album endeavor, Memento Mori, created in the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak. And Ghosts Again is the highlight of this work. Ghosts Again boasts synth textures underneath a great Gore guitar riff a la Enjoy the Silence, with lyrics reminiscing on the loss of bandmate Andy Fletcher before ultimately sharing the message that life is short (remember, you must die) and that you should use all of the time that you have wisely. It's pop in the most dark, insightful, and, most importantly in a pop song, listenable way. Truly a masterpiece, such a rare thing for a band in their early 60s. This just goes to show what an extraordinary band Depeche Mode are.
13 - Home (single from Ultra, 1997) Probably the most famous and well loved songs sung by Martin Gore out there, rivaled only by Somebody and perhaps A Question of Lust. Home is closer to a traditional DM piece, which is rare given that most Mart songs are more relaxed, minimalist, or just full on ballads. There is, however, a ballad in there someplace, buried up under the electronic beats and effects. Listening to Home is like standing alone in the wind, with a grey sky hung over you. Not good, not bad, but calm. The ending/outro is the most beautiful part. After the lyrics have come to a close, Martin arrives with a quality electric guitar part, straightforward rock but somehow fits in with this beautiful song. Then it transitions into a string led part that just builds and builds until it has reached it's glorious precipice before the song fades out. This is even better on the live version from the Memento Mori tour, where the strings build up even further and it reaches a totally different planet, backed up by live drummer Christian Eigner pounding on the drums at dangerous speeds. Home is a wonderful track, and in my opinion, the very best of it's album and time period.
12 - Black Celebration (album track from Black Celebration, 1986) Quite possibly the most legendary non-single DM song out there, and it has earned that title. Black Celebration opens the album of the same name, and not only is it one of the best albums out there, it is a superb opener. It starts with distorted voices whispering "Blllacckkk Ceelleeebbbraaation" before more parts on the keyboard enter until the song really kicks in. This song isn't just a darkwave song. Black Celebration, album or song, IS darkwave. This song, for me at least, literally defines a genre. It is also 80s in the most epic way, with synth parts that are audibly dated but that only adds to the effect. BC is a kind of triumphant song in the most goth way possible, hence the name. The backing vocals, the parts where everything stops except for the occasional drum attack (drum machine) and Gahan's singing - this is one of the band's defining tracks.
11 - I Feel You (single from Songs of Faith and Devotion, 1993) The band's big statement, their comeback after three years of virtual hiatus and an impeding sense of "where do we go from here?", and an absolute monster of a song. It's a shame it couldn't placed higher, ever so slightly outside of the top 10, but once we get to the top 10 it gets so incredibly challenge. In short I'm sorry to snub this track but it's just barely less good than the ones that follow. Making this song (as the lead single off a new album) was like giving the industry the finger and doing whatever the hell they wanted to do. Like Personal Jesus remastered, this is Depeche Mode in rock god mode. Featuring live drums and a blues-rock guitar riff, it hits hard, harder than a lot of the grunge songs of the time period did. Dave Gahan is older (around 30 by this point), and a combination of age and drug use made his voice harsher, with a grittier, rougher edge, and it suits this track perfectly. Slides and bends on the guitar, drum fills, church organ chord progressions, I Feel You is a bombshell, of raw, devout energy, taking the guise of divine worship but almost certainly submitting to something more sensual. This is a great track, and even though it doesn't quite make top 10, it does make number 11, which in a band as good as Depeche Mode, is incredible in its own right.
