Depeche Mode, Spirit (2017) A Review

Depeche Mode, Spirit (2017) A Review

By: Ghost Writer

Somewhere in time, Depeche Mode lost interest in being that slick synth pop band from the UK and morphed into something else, they flirted just like U2 dis before with blues and gospel in their “Personal Jesus” era, now they are turning into something else again, something dark rebellious and rabid, is this the official soundtrack for the so-called alt-right? Well that was Richard Spencer's statement, Spencer is one the most visible faces of the alt-right movement that spawned along Donald Trump triumph in the USA, Spencer is far from an ideologue or a thinker, more of a spokesman for the movement, or a punching bag if you saw that video on You tube, but if you want real depth about radical right wing politics, please better go to people like Hans Hermann Hoppe or Nick Land, now back to music, front man Dave Gahan thinks Spencer is a cunt by the way, and Spirit is the latest recording by this legendary electronic band, a new step on their ongoing evolution and one that ironically gets inspired by the political turmoil going on  the world these days, intolerance, ignorance, violence, xenophobia, yes, it's kind of strange but now Depeche Mode is a political revolutionary band, a paradox for a band whose French name means "Fashion News" in English, but just as Gahan sings in the opener Going Backwards:

We are not there yet
We have not evolved
We have no respect
We have lost control

Gahan sounds concerned about where civilization going and how it is “de-evolving” (just like fellow electronic rockers Devo predicated once), literally going backwards on history, destroying years of civilization, it’s a simple questioning, nothing deeply profound or philosophic, but it's quite shocking coming from DM.

Depeche Mode are truly a core part of the UK musical avant-garde, they along with the late Bowie records, some of the best of his career, Wire, who have just issued a new powerful record and Brian Eno, whose return to activity has brought us a couple of great records in recent years and an Eno more active than in past decades, confident about this, and true to their intriguing legacy, the band comes with another powerful song to add to their legendary repertoire, Where's the Revolution with singer Dave Gahan soul possessed by Lenin in an invitation to destroy the state, just as Stephen Bannon would wish to do.

You've been kept down

You've been pushed 'round

You've been lied to

You've been fed truths

Who's making your decisions?

You or your religion

Your government, your countries

You patriotic junkies

Where's the revolution

Come on, people

You're letting me down

Where's the revolution

Come on, people

You're letting me down

So, what else do you need to start a riot? Brexit, yes, this might be the sound of the UK jumping from the cliff and right into the unknown “Trump” lake, it's a dark and apocalyptic record that questions violence, racism and nationalism among so many things, it might be a more literal “rage against the machine”, as Depeche Mode is going against civilization current direction, but the emotional catharsis doesn’t end there, as there is more to come in the form of the obscure The Worst Crime and its depressing lyrics

Blame misinformation, misguided leaders

Apathetic hesitation, uneducated readers

For whatever reasons, we now find ourselves in this

We are all charged with treason

And there's no one left to hear

Not heavy on the music, but more concentrated in atmosphere and in space, deep and dark space, just to return to more upbeat and lyrical aggressive themes, like Scum with lyrics like:

Hey scum, hey scum

What have you ever done for anyone?

Hey scum, hey scum

What are you gonna do when karma comes

A-calling, and you're falling

And there's nowhere left to run

And you're weeping, and not sleeping

And you're begging for your gun

Pull the trigger

Violent, cerebral stuff for violent, cerebral times, this is not the old DM that put you to dance or questioned your faith, this is a Depeche Mode that demands deep thinking and radical actions, on that still can surprise us with the dynamic You Move, the “Scott Walker meets Nine Inch Nails” of Cover Me, or delight us with the Bowiesque robo drama of Poison Heart, and then going almost krautrock on the triumphant So Much Love, a definite highlight of the record, right before the abrasive Kraftwerkesque Poorman.

This time Depeche Mode is adopting a more menacing attitude and turning dangerous ideas into music, Spirit is a sign of the times, it perfectly captures the “spirit” of the world as we are going into uncharted dark territories and is also a sign of, despite the awful Brexit, the healthy state of the UK´s electronic rock Avant Garde, even better, is perhaps the wanted reaction against darkness that we were all waiting to happen.