Following the passing of beloved band mate Andy Fletcher, the now-duo reunite on a touching, resurgent record.
Depeche Mode is a band that exists in extremes. They’ve lived a fast, hard life in their journey from screaming popsters to alternative titans. Brushes are notorious with the death of lead singer Dave Gahan, including a drug-induced episode in 1996 where his heart stopped beating for two minutes. Similarly dramatic has been their creative timeline: members such as Vince Clarke and Alan Wilder departed at inopportune moments, and creative tensions have occasionally escalated between Gahan and fellow co-founder Martin Gore. You can’t make an omelet the size it is in ‘mode’ without breaking a few eggs.
But even so, the death of keyboardist Andy Fletcher last year at age 60 proved heartbreaking. Along with Gahan and Gore, he was a founding member and played a key role in calming the egos and steering the ship. Speaking to NME, Gahan said: “Fletch was supposed to survive us all” and now that he’s gone “it still doesn’t feel real.” The band was unsure whether they should continue recording ‘Memento Mori’, their 15th record and first in six years. Yet the loss of Fletch will bring Gore and Gahan closer together.
‘Memento Mori’ – which translates from Latin as ‘Remember You Must Die’ – is informed by loss, but also by salvation and resurrection. After the troubled sessions of their previous album ‘Spirit’ (2017), and dynamic that saw Joe Gore take on major songwriting duties and Gahan sometimes feeling creatively blocked, here’s a chance to collaborate and encourage There’s a new energy to it. Adding producer James Ford [Arctic Monkeys, Shame] to the proceedings, along with Richard Butler of The Psychedelic Furs and co-producer Marta Salogni [Björk, Frank Ocean], the skeleton crew that recorded the album following Fletch’s passing were a Tight and powerful.
The subtle, understated tempo of ‘Ghosts Again’ is the sound of two companions bound by history to move forward, even as nihilism gloats: “Time is fleeting / See what it brings”, intense sighs. Similarly, a sprightly synth line on the Gahan-penned ‘Wagging Tongue’ is undermined by tales of “the great divide” and being forced to “watch another angel die”. They’re almost obsessively enamored with the subject matter, but Gore’s gorgeous delivery on ‘Soul With Me,’ a ballad that shares an aura and melody similar to modern R&B, is phenomenal: “I’m ready for the last pages / Goodbye kiss all my earthly cages / I’m climbing the golden stairs”.
There is always concern about whether ‘heritage’ works of this stature preserve it, stopping and re-issuing stamps by exploiting their cultural footprint – not the case here. ‘Memento Mori’ actually poses somewhat of an obstacle as Depeche Mode kicks off their massive world tour this summer: when songs are so strong, how many classics do they have to do these newcomers justice? can cut? ‘People Are Good’ has an iron-clad case, its stadium-shaking bass and beats ready to hold its place next to 1990’s hit ‘Enjoy the Silence’; The industrial feel of “Before We Drown” is piled on “Never Let Me Down”-sized theatrics.
It may seem miraculous to have an album of this quality after what the band has been through, but Depeche Mode have always turned the turmoil, tension, and darker moments of life into magic. ‘Memento Mori’ is easily their best album this side of the millennium, and, most importantly, a testament to creativity and friendship. The world of music is richer for it.
Details
- Release date: March 24, 2023
- Record label: Columbia