10 - Shake the Disease (non-album single, 1985) Here we are. We've reached the top 10 of the list, and we're kicking it off with a true DM classic, Shake the Disease. I think that Shake the Disease bridged two distinct styles of DM in a totally flawless manner; the pop sensability and catchy tunes of Some Great Reward, and the darker atmospherics and heavy songs of Black Celebration (though not saying that SGR didn't have heavy songs; see Blasphemous Rumors). Landing a year between the two albums, it was, at the time, the amalgamation of all that the Mode represented; synthesizer music with general accessibility but with more than surface level depth, songs that create a more vibrant atmosphere that's darkly alive in a way no top 10 radio hit ever ought to be, and those weird random sounds made either with a sequencer malfunction or a sample hailing from a German construction site (I miss those). This song (whose initials I just noticed are StD...) is lyrically about a person who, in typical Gore fashion, loves his partner but values his independence highly and doesn't quite have the communication skills to make her understand. I said that it was typical; and it is, but not in a boring way. It's like the representation, a career retrospective in a single song. The keys in the verse are muted which I am very fond of. There is a synth solo about midway through to which both the journey and the destination are outstanding. And let's not forget the legendary Martin "aahhs" that permeate the song. A true legend and a worthy #10 on my list.
9 - Waiting for the Night (album track from Violator, 1990) This one did land higher than anticipated, but the more I listened to it, the more I liked it. This was originally going to be included in the name of this site (alankane.waitingforthenight.neocities.org) but Neocities didn't allow an extra dot so I had to nix it. Anyways, Waiting for the Night is a duet, and it is one hell of a duet to boot. Gahan and Gore share the lead vocal roles, with Dave singing more as Martin vocalizes. There are some electronic ambient effects in the background, a synth bassline that throbs not in a dance floor way, but one that soothes, almost provides an anchor point in a piece with no drums that is oh so easy to get lost in. Even though it has lyrics (about the solace of nighttime), it possesses the legendary Eno quality of creating visceral landscapes within a 5 minute piece of music. It's one of those songs where you're listening to it and you're thinking it's pretty good until THE part starts. "And when I squinted..." is when the song gets real. I'm not a skilled musician so I can't tell if it's a key change or something that makes this abrupt change but suddenly you're in another world. I think it's something to do with Martin's vocals differing but that's all I can tell. There's a sense of suspense or something but there's also a great comfort to it. And not to mention the outro, whose Martin vocal have been the crowd soundtrack of years of Depeche Mode concerts since 2001. This one has clearly had an affect on people, and for good reason
8 - Walking in My Shoes (single from Songs of Faith and Devotion, 1993) For a once-favorite of mine, Walking in My Shoes placed lower than I thought. That's not to say that it isn't a totally awesome song though. Walking in My Shoes is a definitive Mode song, and has been a live stape since it's inception on the infamous Devotional Tour in 1993. For good reason too. A dismaying piano, distorted just so, opens the piece, playing chord progessions that instantly set the tone for the rest of the song; this is a song of suffering. The lyrics are all about the crimes, offenses, and sins the protagonist has committed and also the misfortune that has befallen him, and yet he pleads with an audience to consider things from his point of view... except that they would struggle to deal with the trials that he has had to deal with for so long. Alan Wilder plays an actual bass guitar on here, a grumbling backbone to the song that is augmented by a drum beat that is like "if alt rock and gospel had a baby, but gospel cheated on alt rock for Satan and so the baby is evil". What an analogy... but one of my favorite and most signifigant pieces of this song is Martin's guitar. He picks chords throughout the chorus, adding another soundscaping layer to this song, before getting his own solo featuring an e-bow that's like if the sound of a human being surviving years of suffering was played on a slide guitar. Then we get another verse complete with a string ensemble and.... another solo for the outro! Walking in My Shoes would be a good song if it came out in 1986 but because of the SOFAD philosophy that the followed (incorporating more traditional instruments) it is elevated to a legendary height.
