In a pleasing, if circuitous, act, original Depeche Mode member Vince Clark finally got round to remixing one of their tracks in 2011. Dave Gahan’s resonant baritone feels naked against a backdrop of harp, Alison Goldfrapp’s fragile, breathy version of the chorus, and the closing drifts of her soprano voice. Will Gregory and Alison Goldfrapp strip the bombast out of the song revealing the vulnerability at its core.
What did you expect?įorget “Enjoy the Silence”-opener “Halo” is the real star of Violator. Here noughties French producers Black Strobe preserve the urgency of “Something to Do”‘s refrain and whack a boisterous electrohouse beat under it. The record takes Einstürzende Neubauten‘s heavy duty industrialism and renders it chart-friendly, thus pulling off an audacious act of pop nous. DJ Shadow takes those foundations and stretches them until breaking point.Ĭonstruction Time Again is, arguably, one of the greatest early Depeche Mode albums. The anomalous original is an instrumental featuring kettle drums and cruddy electronics. Guitar scree, boom bap, and snatches of blues samples contribute to DJ Shadow‘s impressionist take on “Barrel of a Gun” B-side “Painkiller”. “Painkiller” (Kill The Pain Depeche Mode vs DJ Shadow) The first Exciter is given an acoustic makeover from idiosyncratic techno bod Dave Clarke, earning a place on our list for the sheer unexpectedness. “Dream On” (Dave Clarke Acoustic Version) The Mute boss and regular DM co-producer adds a different synth sound and some subtle alterations-it’s more a case of careful tailoring than obvious repurposing. This was the final release from the king-making Violator, and adding some spit and polish to the band’s crown is Daniel Miller. Sherwood would later refine-if that’s the right word-this abrasive, metal-on-metal style with work for Ministry, KMFDM, and Nine Inch Nails. “Master and Servant” (An ON-U Sound Science Fiction Dance Hall Classic)Īdrian Sherwood flexes his well-defined industrial dub muscle for this distorted take on the band’s eleventh UK single “Master and Servent” from 1984. Germany’s meister of glitch and erstwhile Wighnomy Brother decompresses the midrange chug of the original with his characteristic insectoid percussion, gentle guitar picking, and pastoral synth. “Lillian” (Robag Wruhme Slomoschen Kikker) Spoiler: features predominant wah-wah pedal. The Austrian downtempo pioneers smooth the edges off this Ultra cut, turning it into piece of medicated, heavy-lidded pop ideal for soundtracking the bumpiest of comedowns. “Useless” (The Kruder & Dorfmeister Session) The original track is taken in a new direction with washes of sci-fi synthesizer and Anthony Gonzalez’s otherworldly falsetto. It’s deconstruction time again.Ģ005’s Playing the Angel threw up a number of reworkings by well-regarded underground acts at the time, including the Robag Wruhme (see below) and M83, who were flush with accolades from their Before the Dawn Heals Us LP. We rifled through the swathes of Depeche Mode remixes out there (trust us, there’s a lot) to pick our ten favorites, so you don’t have to. Oh, and they’ve spawned two dedicated remix albums. Need proof? “Heaven” features reinterpretations by Matthew Dear, Thomas Fehlmann, and Blawan. Throughout the years however, these interpretations became more creative and experimental, with remixes commissioned from a disparate range of underground artists as much as established names, reaching the point where they effectively function as a barometer of current tastes within electronic music. At the beginning of their career, the form presented an opportunity to open up their sound to DJs, converting their chart-friendly synth pop into dancefloor tender. From their earliest days, Depeche Mode have understood the transcendent power of a good remix.
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