Depeche Mode
Formed in Basildon, Essex (UK) in 1976 by Vince Clarke, Martin
Gore and Andy Fletcher while they were still at school. The
line-up was completed by frontman David Gahan and by 1980 they had
adopted the name Depeche Mode and immersed themselves in the
London 'New Romantic' scene (which spawned the likes of Spandau
Ballet and Visage).
Their debut single Dreaming Of Me scraped the lower
regions of the charts in 1981, and a follow-up, New Life,
almost made the Top 10.
Dominated by synthesizers and drum machines, yet retaining a
keen sense of melody, the band initially took their cue from
Kraftwerk. As evidenced on their insanely catchy Top 10
breakthrough Just Can't Get Enough (the first of 24
consecutive Top 30 hits) their lyrics weren't quite as enigmatic
as their Teutonic heroes, although they improved with time.
The success of Just Can't Get Enough (which no doubt is
still played ten times a night in French discos) paved the way for
their debut album Speak and Spell (1981), a promising
collection of synth-pop which made the UK Top 10.
Chief songwriter Vince Clarke quit shortly after, moving on to
new pastures with Yazoo and then Erasure. Gore wrote the songs for
the follow-up album, A Broken Frame (1982). Shortly after
the album was released, Alan Wilder joined the band as a
replacement for Clarke.
Like its predecessor, Construction Time Again (1983)
failed to make any significant leap forwards from the debut LP,
although it did contain the classic Everything Counts.
While the People Are People single gave the band
valuable exposure in the USA, their real breakthrough came with
1984s Some Great Reward (featuring Master and Servant).
The album was darker and more satisfyingly varied.
Black Celebration (1986) was deliberately darker still,
with much of the material creeping along at a funereal pace, and Music
For The Masses (1987) was the band's biggest US success to
date.
A 1988 sell-out world tour spawned a live album (101) followed
by another studio album (Violator) in 1990, which was
heralded as the band's best work since Some Great Reward.
By 1993s Songs Of Faith And Devotion, the clinical sound
was softened somewhat with a move towards more rock-centric
territory. A lot of long-time fans were understandably miffed at
the bands new direction.
Dave Gahan died in the Sunset Marquis, Los Angeles, on 31 May
1996 after overdosing on a 'speedball' of heroin and cocaine.
Miraculously, he was revived by medics after his heart had stopped
for several minutes - and then he was immediately arrested.
Gahan would ultimately conquer his dependency.
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