7 - Somebody (single from Some Great Reward, 1984) I'm going to be totally transparent here. I didn't especially enjoy Some Great Reward when I first listened to it. It's good, don't get me wrong, and it's only gotten better as I've gone back to it over the past few months, but it still is, to me, easily a step down from Black Celebration. Or Black Celebration is a step up... I don't know. But there is one thing about that album I simply cannot deny nor do I want to. Despite it's merits as a complete record, Some Great Reward had some truly legendary individual songs. The most legendary being Somebody. Somebody is a piano only ballad sung by Martin Gore, and was the first of it's kind I think. Nothing beats the original. Somebody is about Martin declaring his love for his girl, simple as that. I feel that 95% of "love songs" are on some level of insincere and overly sappy ("Though things like this/Make me sick") but this one just isn't. Listening to the lyrics I think that Mart must feel something like the way I do and that is a very comforting thought. The piano is sweet and emotional, played lovingly by Alan Wilder. The whole song, despite Martin fearing he's being cliche or insincere, is permeated with a sense of devotion and adoration, and is a lovely, pretty, no, downright beautiful song. Legend has it that upon the recording of this song, Martin stripped off his clothes and sang it nude.
6 - Everything Counts (single from Construction Time Again, 1983) This is the classic Depeche Mode song. To me it was also their first truly great song (See You possibly could contest it but I say this with little certainty). Granted, they had some really good ones in their very early years prior to this, such as See You, Dreaming of Me, Photographic (Some Bizarre version, naturally), Leave in Silence, and I guess Just Can't Get Enough, but this was their first song chronologically that really left an impression on me. Everything Counts, the song about corporate greed getting way out of hand, somehow has summer ingrained deeply into it's DNA, and I love that to death. I love summer you see. Not for the weather (it's actually quite miserable here usually), but it makes me feel some type of way that just isn't present throughout the months of August - April (I don't count August as summer; at that point it's been going on so long it's stale and it's just too damn hot). Everything Counts triggers this with little regards to the time of year. It makes me want to empty my pockets and jump into some dirty pond or less dirty swimming pool someplace. It has the innovative and outlandish sampling styles they had come to develop but DM retained their fondness for pop melodies... and somehow merged the two, and even improving the latter on this song. Everything Counts also is incredible live, namely the versions from the renowned Rose Bowl show in 1988, and the Devotional rendition from 1993. It's a great song that never slows down or leaves you hanging, and it's put a smile on my face whenever I needed it for years.
5 - But Not Tonight (b-side to Stripped, 1986) After all of these random songs being put on this list there's probably some hardcore DM song that wants to lynch me. If they do I'll go out singing this tune. But Not Tonight, after careful consideration, is one of my top Depeche Mode songs, because, despite it's minimal production and nature, it has everything I need and want in a song. I will die on the hill that But Not Tonight is the "canon" closing song of Black Celebration, seeing as how it is an infinitely superior final song than New Dress and definately just a better song overall. But Not Tonight is predominantly a keyboard piece with a drum machine in the background along with a few intertwining parts along with a Dave Gahan vocal. The lead keyboard part has one of the best hooks in Depeche Mode history, starting right from the beginning of the piece. It goes hand in hand with the opening track thematically, albeit this song being more triumphant, but it's a quiet celebration this time. The kind of celebration that is followed only after a long while of suffering. Like getting off work or school after a long, hard week, ordering some habachi, and watching three episodes of Castlevania all in one night. You're tired, exhausted even, but now you're finally finally free. And it is a silently glorious feeling. This feeling is ingrained in the entire track. See now why it's such an excellent closer?
