Catching up with Depeche Mode

• Exciter

• Depeche Mode

What if you started – and won – a revolution, and then nobody really wanted you around anymore? That’s kind of the situation facing pioneer electronic band Depeche Mode, who had their biggest success in the late ’80s/early ’90s. Many current DJs point to their pre-electronica and massive remixes by Depeche soundscaper Alan Wilder as pivotal to the spread of early techno.

But then Depeche Mode committed the cardinal sin of once-cool bands: they just sort of hung around, way past their sell-by date, till fewer and fewer people were listening.

It didn’t help that the band nearly fell apart due to drug problems, physical breakdowns, and inter-band squabbling. After vocalist Dave Gahan nearly OD’d on heroin, and synth player Wilder left the band in a snit over his disproportionate workload, it seemed Depeche Mode was on artificial life-support, heading for the flatline.

But things didn’t work out that way. Songwriter Martin Gore kept on plugging on, writing his catchy euro-melodies and keeping the pulse going through 1999’s Ultra and this year’s Exciter. And now they seem to be getting young listeners’ attention again. They now find themselves playing outdoor summer gigs with Area 1, the traveling techno circus put together by Moby, sharing the stage with people like Stereophonics and Basement Jaxx.

Surprising for a band whose average member is pushing 40. In the world of recycled electronica, apparently, what goes around comes around. Now consisting only of Gore, Gahan and keyboardist Andy Fletcher (arguably the least creative member of the band), Depeche Mode push on, stripped down to concise songwriting and vaporous electronics, the occasional guitar accent or minimal bassline.

And yet, Exciter grows on you. At times, the drum machine rhythms and keyboard samples recall Violator, their huge 1990 album – the Wilder-sculpted masterpiece that made them big enough to play US football stadiums. Yes, the melodies are a tad reminiscent of early Depeche; but with songs like I Feel Loved, Dream On and Freelove, it’s almost a relief just to have them back, doing what works best. Singer Gahan’s voice, once angelic, has clearly been ravaged by time and abuse; yet it fits the world-weariness of Gore’s lyrics, all about lust, obsession, broken love, and the necessity of all these things. Gore is as dry and perverse as ever, especially on The Dead of Night. ("We are the dead of night/We’re in the zombie room/Heavenly oversights/Eating from silver spoons...")

Still beating the Catholic horse, Gore summons up Biblical witnesses in Breathe ("I heard it from Peter/Who heard it from Paul") and Gothic glam in most other songs. I counted the word "obsession" about 12 times, which should give you an idea of Gore’s views on love.

The biggest complaint for Depeche fans and casual listeners has to be the stripped-down production on Exciter (probably the most unintentionally ironic title in history). A far cry from 1985’s Faith, Devotion and Love, where producer Alan Wilder was spending literally all of his time in the studio, fashioning each Depeche track into something larger-than-life. It paid off: the band got bigger and bigger. Then Wilder, tired of slaving over a hot mixing board, split to nurture his side project, Recoil.

His absence hurt the creative side of Depeche: no more groundbreaking, floor-shaking dance remixes. Overnight, Depeche Mode became obsolete to the dance scene.

So what did they do next? They reinvented themselves, stripping away everything but the vocals, ethereal guitars and metronomic beats. And in a way, they’ve bought another short-term lease on life in the high-turnover electronic world.

It’s not like much has changed in Depeche Mode’s world-view; they still seem like decadent party boys living in a Tim Burton movie. But it’s nice to know the dudes can still register a pulse, as steady as it may be.