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Depeche Mode: Bands
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Depeche Mode is an electronic music band from the town of Basildon, England. They have been one of the longest-lived and one of the most successful bands to have emerged during 1980’s. Depeche Mode is a pioneer in the genre of electronic music.
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The roots of Depeche Mode date to 1976, when Basildon, England-based keyboardists Vince Clarke and Andrew Fletcher first teamed to form the group No Romance in China. The band proved short-lived, and by 1979 Clarke had formed French Look, another duo featuring guitarist/keyboardist Martin Gore; Fletcher soon signed on, and the group rechristened itself Composition of Sound. Initially, Clarke handled vocal chores, but in 1980 singer David Gahan was brought in to complete the lineup; after one final name change to Depeche Mode, the quartet members jettisoned all instruments excluding their synthesizers, honing a slick, techno-based sound to showcase Clarke's catchy melodies.
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New wave/futurist band Depeche Mode became superstars when their best-selling single, "Personal Jesus," was released in 1987. They were one of the 80's most influential bands and have continued to record, including 2005's return-to-form Playing The Angel. Renewed interest in new wave has ensured Depeche Mode's continued relevance.
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Depeche Mode was formed in 1979 when Vince Clarke, Andrew Fletcher, and Martin Gore teamed together. The lineup was completed in 1980 with the addition of vocalist David Gahan. The group built a following in London and in 1981 released their first LP, Speak and Spell. That's when Vince Clarke left the band. Martin Gore took over the songwriting duties and they brought on Alan Wilder to complete the quartet. The group hit it big with the alternative music boom of the early 90's, but that's ... where the band started to fall apart.
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Keyboardist Andy Fletcher and multi-instrumentalists Martin Gore and Vince Clarke started Depeche Mode in 1976 as a New Romantic guitar-synth trio; singer David Gahan joined shortly thereafter, and the trio made the rather revolutionary decision to ditch all instruments except synthesizers. In 1981, DM released an impressive debut album, Speak & Spell, after which primary songwriter Clarke exited the group to form subsequent outfits Yaz and Erasure. Gore took over the songwriting reins, recruited a new member, Alan Wilder, and Depeche Mode began working toward its eventual (and rapid) rise to become the quintessential electronic/pop band of its time. DM's perfect balance--melancholy without being pretentious, electronic without being sterile--set the stage for five studio albums, one compilation, and one live set during the '80s, all of impeccable quality. In 1990, the band topped itself with the stunning full-length Violator, the record that would establish Depeche Mode as a mainstream superstar act. Unfortunately, DM began to unravel at this point--Gahan slipped into drug abuse and attempted suicide, and Wilder exited the band mid-decade.
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For Depeche Mode, the Palm Springs-area festival will mark the start of another Stateside trek for the British electro-rockers in support of their October release, Playing the Angel. The album has garnered the strongest reviews since the band's 1990 album, Violator.
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