4 - In Your Room (single from Songs of Faith and Devotion, 1994) Notice how I put '94 instead of '93 for this song? The reason being: I'm talking about the Zephyr Mix. The version of the song that appears in the video and on the Singles compilation, with more guitars and piano. Now, don't get me wrong, the original, the one on the album, is superb. That's the one with the longer intro, no guitars, and is more subtle, more on the atmosphere. I tend to go between liking the album or Zephyr version better, and at the moment I prefer the latter. In Your Room is a fantastic song, truly amazing. Where the original gives off more "malign ballad" energy, this version is definately more passionate, more desperate, but still sinister in it's own way. Whether it's through the intro/verse guitar and piano chords evoking a sense of ominous comfort, or the bit where the song really starts with Martin almost shredding on guitar, playing long notes that sound as if he's bending the strings so hard his fingers might bleed, or Gahan reflecting "Will I always be here..." through the outro of the piece, this song has a truly impeccable mood. It also bleeds gothic essence, and if I we're trying to get a casual Beatles fan into goth rock, this would be the first song I would play. In Your Room is a song of love and passion gone to the lengths of tiredness, that it's been going on for to long and has lost whatever appeal it had. It is someone surrendering to somebody he once loved not out of affection, not really; just out of fatigue or out of indifference. This song paints a vivid picture lyrically and puts an absolute beast of a song behind it. When I have my headphones on and I hear the "Will I always be here?" that's what I think about this song... that I might always be here... listening to it. Sorry, horrid analogy. You get the gist, next song.
3 - Never Let Me Down Again (single from Music for the Masses, 1987) I'm. Taking a ride. With my best friend. We've officially reached the top 3, I ultimately had to give the bottom (of the very top) to Never Let Me Down Again, also known as Depeche Mode's greatest live song. That's not to say that Never Let Me Down Again is not an absolutely astronomical song. It's got that beginning lead hook on the synth, rumored to be a sample malfunction before the John Bonham drum samples kick in, with the droning bass notes and the two keyboard parts interchange and share the spotlight. Dave comes in, very assured sounding, singing the aforementioned lyric line. This is just as much of a road song as it is a drug song. A funny thing about it; I'm anywhere from quietly enjoying it or downright headbanging through this song (very headbangable you see) until I stop and smile when the "Promises me I'll be safe as houses/As long as I remember who's wearing the trousers" line hits. This song has everything, and I mean that literally. I mean, everything besides a soothing instrumental break, but that would only ruin the mood. And then that part hits, where there's the high notes on the keyboard, the part where were we at a DM concert (if only!) Dave would start waving his hands and the entire crowd would wave back. It shifts into an epic outro with Martin singing "See the stars, they're shining bright/Everything's alright tonight" over Dave bellowing the title. The whole thing feels like your flying, on the ground in or the sky, going 70 miles per hour, but you're not concerned about being pulled over or crashing or anything. It's carefree euphoria. See what I mean? It is a drug song... but I just interpret it as feeling freed from all earthly responsibilities or at least postponing them for a time to enjoy life for just a few minutes. Also a track that is even better live. It translates beautifully into a more rock oriented lineup with drums and guitar, and the energy is out of this world. One last thing; check out the Smashing Pumpkins cover of this song. Not better than the original but it is a good take on the song.
2 - Stripped (single from Black Celebration, 1986) To be totally honest, I don't really know where to begin with this one. Stripped is such a masterpiece, there's so much I could say about it, it's just that I'm not literary enough to put it into words. Maybe we'll start with how I feel about it. Like I said, Stripped is a masterpiece. From the opening stab of the keyboards to the shuddering outro, there's not a bad or even fair second on the entire thing. Oh: I mean the album version. Reason being, in the single/video version they cut out the instrumental break where the gorgeous darkwave synth enters after the second chorus, and cut straight to the part where the vocal comes in over it. Nothing against the lyrics (Dave channels his iconic baritone wonderfully here) but that part without them is literally the best part of the song. It's occurred to me while compiling this ranking that Black Celebration is an album of triumphancy with a lot of darkness in between. In fact the darkness never really starts or stops, it just lets itself go for a little while. I love the buildup in this song, with the first keyboard notes before the clunky drum beats starts and the engine sounds enter, until Dave starts singing with single keyboard notes in the background, requesting that the other person in the song goes with him to forget their troubles and just relax with him for a little while, and forget about the world and it's issues. The words in this song are insightful and pretty in a very Gore way. "Let me hear you make decisions/Without your television" is a fantastic line and I truly believe that it has subconciously helped me watch much less TV over the years. For the rest of the song there's a drum machine beat, harsh and slightly aggressive, synth and keyboard lines that wax and wane and intertwine together impossibly well, and a smooth sounding bassline that holds the song together despite being occasionally ignorant of it's ignorance. The 101 version is also superb, with longer runtime, more variations, and that epic bells thing that Alan Wilder plays I think (might be Mart). Simply put, Stripped is just shy of being Depeche's best song, but still a 10/10.
1 - Enjoy the Silence (single from Violator, 1990) Here it is. My number one favorite Depeche Mode song, and for once, it is probably the expected choice. Enjoy the Silence has gone down in music history as generally the band's greatest track and arguably the most famous one, and it has gone above and beyond "earning it's merits" in both my book and the world's. It is the culmination of every artistic development and experiment up to that point, and flawlessly blends electronic, rock, pop, and alternative into a very distinctive and just perfect 4 and a half minute song. I would say that it's like the period at the end of DM's 10 year sentence, but it would be more appropriate to say that they wrote a whole other paragraph and then dropped the period. On the video version (the best remix in my opinion but both the album and single versions are also excellent) it starts off with a Martin vocalizing sample along with synth chords/notes, playing them in a manner that feels like a countdown of sorts. There's the synth bass, low and computational that's vaguely danceable, and then the shimmering keyboard part that's like looking at a lake or ocean and seeing the shiny parts of the sunlight reflecting off the water, a kick drum, until finally the guitar enters. It's sweet, kind of relaxed, and almost contemplative in sound. The guitar isn't distorted, not heavily at least, but it's not entirely clean either. Some kind of tonality magic is going on there. Dave Gahan's voice comes in and it is superb, putting all the might of his deep baritone into play. This song has some great rhymes, having "silence" follow "violence" and "broken" follow "spoken", but it's the chorus (Dave's delivery is outstanding here) that really gets me: "All I ever wanted/All I ever needed/Is here in my arms/Words are very/Unnecessary/They can only do harm". Pure lyrical gold. The second chorus is where things get real, and it usually makes me stop and consider my existence and if I'm using it properly. It's the same words, but then the bassline, deep and thoughtful, that comes cascading down, like a waterfall made of synths in a manner of speaking. After that there's a keyboard solo that eliminates any doubt from that point of if this is not the greatest singular song of the past two centuries. There's one more chorus, until finally, the outro begins, solemn, but celebritory. Like a quiet celebration of peace, of serenity. Another part enters, a synth brass part, like a trumpet, and lays itself kindly over the rest of the composition, it gets the spotlight but not in a showy way, and the rest of the song is still visible, with Martin's outstanding vocalization continuing. The song fades out until it is almost invisible, before Gahan and Gore send it off with a last, intimate but detached "Enjoy the Silence..." When the outro starts and the brass enters, it's like realizing that your own life is flashing before your eyes at the speed of light, but that maybe, just maybe, you'll do better the next day. Enjoy the Silence was one of the first "real" songs I ever heard, and it was so much better than the bland pop music of the times (has it REALLY changed?), because it had character. It's not a technically perfect song, but it's real. Human. And that is why it is the best song I've ever heard.
Average year (because I like averages): 1992.48
That's it. That's the list. I'll be honest; this was a really enjoyable project to write. Part argument, part "diehard fan gushing", part confession - not written anything quite like this before. It was very enjoyable for me and I hope that it was for you too. In the future I would totally be open to doing another one of these for a different artist (Morrissey solo anyone?) but I will say now that I'm not as well-versed in another band's discography to the extent that I am with DM's. I can't code a comments section at the moment, sorry, but if you felt particularly strongly about any point of this, there's surely some kind of comment/messages place within Neocities if you want to communicate your opinions. I would be pleased to read it even if your opinion is different :)
Thanks for reading, if anyone even did...
and see you at some other time.
